9-14-12 English
SCASI for The Most Dangerous Game
Setting
Yacht at sea
Caribbean Ocean
Headed toward Rio
By the island of Ship-Trap island
Sharp rocky coast
Palatial chateau
Swamp
Jungle
The setting was important to the story because of the physical setting. It was important because the physical setting describes the island with the sharp rocky coast, the palatial chateau, the swamp, and the jungle. Without the descriptions of these physical traits of island, the story would appear different. All the action takes place on the island using the jungle and the swamp as the hunting grounds. The setting of an island gives the reader the feeling of isolation. The sharp rocky coast is used to supply the island with humans for the game. A sharp rocky coast is dangerous and is used to signify danger. The palatial chateau placed at the highest point of the island was used to show that General Zaroff felt he was elite and above everything. The jungle and swamp are used to show how dangerous and difficult the game would be for all of the people being hunted.
The setting in the story was compelling because of the moral setting. Morally in most societies it is believed that hunting should be of animals and not humans. In our society we believe hunting humans is wrong. It is considered murder .The author made a setting for this story that goes against what most people believe and by going against our beliefs he changed the mood of the story and builds the reader suspence.
“But as he forged along he saw to his great astonishment that all the lights were in one enormous building--a lofty structure with pointed towers plunging upward into the gloom. His eyes made out the shadowy outlines of a palatial chateau; it was set on a high bluff, and on three sides of it cliffs dived down to where the sea licked greedy lips in the shadows.” This quote shows that chateau is above everything and that is it is not touched by the jungle this show that general Zaroff thinks that he is better than everyone else. “Jagged crags appeared to jut up into the opaqueness; he forced himself upward, hand over hand. Gasping, his hands raw, he reached a flat place at the top. Dense jungle came down to the very edge of the cliffs. What perils that tangle of trees and underbrush might hold for him did not concern Rainsford just then.” In this quote it shows that the author is setting a mood of danger with the sharp rocky coast but that the character Rainsford is unaware of the danger ahead of him.
Characters
The main characters in the story are Sanger Rainsford and General Zaroff. In the story we learn that both of the men are wealthy and that they like to hunt game. Rainsford is from New York City and he was on a yacht which was headed to Rio and the Amazon Jungle to hunt jaguars, he is also well experienced in hunting, and he is an author of three books. The reader has learned about Rainsford in two ways by the dialogue and by what the General Zaroff says about him. The reader learned about General Zaroff in two ways was by how Rainsford described him as and by the dialogue, we know that Zaroff is past middle age and that he has white hair and black eyebrows and a pointed military moustache he also has bright black eyes the gleam. Along with those he has a sharp cut nose and high cheekbones.
The characters are important to the story because without them there would be no conflict and without conflict there would be no action. The conflict that both characters face is external conflict which is character to character. Both are facing the same conflict because Rainsford is trying to beat Zaroff at the most dangerous game so he can leave the island, Zaroffs conflict is the he is trying to beat Rainsford at the same game. Another conflict he faces is Rainsford’s experience because Rainsford is a hunter too, not a sailor like Zaroff is used to.
The characters are somewhat compelling to the story, but it is the
