#1
Richard Connell's "The Most Dangerous Game" is a very exciting story of a manhunt. This story made me think about the morality of hunting: Humans are the cleverest creatures on earth, but does it give them a license to kill the other animals and even human beings weaker than themselves? I give below a short summary of the story to set the scene and then I will explore the ethics involved in hunting as a sport. "The Most Dangerous Game" presents the story of a hunter, General
Zaroff, who finds hunting human beings as the most dangerous and fascinating sport. He likes hunting humans because human beings, unlike the other animals, can reason better and so provide a richer thrill for the hunter. He does not think hunting human…show more content…
Our knowledge of ecology also teaches us that by killing animals we may be tampering with the delicate ecosystem and inviting our own destruction.
Human beings are probably the most intelligent creatures on earth. That is why they have a great responsibility of keeping intact the life of the earth. Indiscriminate killing for sport is an uncivilized and anti-intellectual activity, because we should share this world with the other animals and live in harmony with them.
#2
The Most Dangerous Game is a short story about a hunter named Sanger Rainsford who is marooned on an island after accidentally falling off a yacht. The yacht that Rainsford was on was headed towards Rio de Janeiro before he fell off. The crew was looking forward to hunting jaguar along the Amazon river. After Rainford falls, he frantically swims to the nearest island in search of food and shelter. However this deserted island is not an ordinary island. Rainsford discovers that Ivan, a Cossack, who is very large and strong, and General Zaroff, who is an expert hunter, inhabit the island. Rainsford soon realizes that the general uses this island as a hunting ground for human beings as he no longer finds pleasure in hunting animals. The General has developed a game in which he gives humans a chance to run away and hide on his island while he has three days to hunt and kill them. .
The setting of the story begins on a yacht that is traveling near the Amazon River on its way to Rio. The time is just after the Russian Revolution of 1917.
The protagonist in this book is Rainsford. He has to overcome the challenge of being hunted by another man. He has to use his wits, judgment and skills in order to overcome his fear of being killed by the general. Rainsford is also a very good hunter and has written many books on the subject that have been read by the general himself. Rainsford's hunting skills prove to be a necessity on the island.
The conflict in this story is Man vs. Man. Rainsford is competing against the General in order to stay alive. He must fool the general in order to win the game and be returned to his homeland. There is also a man vs. himself conflict in this story because Rainsford must not let his nerves and fears get the better of him during the hunt.
The theme in this story is that "All people are equal." General Zaroff thinks that all people are not equal and that the strong should live off of the weak or poor and benefit from them.
