I think what pushed Rainsford into killing Zaroff was that he felt as though he had no choice to to kill him or be killed. When the author states “Rainsford did not smile. “I am still a beast at bay,” he said, in a low, hoarse voice.” in page 42, I think that sentence kind of summarize exactly that. I don’t think what Rainsford did would be considered murder to a certain extent. Rainsford had no other but to kill Zaroff. He was hunted like an animal and did it out of self defence. Many times in the story Zaroff said that he found pleasure in hunting and killed people and he had full intention of doing the same to Rainsford. This last pieces of evidence proves even more why killing Zaroff doesn't make Rainsford a murder. In the