Friday, June 21, 2013

In "The Most Dangerous Game", how many days does Rainsford survive the hunt on the island before he wins the game?

The text does not tell us clearly how many days Rainsford was out in the island. However, if we follow the storyline and make an educated guess, he spent two nights on the island.  The first night he spent on a tree, after concealing his tracks.  It seems that Rainsford's first plan was to hide.  When Rainsford realized that Zaroff easily found him, he decided to make traps, which killed Ivan and even wounded Zaroff.  


When this happened, Zaroff went back home.  The next day Zaroff was back.  We do not know where Rainsford slept that night, perhaps he did not.  In any case, it was another night. 


This is when Rainsford had an idea.  Instead of trying to hold out for three days, he needed to go on the offensive.  So, he swam to Zaroff's house and waited for him there.  Here is what Rainsford said to himself:



Rainsford knew he could do one of two things. He could stay where he was and wait. That was suicide. He could flee. That was postponing the inevitable. For a moment he stood there, thinking. An idea that held a wild chance came to him, and, tightening his belt, he headed away from the swamp.


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