Mrs. McClure's Honors English 9 - Short Story Unit



“The Most Dangerous Game”:

Discussion Questions

Pages 39-47

1. As the story begins, how would you describe the mood? What does the author do to create this mood? (Consider setting descriptions, what the characters say, etc.)

Eerie, ominous, etc.—extremely dark (can’t really see where they are), talk of the island lore, feelings of dread, chills

2. Explain any conflicts or disagreements between Rainsford and Whitney.

• R and W disagree about whether or not the animals they hunt sense fear.

• W also thinks the sailors’ fears about Ship-Trap Island may have some merit; R thinks they are superstition or pure imagination.

1. Find one example of hyperbole on page 40 and one example on page 41. Write the examples below.

p. 40- “Yes, even that tough-minded old Swede, who’d go up to the devil himself and ask him for a light.”

p. 41- “I could sleep without closing my eyes.”

2. Describe the source of the conflict that Rainsford struggles with as he swims to shore. What type of conflict is this? What do we learn about his character through the way he deals with this conflict?

• Rainsford is struggling with nature; in particular, he is struggling against the sea.

• He is able to think clearly under difficult circumstances; he’s resourceful; he’s knowledgeable and experienced in such situations

3. How does Rainsford know where the island is?

It is very dark, so he can’t see the island. He remembers where the sounds of the shots came from and then uses the sound of the waves to sense he is close to the shore.

4. a. The author uses a great deal of imagery and figurative language (in particular, similes, metaphors, and personification) on page 42. Write at least three examples below. b. What mood does the imagery and figurative language help to create?

a. 1- “It was like trying to see through a blanket.”

2- “blood-warm waters of the Caribbean Sea”

3- “The lights of the yacht became faint and ever-vanishing fireflies”

“The muttering and growling of the sea breaking on a rocky shore”

b. Intense, scary, mysterious

5. Carefully re-read and visualize the description of the mansion. Does it remind you of anything in particular? What might this suggest about who/what lives inside?

Haunted house, Dracula’s castle

Perhaps who/what lives inside is evil

6. What insight is provided about Zaroff’s character?

He seems dangerous and threatening; he seems a bit unpredictable

7. List characteristics the author gives about Ivan. Which method(s) of characterization is used?

Physical description and Character’s actions—he’s intimidating, threatening/dangerous (“menacing look”)some kind of guard of the house, perhaps has a military background (military salute

“Ivan is an incredibly strong fellow … but he has the misfortune to be deaf and dumb. A simple fellow, but I’m afraid, like all his race, a bit of a savage … He is a Cossack” (44-45)- What others say about the character

Ivan is very large and strong; he is also deaf and mute and seems dangerous; he’s a Cossack

***COSSACK- military society in Turkey known for their fierceness

Pages 47-53

8. “I wanted the ideal animal to hunt,” explained the general. “So I said: ‘What are the attributes of an ideal quarry?’ And the answer was, of course, ‘It must have courage, cunning, and, above all, it must be able to reason.”

a. Infer what General Zaroff actually hunts.

Humans

b. How does this relate to the double-meaning of the story’s title?

Game= both prey and sport

Most Dangerous animal to hunt= humans

Most Dangerous sport= hunting humans

9. Infer how the general gets his victims if his stock of prey runs low.

Sometimes travelers suitable for his use as prey do crash on the shores of his island. When this doesn’t happen on its own, and when his stock of prey runs low, he creates artificial traps to lure victims (ex. He presses a button, which causes lights to flash out at sea. This leads sailors to believe there’s a channel where there is none. So the sailors steer towards the lights, not knowing that giant rocks await them, and they end up crashing.

10. Clarify why Rainsford agrees to be hunted.

Zaroff does not give Rainsford much chance to say no.

He has said that Ivan tortures people who don’t want to play the game.

Rainsford also has reason to believe that his chances of eluding General Zaroff are quite good.

11. Clarify the first trick/strategy that Rainsford uses to avoid capture. Does it work? Explain.

• He made a complicated trail to follow that consisted of a series of loops. Then he climbed up a tree.

• It takes Zaroff a while to find him, but he eventually does find him (He stops at the tree and smiles) … Zaroff knows he’s in the tree, but he doesn’t do anything about hit; he just turns away and goes home.

12. On page 53, infer, based on what you know about Zaroff’s character, why he turns away from the tree.

• He wants to prolong the hunt. He’s playing with him—leaving him out there for another day’s sport.

Pages 54-57

13. On page 54, analyze why Rainsford says he now knows “the full meaning of terror.”

When Rainsford realizes that Zaroff knew he was up in the tree and leaves him out there for another day’s sport, he knew the “full meaning of terror” … he realizes that Zaroff has the upper hand and that he has only a slim chance of succeeding against him.

14. Clarify the second trick/strategy that Rainsford uses to avoid capture. Does it work? Explain.

He makes a malay man-catcher—he noticed that a dead tree was leaning on a living tree and sets up a trap that would cause the dead tree to fall on Zaroff when he steps on one of the branches that was sticking out

It sort of works—the tree does injure his shoulder; but he sensed danger when he stepped on the tree branch, and he jumped back, so he wasn’t smashed beneath the tree as Rainsford had planned.

15. Clarify the last two tricks/strategies that Rainsford uses.

16. Analyze the story’s final sentence. Who does “he” refer to?

Rainsford, who enjoys sleeping in the very comfortable bed that formerly belonged to the general.

................
................

In order to avoid copyright disputes, this page is only a partial summary.

Google Online Preview   Download