Suspense, used to change the story drastically, prevents “The Most Dangerous Game,” from seeming too predictable and boring. Author, Richard Connoll, creates suspense by conveying unsettling emotions that the audience can relate to and that give a false sense of predictability. The title of this story, a major factor of suspense, tells the audience exactly what will happen. The interior suspense gives hidden meaning to the title and adds many twists to its foreboding plot.
The element of suspense, leaving audiences guessing about future events, allows the audience to get emotionally involved in the story line. In essence, Richard Connoll does not disappoint readers by deviating from the thematic conflict, but instead keeps the audience on their toes by creating a veil of the suspenseful unknown throughout the story. Indeed, Connoll successfully creates this veil of suspense in several key scenes. One such scene occurs when Zaroff tracks Rainsford, by following his immensely difficult trail, to Rainsford’s canopy bed. When Zaroff arrives he looks up into the canopy of the trees.
He then lights a cigarette and blows a smoke ring into the air as if “deliberately” and stalks away “saving him for another day’s sport” (210, 211).
When Connoll does not specifically say if Zaroff saw Rainsford or not it leaves the audience to speculate about Zaroff’s intentions. A second key scene happens when Rainsford digs a pit in the marsh. When the pit kills Zaroff’s dog Zaroff seems amused and says that he will “see what you (meaningRainsford) can do against my whole pack. I am going home for a rest now” (212).
The Essay on Suspense In "The Birds" (comparison Of The Book And The Film)
At times, we don’t understand why things occur. In the story “The Birds” by Daphne du Maurier and The Birds by Alfred Hitchcock, all types of birds begin to attack the people for an unknown reason. The short story and the movie each have a different way of presenting the main idea and creating suspense. Throughout the film and short story, we see how the citizen’s cope with ...
Zaroff’s satisfaction releases both Rainsford from the hunt (yet again) and the audience from the momentary suspense while keeping them entangled in the overall plot. The plot continues deepening as Rainsford faces more danger when Ivan and Zaroff hunt him with an entire pack of dogs. Again, Rainsford escapes by using his wits and constructing a trap that kills Ivan. As each successive event becomes more and more dangerous it leaves the audience feeling as if nothing could top the previous scene. Connoll does top all of his previous scenes by concluding with the ultimate ending; he allows the readers to make their own ending. This keeps the story forever alive by never actually ending the story, the perfect permanent suspense.
Throughout the story, Connell’s masterful use of suspense keeps the audience guessing until far beyond the end. Such creative writing stirs the desire for more, keeping the audience hooked until the exhilarating finish. Connell’s “The Most Dangerous Game” conveys a prime example of suspense. It also begs the question, what is civilization? Rainsford enjoys hunting so his peers consider him primitive and Zaroff is seen as civilized. This only shows that civilization is a perception made from details that are fed to us by the person being judged.
A person’s true character is on the inside, as shown in this story, but can a person change? Did Rainsford’s experience change him from the mere perception of primitive to actual primitivism?
