Foreshadowing In The Most Dangerous Game
In the short story “The Most Dangerous Game,” author Richard Connell uses foreshadowing to expose General Zaroff as a cannibal to readers. General Zaroff’s cannibalism is revealed in The Most Dangerous Game through the superstition of the island, the physical description of Zaroff, and the loss of his friend Ivan. Occuring in the exposition of the story, Rainsford and Whitney draw near to an island which is called Ship-Trap Island. Anxiously, Whitney tells of feelings of superstition between the crew amidst the island. During the conversation, Whitney tells Rainsford that the island has a bad reputation, which prompts the following theory from Rainsford: “Cannibals?” (2). Connell uses this scene within the story to plant the idea in
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Additionally, Zaroff likely drinks the blood of his prey, which is signified by the borsch soup that he enjoys. If a person were to make a soup out of humans, hypothetically, it would likely be described as a “rich, red soup” (7), which is how Connell describes the soup that Zaroff eats. Lastly, the final use of foreshadowing is present during the climax and falling action of the story, where Ivan gets killed by a trap that Rainsford had laid. Repeatedly throughout the story, Ivan is referred to as a large man; Rainsford described him as “the largest man Rainsford had ever seen” (5). When Ivan is killed, Zaroff gives up the hunt and goes back to the dining hall for “an exceedingly good dinner” (21), which implies that Zaroff eats his deceased friend. When animal hunters kill a large animal, they have a large and exceedingly good feast. Because Ivan was a large guy, Zaroff was able to enjoy a supreme meal, even though the loss of his friend concerned him. Even though Connell doesn’t explicitly tell readers that Zaroff is a cannibal, it can be implied through various literary techniques used such as foreshadowing and allusions. However oblivious readers might have been, upon further inspection and scrutiny, the truth becomes clear that General Zaroff eats
Additionally, Zaroff likely drinks the blood of his prey, which is signified by the borsch soup that he enjoys. If a person were to make a soup out of humans, hypothetically, it would likely be described as a “rich, red soup” (7), which is how Connell describes the soup that Zaroff eats. Lastly, the final use of foreshadowing is present during the climax and falling action of the story, where Ivan gets killed by a trap that Rainsford had laid. Repeatedly throughout the story, Ivan is referred to as a large man; Rainsford described him as “the largest man Rainsford had ever seen” (5). When Ivan is killed, Zaroff gives up the hunt and goes back to the dining hall for “an exceedingly good dinner” (21), which implies that Zaroff eats his deceased friend. When animal hunters kill a large animal, they have a large and exceedingly good feast. Because Ivan was a large guy, Zaroff was able to enjoy a supreme meal, even though the loss of his friend concerned him. Even though Connell doesn’t explicitly tell readers that Zaroff is a cannibal, it can be implied through various literary techniques used such as foreshadowing and allusions. However oblivious readers might have been, upon further inspection and scrutiny, the truth becomes clear that General Zaroff eats