“I'm friends with the monster that's under my bed; Get along with the voices inside of my head; You're trying to save me, stop holding your breath; And you think I'm crazy, yeah, you think I'm crazy; Well, that's nothing.” The Monster by Eminem. One song can have many interpretations. Person one might think of it as an excuse for some psychopath. Person two could think of it as a plea for help, from a psychopath. What do you think? When you think of the term “evil mastermind” you think of some idiot who makes traps so complicated that the hero escapes and he gets trapped.What is a true evil mastermind and what traits do they posses? Well before I answer that question I want ask a question. Would you rather be hunted on an island filled with …show more content…
Loss of life does not bother him though, in fact nothing really does. This man is insane. He was once an avid animal hunter, but eventually, he got bored because hunting common animals became too easy for him. So he decided to bring men to his island, “the ultimate prey.” When he first meets his victims he treats them nice… right before he locks them in a cellar to train them to be hunted. How gruesome is that? To be stuck in a cellar so that your murderer can train you how to die right. Although inhumane do not mistake this murderer for stupid. This man was a high ranking, respected military officer and avid hunter well known for his skill. While being hunted this how the narrator portrays Rainsford’s experience: “Something was coming through the bush, coming slowly, carefully, coming by the same winding way Rainsford had come.” Zaroff paused, almost beneath the tree; he dropped down and studied the ground. He shook his head and walked away smiling.” (**) The Most Dangerous Game Throughout this twisting book of survival Rainsford repeatedly sets traps for Zaroff and each time somebody with Zaroff is, whether it is his dogs or faithful bodyguard; he barely even blinks an eyelash as each of his loyal followers die. Zaroff is finally outsmarted in the end but he will always be known as a true evil …show more content…
Which would you rather die slowly in a catacomb alcove, or to be shot and hunted by another human? While I think that the catacomb death is worse, Fortunato was the only victim. I believe that Zaroff is the worst of these two people, if you can even call a monsters like them human. When Zaroff hunts down each of his victims, he does not find it fun enough to see them and shoot them; he toys with them like cat and mouse while using a low power rifle to slowly bleed them out. Montresor also kills Fortunato slowly, though unlike Zaroff, after the murder was complete he simply left his body in the catacombs. “For half the century nobody has disturbed them.” (**) Cask of Amontillado Unlike Montresor killing isn’t enough, Zaroff cuts of the heads of his victims and posts them on his wall as proud trophies of his prowess in hunting. I believe that the worst part about Zaroff's story is how long it took him to set his operation up. All the while he never hesitated or pondered what atrocity he was preparing
I recently read a book called Monster by Walter Dean Myers, in which a sixteen year-old boy named Steve Harmon was arrested for being accused of shooting a drugstore owner, and watched a documentary titled Murder on a Sunday Morning about a fifteen year-old Brenton Butler being charged with murdering a woman at a motel. I found that the book and the documentary had many similarities and differences. I thought this because both cases are about a young African-American boy who is in custody for something that they did not do. Both police investigations didn't go thoroughly and just rushed through to arrest the boys immediately and are centered around a white defense attorney who tries to convince the jury that the male teen did not committed the crime by giving out evidence.
In the short story “The Most Dangerous Game” Rainsford was justified in killing General Zaroff. Rainsford is a hunter. He was on a yacht that crashed and he was the only survivor. The island that he swam to was named “Ship Trap Island.” This where General Zaroff lived. He is also a hunter. He has hunted anything you can think of. Even… people. He has the survivors from the ship wrecks “play” his “game.” The survivors go out into the jungle and General Zaroff goes out and finds them. They have three days to survive. If they don’t get caught in those three days, they win. If they lose… they are killed. This happened to Rainsford. Rainsford, thankfully, won the “game.” He shot General Zaroff after his win.
