Essay/Term paper: The most dangerous game

Essay, term paper, research paper:  World Literature

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!