The+Most+Dangerous+Game

Devon Fang and Michael Griffin See Devon's site for comments and marks!

QUESTIONS: Answer the following questions. /32

1. What is meant by “He lived a year in a minute”? /2﻿It means that while Rainsford was waiting for the General to come over and fall into his man-made trap, just a couple of minutes felt like many years.

2. What is meant by “I am still a beast at bay”? /2 It means that Rainsford was using imagery to show Zaroff that he was still just a hunted animal, even if he had the advantage. It also proves that Rainsford hadn't forgiven Zaroff for entrapping him and trying to kill him.

3. In which sea has Connell set Ship-Trap island? /1 Richard Connell, the author, has set Ship-Trap island in the middle of the Caribbean Sea.

4. How is Zaroff able to finance his life style? /2 He is able to finance his lifestyle because he invested heavily in American securities, where he made most of his money. Also, his father was very rich.

5. If Rainsford wins the hunt, what does Zaroff promise him? /1 Zaroff promises him that if Rainsford wins, then he will let him go free, as his sloop (a type of boat) will take him back to the mainland, near a town.

6. What happened to Lazarus? /2 Lazarus was the General's favorite hound that died in the quicksand while chasing someone else before Rainsford came on the island.

7. Where does Rainsford spend the first night of his hunt? /1 Rainsford spends the first night of his hunt up in a tree, being the "cat" from the fox and the cat fable.

8. How many acres did Zaroff’s father have in the Crimea? /1 Zaroff's father owned 250,000 (quarter million) acres in the Crimea.

9. Why does Zarroff suggest Rainsford wear moccasins? /1 Zaroff suggests that Rainsford wears moccasins because he wants some more challenge hunting him down, because moccasins help reduce the amount of footprints that someone leaves behind.

10. What caused Rainsford to believe Zaroff knew he was hiding in the tree? Do you think he was right? Give reasons. /3 Rainsford believed Zaroff knew where he was hiding because when Zaroff slowly looked up the tree, he stopped right before he reached Rainsford, then just walked away. I think Zaroff did that because he wanted the kill to be more exciting, so he wanted to make it more difficult for him.

11. How does Zaroff stock his island with “game”? /2 Zaroff gets his "game" by making an artificial channel, then, when ships go there, they get shipwrecked, as they get torn apart by sharp rocks, then Zaroff claims the sailors as his "game".

12. What happened to General Zaroff at the end of the story? /2 It is presumed that he was thrown out a window by Rainsford, because before the fight, he says that one of them will become a repast (food) for the hounds, which are outside.

13. Inspite of being hurt, Zaroff congratulates Rainsford on his “Malay mancatcher,” why? /2 Zaroff congratulates Rainsford because he is proud that his prey is knowledgeable about the art of hunting, since you have to go all the way to Malacca to learn how to make a Malay Mancatcher.

14. How do we know Rainsford is an exceptionally fit man? /2 We know that Rainsford is extremely fit because he can run for many hours on end, and then can still manage to set up a complicated trap (eg. Malay Mancatcher and Tiger Pitfall Trap) before General Zaroff tracks him down. Also, you see him running away from hounds, then swimming a far distance before settling back down in Zaroff's room.

15. Discuss the state of mind of Rainsford before he lands on the island versus that after he meets the General. What is different? (Especially about how he perceives animal feelings.)/5 Before Rainsford lands on the island, he thinks about animals as just plain things that don't really have feelings, so he just hunts them for fun. Afterwards, though, he witnesses first hand what it's like to be hunted like an animal, and he realizes that animals also can have feelings, especially fear, so he changes what he thinks about animals.

16. How does Connell inspire fear without obvious bloodshed/grotesqueness. /3 Connell inspires fear inside his readers by giving the characters periods of time when they get many adrenaline rushes, mainly given to them by fast action chases and gunshots. There isn't any bloodshed directly in the story, although it implies that there is blood, like before Rainsford sets foot on the island, Zaroff kills a person with a gun, then during the chase between Rainsford and Zaroff, Rainsford ends up giving Ivan a knife in the head.

Short Stories - Literary Devises Title: The Most Dangerous Game

Point of View: Third Person Omniscient

Protagonist: The protagonist is Sanger Rainsford.

What type of character is the Protagonist? The character is a dynamic round character.

Antagonist: The main antagonist is General Zaroff, with his butler Ivan.

Describe the setting The setting is around 1920, in an island called "Ship-Trap Island" in the Carribean. The mood is a bit creepy and ominous, with a touch of fearful.

Type of Conflict: The conflict is Man vs Man.

Describe the main conflict: The main conflict is Sanger Rainsford landing on a notorious island, then meeting a man named General Zaroff. Zaroff then starts hunting Rainsford, and chases him around the island.

Describe the Climax of the Story: Surprisingly, the climax of the story is at the very end, when it is revealed that Rainsford is in Zaroff's room.

How does the Protagonist change over the course of the story?

Before Rainsford lands on the island, he thinks about animals as just hunting game, but then afterwards, when he feels what an animal feels when it's being hunted, he changes his mind about the essence of animals.

Describe the relationship between the title and the theme. The title, The Most Dangerous Game, could either refer to hunting itself, as a dangerous game, since it could backfire easily, if you fail to kill your target, or it could be referring to the most dangerous game, with game meaning hunting animal, talking about humans being the most dangerous "hunting" animals. The theme is saying that even if you are a hunter, you can still be hunted.

How does the main conflict help to illustrate the theme? The main theme helps illustrate the theme because Rainsford is a hunter, but then he goes on Ship-Trap Island, which just happens to be the home of a General who enjoys hunting. Unfortunately, Rainsford, the hunter, easily becomes the prey of the General, because the General's preferred game is humans.

How does the climax help to illustrate the theme? The climax helps illustrate the theme because even though Rainsford was a hunter, but then became the hunted, he still managed to win the game, saying that even though you can go from the hunter to the hunted quickly, that doesn't mean you can't go the other way around, and go from the hunted, to the hunter.

Give examples of each of the following literary terms in the story (use quotes):

Simile: "The sea was as flat as a plate glass window."

Metaphor: "...and through a screen of leaves almost as thick as tapestry"

Personification: "...where the sea licked greedy lips in the shadows."

Symbol: The whole of Ship-Trap Island represented death, because nearly everybody who set foot on the island never came back off the island, because they were killed by either the general, or his hounds. The only person who didn't die on the island was Rainsford.

Foreshadowing (give both elements): There is foreshadowing when the General tells Rainsford of an animal that can match the intelligence of a human being, Rainsford suspects that the "animal" is actually the human being. Then, when General Zaroff tells him of the "1 being that can" he confirms his suspicion, proving that General Zaroff hunts humans for sport.

Irony: It is ironic how Rainsford, who was the hunter of animals, became the hunted as soon as he set foot on the island.

Imagery: “His mustache was as black as the night form which Rainsford had come.”

Describe the relationships between the class theme and the story. The relationships between the game of hunting and power are very closely intertwined, because with power, you have more control over everything, no matter if you are the hunter, or the hunted. In real life, if you have power while hunting, you're nearly sure to be able to succeed in what you're trying to do. If you are trying to hunt an extremely powerful animal, like the Cape Buffalo, for example, and you have nearly no power, then you would probably be not able to win the hunt. Life as a hunt itself, has to do with power because with power, you could probably do whatever you want to do in life.