Reason Versus Instinct in “The Most Dangerous Game by Richard Connell

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In “The Most Dangerous Game,” Richard Connell correlates three common literary devices especially well: setting, suspense, and plot. Connell makes use of an appropriate setting, the literary element of suspense, and an interesting plot in order to strengthen the story’s recurring theme of reason versus instinct within humans, and to blur that line between reason and instinct.

In order to emphasize his recurring theme of reason versus instinct, Connell first sets the scene for the story’s setting, the setting Connell chooses for “The Most Dangerous Game” fits exceptionally well alongside both the story’s plot, as well as, its literary element of suspense. By introducing the idea of a mysterious island at the very start of the story through Rainsford’s friend Whitney, Connell instills in the reader a suspicion that can only be fed by reading further on (67). Connell set the story on a so-called abandoned island referred to as ship-trap-island. This island is a representation of a lawless region secluded from society, where the hunting of man by man is an acceptable sport in the eyes ...

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