In both film and story, Rainsford expresses his lack of sympathy for his prey. Similar to the story, Rainsford meets Ivan first and can’t get through to him and then, he’s greeted by Zaroff. In the film, Zaroff knows that Rainsford is a famous hunter and has read his books, just like in the story. Moreover, Zaroff reveals that a cape buffalo gave him the scar on his head. In the same manner, Zaroff tells Rainsford how he stocks his island with human prey. Just as the film showed Zaroff has a room filled with human heads, and that’s also mentioned in the story. Furthermore, Rainsford uses the same traps (Malay Mancatcher, Burmese Tiger Pit, and a native Uganda Trick) in the film as he did in the story. In addition, Rainsford kills Ivan with the same native Uganda trick. Both film and movie, unveils that Rainsford kills
Rainsford is known for his extravagant hunting skills, even General Zaroff speaks of Rainsford as is if he has inspired him to become a hunter. Rainsford talks about hunting with passion, while he is speaking to Whitney he tells her it’s “the best sport in the world” (19). Rainsford has no guilt when he kills animals, he even tells Whitney that it’s nonsense when she mention the jaguars have feeling. But Rainsford shows immediate disgust when Zaroff brings up his hunting of humans, “hunting, great heavens, what you speak of is murder” (26). This only the first of many times that he reacts with great displeasure.
In the beginning of the story, Rainsford has a conversation with his friend, Whitney, about hunting animals. Rainford does not care about the animals that he hunts. He believes hunting is only a sport to kill innocent creatures. “‘Who cares how a jaguar feels?’” (1) Showing the reader exactly what he thinks of hunting. Rainsford does not understand that the animals he hunts are like the people that Zaroff hunts. They are innocent, and he is murdering them when he hunts them. Rainsford thinks that Zaroff is insane for murdering people, but Rainsford is also a murderer. When Zaroff hunts Rainsford, the protagonist realizes the terror and pain the jaguars must have felt when he hunted them. Now the roles are reversed, and Rainsford is the one being hunted. “The Cossack was the cat; he was the mouse. The general was saving him for another day’s sport! Then it was that Rainsford knew the full meaning of terror.” (17) Rainsford has changed his feelings about hunting animals now, and he has become a better person. He now takes into account how his prey feels. His interactions with people will also be different, because instead of being extremely overconfident, he realizes that he is not perfectly adept at hunting, and everyone has feelings that matter. In conclusion, Rainsford is now more humble and less overconfident than he was when he began his
Rainsford was forced to choose between life and death by Zaroff. Zaroff tells Rainsford that he hunts people as a type of wild game and takes them hunting first then gives them a few survival things and have to survive for three days in order to win.
He has successfully eluded General Zaroff. He stands in Zaroff 's bedroom where both men have no weapons except their bare fists. Rainsford has struggled with the relationship between the hunter and the huntee throughout the whole story. He has also floundered with what he believes to be right and wrong. The example of where he reaches a conclusion about right and wrong would be after the battle in the bedroom. "He had never slept in a better bed, Rainsford decided" (236). This is when we know Rainsford has overpowered the evil madman. He has killed General Zaroff which he knows is wrong, but he also understands if he hadn 't killed the general, then he would not have lived. The general would have done everything in his power to make sure Rainsford would not have left the island and exploited his secret. Ultimately, Rainsford has to live with knowing he murdered another human being. Rainsford also learned the close bond shared between a hunter and a huntee. Anyone can debate whether or not this change was good or bad. I personally make an assumption about his persepctive being changed for the good. He experienced the ugly truth up close and personal and has now been on both sides of the brutal
General Zaroff used hunting tactics when they were eating “the last supper” at Zaroff’s house. Every time Rainsford looked up, he said, “he found him studying him, appraising him narrowly” (Connell 66). By this, the reader can tell that Zaroff is trying to notice Rainsford’s tendencies. Knowing these can make hunting him easier. Also at dinner, Zaroff explains to Rainsford that “God made him a hunter” and how his father believed that “his hand was made for the trigger” since he was ten (Connell 85). Zaroff sharing this with Rainsford is proof that this man is a talented hunter and has been for a long time. Rainsford is quite the hunter himself. So much so, that Zaroff knew who he was when he arrived. The General stated, “It is a very great pleasure and honor to welcome Mr. Sanger Rainsford, the celebrated hunter, to my home” (Connell 52). Also during the hunt when Rainsford set up the Burmese tiger pit and claiming one of Zaroff’s dogs, Zaroff tells him, “You’ve done well, Rainsford” (Connell 194). If his enemy believes that he is a great hunter, then he must be. Especially because Zaroff thinks so highly of himself. Going back to when Rainsford was
When Rainsford falls off of the boat, he has to try his best to stay afloat until he can find something to latch on to. He swims vigorously until he reaches Ship-Trap Island. "Jagged crags appeared to jut up into the opaqueness... dense jungle came down to the very edge of the cliffs." It is midday and he is just searching for a place to rest when he runs into Ivan, the astonishingly large guard of the island. Zaroff, the owner of the island, joins in on their conversation about hunting. The conversation is interesting to say the least. Zaroff says, "You'll find this game worth playing…your brain against mine. Your woodcraft against mine. Your strength and stamina against mine. Outdoor chess! And the stake is not without value, eh?" Zaroff is trying to point out that he finds interest in hunting humans, and he wants to know if Rainsford will rise to the challenge. Rainsford is left with a choice to make; will he fight Zaroff, or will he decline and get killed by Ivan. The choice in this situation is pretty self- evident.
