Read this excerpt from "The Most Dangerous Game,” by Richard Connell. In a cultivated voice marked by a slight accent that gave
it added precision and deliberateness, he said: "It is a very great pleasure and honor to welcome Mr. Sanger Rainsford, the celebrated hunter, to my home." Automatically Rainsford shook the man's hand. "I've read your book about hunting snow leopards in Tibet, you see," explained the man. "I am General Zaroff." Now read the second excerpt. "The general's left eyelid fluttered down in a wink. "This island is called Ship-Trap," he answered. "Sometimes an angry god of the high seas sends them to me. Sometimes, when Providence is not so kind, I help Providence a bit. Come to the window with me." Rainsford went to the window and looked out toward the sea. "Watch! Out there!" exclaimed the general, pointing into the night. Rainsford's eyes saw only blackness, and then, as the general pressed a button, far out to sea Rainsford saw the flash of lights. The general chuckled. "They indicate a channel," he said, "where there's none: giant rocks with razor edges crouch like a sea monster with wide-open jaws. They can crush a ship as easily as I crush this nut." Readers must revise their predictions about the general after reading the second excerpt because initially he seems to be a gracious host, but then it is revealed that he
The reader's perception of General Zaroff changes between the two excerpts. At first, the reader believes that Zaroff is a welcoming host (indicated by the phrase "It is a very great pleasure..."). However, upon reading the second excerpt, the reader learns that Zaroff is dangerous, since he has a contraption to wreck ships (and then laughs about it). The reader can further predict that Sanger Rainsford was lured there on purpose, since Zaroff already knows about his hunting skills.
