Suspense In The Most Dangerous Game By Richard Connell

World renowned author Mark Twain said, “It’s not the size of the dog in the fight, it’s the size of the fight in the dog.” Another famous author is Richard Connell, who has delighted his readers for years with his witty stories, one of them “The Most Dangerous Game”, showcases his writing style of building suspense through many literary devices. Courage, honor and standing up to what you believe in shines through in his short story. Connell employs constant foreshadowing and vivid imagery to generate suspense and build tension.

Starting early in his story, Connell uses constant foreshadowing to grab the reader’s attention. The character Whitney is afraid of “Ship-Trap” Island, a large mysterious island set in the middle of the ocean.

The reader senses the build-up of suspense through visual stimulation. “…giant rocks with razor edges” (8). “He caught hold of a springy young sapling and to it he fastened his hunting knife, with the blade pointing down the trail; with a bit of wild grapevine he tied back the sapling. Then he ran for his life.”(9). Gives the reader a clear visualization of the scenario. A reader can easily comprehend the situation here and that is partially because of imagery. The “springy young sapling” and “fastened his hunting knife” both show what is happening and puts a clear picture in the reader’s mind. Also, imagery builds tension through describing Zaroff to the readers. “the man was singularly handsome”(4) “he was a tall man, past middle age, for his hair was a vivid white”(4) “and his smile showed red lips and pointed teeth”(4) “He had sharp cheekbones, a sharpcut nose, a spare, dark face- the face of an aristocrat.”(4) By using the word choice of “pointed teeth” and “red lips” Connell foreshadows that Zaroff will end up being the antagonist. If Connell had not used imagery at all in the story then no one would be as interested in the rest of the story, but because he used imagery he keeps the reader’s attention. By exploiting vivid imagery Connell created suspense and built tension throughout his