A Literary Analysis of the Most Dangerous Game, a Short Story by Richard Connell Essay Example

of reasoning; however, Zaroff separates himself from other hunters when he confesses that for him “hunting had ceased to be what you call ‘a sporting proposition'.” Instead, he looked for an animal that could match him in strength both physically and psychologically, which could only be another of his own species. Some may argue that some animals are more intelligent than others, and that some might even have a certain level of consciousness, meaning that Rainsford is no better than General Zaroff when it comes to hunting. However, Rainsford's drive to hunt is very different from Zaroff's. Zaroff finds pleasure in knowing that his prey is fully aware of what is happening, and that they could fight back in case of a face-to-face encounter. He "live[s] for danger", whereas Rainsford's intentions are simply to hunt animals that he believes have no feelings or thoughts whatsoever, and is convinced that "no animal can reason”.

Zaroff states that there is, but he does not seem disturbed by this idea; in fact, the thought excites him and feeds his thirst for a bigger challenge, because in his opinion “instinct is no match for reason.” The argument between the two clearly shows both their stands on the subject when Zaroff offers Rainsford to go hunting with him, and he determinedly responds with a "Thank you, I'm a hunter, not a murderer." General Zaroff does not differentiate between friend and enemy. He treats his future prey, like Rainsford, with respect and provides them with everything they need to survive and to fight back. Whether it is genuine or fake respect is not clear. He coldly hosts people in his island to

later use them to fulfill his own twisted desires, showing no appreciation for their lives. Richard Connell's main character in this short story challenges that by standing up to Zaroff and staying true to his values, making it clear that he believes killing humans is murder regardless of the context, and that he puts limits when it comes to hunting, no matter how passionate he is about the sport.