A second reason is that he gives all of his prey a three hour head start. On page fifty he states, “I give him three hours’ start. I am to follow, only armed with a pistol.” (Connell.) He knows that he will win, even if he gives his opponent a whole three hours more. One last reason for Zaroff being confident, is the fact that he finds Rainsford on the first day, but leaves him alone. The quote on page fifty-three says, “But the sharp eyes of the hunter stopped before they reached the limb where Rainsford lay; a smile spread over his brown face.” (Connell.) This hints that General Zaroff knew that Rainsford was there. A few lines later, on the same page, it says, “Then he turned his back on the tree and walked carelessly away.” (Connell.) Secondly, Zaroff can be described as crafty as well. Primarily, he had picked this island and place for his house knowing that
... he had sat in trees that probably had splinters in them. He also did not have sleep. This hunt made him really tired. Also Rainsford is a softhearted fellow and probably doesn’t want to hurt other people or animals. He needs training to because this was just one match. Maybe General Zaroff was not at his best this time. Maybe he was just going easy on Rainsford.
In conclusion Rainsford was only protecting himself and the people around him. So yes, Rainsford is justified in killing General Zaroff. The quote "character is what you are in the dark" relates to Rainsford because if he hadn’t gotten hunted he never would have felt the fear nor anger to Kill General Zaroff, which needed to be
...they are both monsters. General Zarloff is sadistic, arrogant, and incredibly manipulative. Even though he claims to be superior to people of all different races, he takes on a Hitler attitude by believing it is his job to abolish the weak. Rainsford, on the other hand, is a monster in his own way. He believes in the killing of animals for sport, and does not value their lives. The long-term ramifications of Rainsford’s terrifying ordeal are left unresolved. However, Connell does suggest that Rainsford does empathize with the animals that he had hunted and is not sure if he will be hunting in the future. Although. Rainsford has the eerie ability to sleep soundly after killing Zarloff might suggest that it is very possible that he has become an even more ruthless killer and has not undergone a transformation at all. Thus making him more of a monster instead of a man.
Rainsford is an intelligent man. Early in the story, “Rainsford remembered the shots. They had come from the right, and he doggedly swam in that direction” (34). Rainsford had just fallen in the water, swam fifty feet further out, but he kept his senses in the right direction. In total darkness, Rainsford used his intelligence and intellect to reach the land. Also, I don’t think that Rainsford knew he was being sized up when Zaroff was staring at him, but when “Rainsford’s bewilderment showed in his face” (100), he quickly understood what Zaroff was leading too. Rainsford wasn’t a murderer. Sure he liked to hunt game, but he wasn’t bored as Zaroff was. Rainsford never bought into all the old tales. ‘“One superstitious sailor can taint the whole ship’s company with fear”’ (20). He never got worked up or stressed out.
G. Zaroff is untrustworthy because in the end after Rainfords has beaten him he still has to fight him. He shows this when Rainsford meets him in the bedroom the General says “I see, Splendid! One of us is to furnish a repast for the hounds. The other will sleep in a very excellent bed. On guard, Rainsford…..” This means that he didn’t keep his promise of letting him go after three days and still made him fight.