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3.83 AVERAGE
3.83 AVERAGE
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Wherein precedent reputation recedes upon inspection.
dark
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Rainsford knew now how an animal at bay feels.The world is divided into two classes, according to Rainsford: the hunters and the prey. (He, of course, thinks of himself as a hunter.) Connell doesn't spare much time for us to think about this Chekhov's gun before he fires it only a few pages later, when Rainsford washes ashore on a secluded island and meets the Russian émigré General Zaroff, who shares Rainsford's passion for hunting... if not his idea of what the prey should be. Zaroff is the perfect antagonist, with his polite, competent courtesy juxtaposed against his chilling, sociopathic brutality while hunting his prey. "There is no greater bore than perfection," Zaroff comments. The General's calm, impassionate reasoning buoys the story: after all, if men prey upon other animals, why could it be considered illogical for men to prey upon other men?
"Great sport, hunting."Who cares how a jaguar feels? Perhaps the jaguar, Whitney points out. "I rather think they understand one thing," he continues: "fear. The fear of pain and the pain of death." Evil, as Whitney describes it, is "a tangible thing." Whitney is a curious character, probably my favourite in this short story: an empathetic hunter. He seems to care about the jaguar's feelings, but that doesn't stop him from hunting and killing it.
"The best sport in the world," agreed Rainsford.
"For the hunter," amended Whitney. "Not for the jaguar."
"Life is for the strong, to be lived by the strong, and, if needs be, taken by the strong. The weak of the world were put here to give the strong pleasure. I am strong. Why should I not use my gift? If I wish to hunt, why should I not? I hunt the scum of the earth: sailors from tramp ships—lassars, blacks, Chinese, whites, mongrels—a thoroughbred horse or hound is worth more than a score of them."
"But they are men," said Rainsford hotly.
"Precisely," said the general. "That is why I use them. It gives me pleasure. They can reason, after a fashion. So they are dangerous."
New 15 page novella! I wound never voluntarily read this but I had to read it for English. I’m going to see if I can find somewhere to watch the movie. Maybe that’ll better (I doubt it).
yes it was good but why is this the quote unquote most famous short story?
The Zodiac killer is the reason why I wanted to read this shot story. I was curious to what's so appealing about it that it enticed a person into turning into a serial killer, and absorbing the same deviant mindset.
The story is amusing, frightening, and quite intriguing, leaving the reader with an open ending that could have multiple interpretations relative to the natural condition of mankind and the affects that war has on accentuating humans' survival instincts, and their barbaric behaviour.
The story is amusing, frightening, and quite intriguing, leaving the reader with an open ending that could have multiple interpretations relative to the natural condition of mankind and the affects that war has on accentuating humans' survival instincts, and their barbaric behaviour.
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No