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The Most Dangerous Game Literary Analysis

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Intellect against Instinct The story The Most Dangerous Game by Richard Connell in 1924 is one that has inspired a multitude of books by other authors. One example of a story inspired by The Most Dangerous Game is one that has been quite popular in recent years, The Hunger Games. The main character is a man named Sanger Rainsford who is a world class hunter who served in a war (presumably World War I); at the beginning of the story Rainsford is on a yacht bound for Rio along with his fellow hunter, Whitney. In Rio the two hunters plan to hunt jaguars in the jungles, but little does Rainsford know, he would not make it to Rio. In an attempt to catch a pipe that he dropped overboard he fell overboard himself; he swam to a mysterious island known …show more content…

The island that Rainsford finds himself on is one that not much is known about, aside from its name: “Shiptrap Island” (41). On this island there is a massive chateâu surrounded by dense jungle with a swamp on one end that is literally known as “Death Swamp” (56) This island was definitely a factor in the deaths of so many of the prey that Zaroff had hunted. An island with a name that implies that the island itself is a trap would more than likely strike fear into most, and with fear comes the use of instinct. The jungle limits visibility which likely gives the hunted a sense of isolation. “The chateau gates snapped shut behind him. His whole idea was to put distance between himself and General Zaroff, spurred by the rowels of something very like panic.” (53). The sound of the gates of the chateau may inspire the hunted to use instinct as they are locked out of what essentially would be their sense of civilization. A likely reason is that many of Zaroff’s prey never make it out alive is the fact that they let their instincts take over due to the unfamiliar area that they are forced into, however Rainsford uses the jungle to his advantage, using the wood for his traps and the quicksand of the swamp for his pit, both of which were effective against

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