Read The Excerpt From The Most Dangerous Game. Perhaps, Said General Zaroff, You Were Surprised That I Recognized Your Name. You See, I Read All Books On Hunting Published In English, French, And Russian. I Have But One Passion In My Life, Mr. Rainsford, (2023)

FAQs

What does General Zaroff say in the most dangerous game? ›

Why is General Zaroff surprised to see Rainsford at the end of the story? Zaroff thinks that he has won and Rainsford is dead.

“I've always thought,” said Rainsford, “that the Cape buffalo is the most dangerous of all big game.”

Zaroff is middle aged with white hair but his military mustache remains as black as his bright, black eyes. His cheek bones are high and his nose is sharp. He is handsome and has ''the face of a man used to giving orders''. Zaroff possesses the personality of a psychopath.

General Zaroff's motto is, "Life is for the strong, to be lived by the strong, and, if needs be, taken by the strong." He lives the life he does because he is the strongest hinter, but in the end, he loses his life when bested by another hunter.

Many Russian Cossacks, such as Zaroff and his assistant, Ivan, were military specialists who fought for centuries as mercenary soldiers in service to the czar until the collapse of the Russian empire in 1917. The Cossacks played a crucial role in expanding Russia's borders and maintaining order along the frontier.

Zaroff tells of his history, his background in hunting and the military, before finally telling Rainsford that the animal he hunts "must have courage, cunning, and, above all, it must be able to reason." It dawns on Rainsford then that the only animal that can reason is a human.

He introduces himself as General Zaroff. Zaroff is familiar with Rainsford's book on hunting snow leopards. After getting settled, Rainsford and Zaroff dine together and discuss the merits of hunting. It is during this conversation that Rainsford learns that Zaroff hunts men on the island.

General Zaroff knows who Rainsford is because he read his book about hunting snow leapords in Tibet. Zaroff is probably a hunter.

Rainsford demands to leave the island at once, but the general refuses and forces Rainsford to be his new prey in the next hunt, hoping that Rainsford, as a renowned big-game hunter, will provide the challenge he seeks. Zaroff promises to set Rainsford free if he lives through the next three days.

What you think happens to Rainsford and Zaroff at the end of the story? ›

But the end of the story leaves that a little cloudy. Rainsford kills Zaroff and sleeps in his bed. There's no mention of his escape or plans to return to civilization. We might assume that he does, but he could just as easily pick up where Zaroff left off, as the new master of Ship Trap Island.

At the end of the story General Zaroff died. In spite of being hurt, Zaroff congratulates Rainsford on his "Malay mancatcher," why? He congratulates him because all that Zaroff cared about was the hunt and he was having a good time. Fear creates the will to live.

Connell describes Zaroff's sharp pointed teeth and smacking red lips to dehumanize him and highlight his predatory nature. Ironically, Rainsford discovers that General Zaroff is far more repulsive than the “scum” he disdainfully hunts, devoid of all emotion and humanity despite his seeming gentility.

General Zaroff

A Russian Cossack and expatriate who lives on Ship-Trap Island and enjoys hunting men. General Zaroff's high cheekbones, sharply defined nose, and pointed military mustache accentuate his mysteriousness and savagery.

General Zaroff describes himself as one of the strengths of the world. Therefore, according to Zaroff, he has the right to kill those who are not as strong as he is. He believes that as one of the strong men in the world, those weaker than him were put on this earth for his enjoyment.

In The Most Dangerous Game, Zaroff proposes that Rainsford will be allowed to leave the island alive if Rainsford can survive being hunted by Zaroff in the island's jungle for three days.

1. “Instinct is no match for reason.” General Zaroff's smug formulation in his initial conversation with Rainsford over dinner summarizes the common assumption that instinct and reason are mutually exclusive.

The Most Dangerous Game Quotes. “I refuse to believe that so modern and civilized a young man as you seem to be harbors romantic ideas about the value of human life. Surely your experiences in the war.” “One superstitious sailor can taint the whole ship's company with his fear.

Zaroff believes that life is for the strong and the lives of the weak are for taking. He also believes that the people he chooses for his hunts are ''the scum of the earth''.