The Most Dangerous Game
"The Most Dangerous Game" | |
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Short story by Richard Connell | |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Genre(s) | Adventure, short story |
Publication | |
Published in | Collier's |
Publication type | Magazine |
Media type | |
Publication date | January 19, 1924 |
"The Most Dangerous Game", also published as "The Hounds of Zaroff", is a short story by
The story has been
"The Most Dangerous Game" is one of many works that entered the public domain in the United States in 2020.[9]
Summary
Big-game hunter Sanger Rainsford and his friend Whitney are traveling by ship to the
Zaroff, another big-game hunter, knows of Rainsford from his published account of hunting snow leopards in Tibet. Over dinner, he explains that although he has been hunting animals since he was a boy, he has decided that killing big game has become boring for him. After escaping the Russian Revolution, he purchased Ship-Trap, built a home for himself, and rigged the island with lights to lure passing ships into the jagged rocks that surround it. He takes the survivors captive and hunts them for sport, giving them food, clothing, a knife, and a three-hour head start, and using only a small-caliber pistol for himself. Any captives who can elude Zaroff, Ivan, and a pack of hunting dogs for three days are set free; to date, though, Zaroff has never lost a hunt. Captives are offered a choice between being hunted or turned over to Ivan, who once served as official knouter for the Great White Czar. Rainsford denounces the hunt as barbarism, but Zaroff replies by claiming that "life is for the strong." Zaroff is enthused to have another world-class hunter as a companion and, at lunch the next day, offers to take Rainsford along with him on his next hunt. When Rainsford staunchly refuses and demands to leave the island, Zaroff decides to hunt him instead. Rainsford reluctantly accepts the challenge and receives his equipment from Ivan.
During his head start, Rainsford lays an intricate trail in the forest and then climbs a tree. Zaroff finds him easily, but decides to toy with him, standing under the tree and smoking a cigarette before abruptly departing. After the failed attempt at eluding Zaroff, Rainsford builds a
Zaroff locks himself in his bedroom and turns on the lights, only to find Rainsford waiting for him, having swum around the island to evade the dogs and sneak into the chateau. Zaroff offers congratulations for defeating him, but Rainsford prepares to fight him, saying that the hunt is not yet over. A delighted Zaroff responds that the loser will be fed to his dogs, while the winner will sleep in his bed. The story abruptly concludes later that night by stating that Rainsford enjoyed the comfort of the bed, implying that he killed Zaroff in the fight.
Real-life parallels
In 1976, Hayes Noel, Bob Gurnsey, and Charles Gaines discussed Gaines's recent trip to Africa and his experiences hunting African buffalo. Inspired in part by Gaines's memories and in part by "The Most Dangerous Game", they created paintball in 1981.[11]
There is a possible reference to "The Most Dangerous Game" in letters that the Zodiac Killer wrote to newspapers in the San Francisco Bay Area in his three-part cipher: "Man is the most dangerous animal of all to kill", though he may have come up with the idea independently.[12] The 1932 film version of The Most Dangerous Game is mentioned a number of times in the 2007 film, Zodiac, a fictionalized depiction of the Zodiac Killer.[13]
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The story first appeared in the January 19, 1924 issue of Collier's.
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Illustration by Wilmot Emerton Heitland in the January 19, 1924 issue of Collier's.
Adaptations
See also
Citations
- ISBN 9780813550398.
- ^ The illustrator, Wilmot Emerton Heitland, is given in the January 19, 1924 issue of Collier's magazine.
- ISBN 9780313240300.
- ^ OCLC 7665713791.
- S2CID 36073866. Archived from the original(PDF) on May 27, 2019.
- ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved May 22, 2019.
- ISBN 9781476607597.
- ProQuest 2036212072.
- ^ "Public Domain Day 2020". Duke University School of Law. Retrieved December 20, 2021.
- ISBN 0-8160-1356-X.
- ^ Davidson, Steve, et al. The Complete Guide to Paintball, 4–12. Hatherleigh Press, New York. 1999
- OCLC 77495268.
- ISBN 978-0-425-21273-8.
General and cited sources
- Senn, Bryan (2013). The Most Dangerous Cinema: People Hunting People on Film. Jefferson, NC: McFarland & Co. ISBN 9781476613574.
External links
- "The Most Dangerous Game" by Richard Connell at Duke of Definition: English on the Web