The Most Dangerous Game Have you ever had feelings about something that later changed? In “The Most Dangerous Game” by Richard Conel, I will show how one character changes his opinion about something after he has experienced it himself. Almost all of us have said “Oh that’s easy” or “I could do that any day!” and then find out that the task is harder then it looked. In a summary, “The Most Dangerous Game” is a story about a man named Rainsford whom gets stranded on an island with a crazed general.
This general is named General Zaroff. Rainsford was an excellent hunter who wrote many books about hunting. General Zaroff was a fan of Rainsford’s books, so he immediately knew who Rainsford was when he found him. General Zaroff let Rainsford in and treated him to good food and plenty of rest.
Zaroff was talking to Rainsford about hunting, and then Zaroff explained his passion, he hunted humans because animals were no challenge. Rainsford did not like this and tried to avoid Zaroff. Soon after this, Zaroff gave Rainsford a choice, it was either Zaroff would hunt Rainsford for three days or Rainsford will get whipped in the dungeon of Zaroff’s home until he agrees to be hunted. Unwillingly, Rainsford picks to go hunting and hopes to survive the three days. If he did live, he would be set free with money and new clothing, so Zaroff says On the hunting trip, Rainsford successfully avoids Zaroff for three days by hiding and setting up traps, then he pretends to go to sea by freeing the boats. Finally, he sneaks into Zaroff’s room and hides there until Zaroff arrives.
Eventually, he confronts Zaroff and fights him to his death. After that, Rainsford gets the best night sleep he has ever had. I feel that Richard Conel tried to express a feeling of change within the character’s mind. Before Rainsford was ever hunted, he was cruel to animals.
He would hunt them just for the fun of killing them. Rainsford had no sympathy for animals before he encountered Zaroff. During the middle of the story, Rainsford becomes the next prey of General Zaroff. Due to the stress and the feelings of fear, I think Rainsford might have changed his mind about animals and how they feel. After this event, I know that Rainsford has now become sorry for his ideas about animals and how they should be treated.
I know that Rainsford is a dynamic character because of his ability to positively change his feelings. I think you sometimes need a tragic event to finally change a stubborn person’s mind. In conclusion, I feel that the author, Richard Conel, tried to show how people could change by experiencing different situations. Rainsford, after becoming the hunted prey himself, corrected his faults and formed new opinions about hunting and standing up for the rights of animals. Rainsford is an excellent role model for positive change!
