The Most Dangerous Game Literary Analysis Essay

To Hunt or Be Hunted? That is the Question

Have you ever thought a certain way to later have that thought process changed? In The Most Dangerous Game written by Richard Connell was original published in 1924 and won the respected O. Henry Memorial Award in both 1923 and 1924 which goes to show that this story is well worth reading. Although this story integrates literary fiction, it is classified as a commercial fiction because it is merely for entertainment. This story has a lot of suspense and mystery behind it and will keep the reader entertained throughout its entirety.

The plot of this story is about an avid hunter (Sanger Rainsford) and his friend (Whitney) sailing through the Ocean on their way to the Amazon basin for a hunting

trip. The two men discuss how they believe the prey feel when they are hunting them well into the evening. Whitney points out Ship-Trap Island and explains to Rainsford the that the sailors can sense danger and therefore they are jittery. Later Whitney heads to bed and Rainsford stays on deck, when he hears three-gun shots off in the distance. Rainsford decides to go closer to the railing of the boat, when he loses his balance and falls overboard. Rainsford quickly realizes that the yacht is not turning around for him, so he swims to the island to safety. Rainsford makes it to the island and finds a house where someone lives. This is the home of General Zaroff, a man that loves to hunt all specimen of animals. After several hints from Zaroff that he has found a new species of animal to hunt, Rainsford finds out the it is the human species he likes to hunt. Zaroff decides that Rainsford will be the ultimate challenge and he will appreciatively hunt him. Rainsford has conflict with this and wants no part of this game, but is forced to run and try to survive three days before he later returns to the house and kills Zaroff, ending the game.
Sanger Rainsford would be considered the protagonist since the story revolves around his character.

He is also considered a dynamic character, since at the beginning Rainsford does not agree with Whitney when Whitney suggest that the animals comprehend fear and after he endures his encounter with Zaroff he also senses a “certain dread.” We do not know if he transforms after this ordeal. Connell left that part out of his story, so we can only assume Rainsford either decided to never hunt again or he started to feel empathy for the animals he killed. Again, we will never know since it was not told or suggested by Connell. General Zaroff is considered the antagonist since he is what is causing the peripheral battle with Rainsford. Zaroff is also a round character and Connell has done well in making him one. He is characterized as aristocratic, sophisticated, corrupt, callous, eccentric, and a little crazy. He is not heartless because he has made rule for his insane “game” and since he does not change his beliefs throughout the story he is also a static character.

Red was one of several symbols used in this story. Red represented violence, blood and the demise on the island. The ocean waters were “blood-warm” which mark Rainsford as a future target of violence. When Rainsford reaches the island, he finds a patch of weeds “stained crimson.” Red is also used to describe several attributes of the general, like his “red-lipped” smile and his fanglike teeth. The jungle was also a symbol of Zaroff’s craziness and they are also a symbol of restriction for

Rainsford.
This story was my favorite out of everything we read because I really enjoyed the action and suspense that went along with this story. Although some parts were a little gory I thought Connell did a wonderful job with this entertaining story. I believe it is a good mystery, because of the great job Connell did by making us realize that feelings and thoughts can change in an instant, it really depends on whether you want to be hunted or not