The Most Dangerous Game Literary Analysis

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Short Story Analysis on The Most Dangerous Game written by Richard Connell Many authors use different literary elements to make their writing unique. A writer chooses certain elements to create the mood, plot and anticipation to catch a reader?s attention and write a good story. This will be an analysis on the short story, The Most Dangerous Game. Writer Richard Connell talks about Rainsford, the Protagonist who ends up trapped in a hunting game of life or death with General Zaroff, the Antagonist on Ship-Trap island. The author uses elements of imagery as well as foreshadowing and irony to show a sense of horror and danger to make the story more suspenseful. The elements also lead to the main Theme which is Social Darwinism or reason versus …show more content…

Connell first shows opposition between reason and instinct through Rainsford?s friend Whitney, who says ?I would rather think they understand one thing?fear. The fear of pain and the fear of death.? (Wiggin Prentice Hall: Literature). He also states that Ship-Trap Island scares him and it?s an evil place. The island has caused a sense of dismay in Whitney just like danger causes fear in animals. Connell then shows that the idea of reason exists separate from instinct by making Rainsford, the hunter to play the role of prey in General Zaroff?s vicious hunting game, when he quotes ?Instinct is no match for reason? (218) (Wiggin Prentice Hall: Literature) Rainsford than understands that all creatures including people, rely on their instinct and fear to keep them alive. Rainsford stays calm even though he?s scared and works systematically to stay alive. He also keeps his mortality and continues to value human life, therefore remaining more human than animal. In contrast, the General Zaroff seems to be more animal than human because he believes that peoples lives are no different than animals and brutally hunts humans down for sport to satisfy his inner vicious craving to be the best hunter. In the end, instinct had been what saved Rainsford causing him to outwit and kill