English 11 HH
Mr. Racciope
19 October 2014
The Hunted Hunter
Richard Connell is an author who has mastered one of the most crucial elements of literary fiction: Characterization. Characterization is key to the development of a story and enhances the reader's understanding of it. Creating characters that are well developed and complex is a difficult task and requires careful planning. Connell's short story "The Most Dangerous Game", in particular the exceptionally well-crafted character of Sanger Rainsford, is an example of the author's proficiency in this art. In "The Most Dangerous Game", Rainsford, the protagonist, is consistent, understandable and life-like, making him a strong and convincing character.
In order to meet the criteria of characterization the character must be consistent. Perrine's "Literature, Structure, Sound and Sense" states that "The first principle of characterization is characters that are consistent in their behavior: they do not behave one way on one occasion and a different way on another unless there is a significant reason for the change (Perrine, 163)".
In Connell's "The Most Dangerous Game" Rainsford meets this criterion due to the fact that from the beginning of the story he is depicted as a hunter and this portrayal stays constant
Schnitzer2
Throughout. When Rainsford first encounters General Zarroff on Ship-Trap Island, Zarroff states, "It is a great pleasure and honor to welcome Mr. Sanger Rainsford, the celebrated hunter, to my home." (Connell, 72) His natural instinct and hunting abilities are further exemplified when he is actually the one being hunted and he sets a tiger pit. Zaroff calls out to him saying, "You've done well, Rainsford, your Burmese tiger pit has claimed one of my best dogs." (Connell, 83) At the end of the story, once again, Rainsford's characterization as a successful hunter is demonstrated when he...