The Most Dangerous Game

Welcome to The Most Dangerous Game!

Imagine being lost in the ocean, only to find a large (seemingly deserted) island. You walk onto the beach, into a jungle full of unknown dangers. Come to find out, there is a lavish, palatial mansion sitting in the middle of it. The owner brings you in, but you quickly find out you aren't considered a guest of his (In the traditional sense). Rather, you're the hunted.  

Description: Students will put themselves into the shoes of someone engaged in the "game" explained in the short story by completing various tasks and writing a journal of their experiences. Experiences and journals should be documented in a polished PowerPoint presentation.

This is a summative grade, so read and follow all instructions carefully. Good luck! 

Task 1: Visualize

Good readers constantly visualize, or use details in a story to form sensory images of the settings, characters, and events. In this story, for example, the author's specific word choices help create an image of a dangerous island where strange things happen. For this task, create a visual representation of an element from the story.

Your visual should clearly represent an image from the story and must be labeled with quotes. This can be hand-drawn or created with a digital program.

Ideas: 

Draw the island with Zaroff's mansion

Draw one of the characters

Draw one of the traps that Rainsford sets 

 

Task 2: Vocabulary

Choose the word from the list that best completes each sentence.

1. As Rainsford swam ashore, the air was so humid it was almost _____.

2. He spoke in a(n) _____ way in order to try not to anger Zaroff’s guard.

3. For his own safety, Rainsford felt it _____ not to come across as an intruder.

4. Zaroff’s love of fine food and wine made him seem a(n) _____ person.

5. His house offered every _____ that could make a guest comfortable.

6. In the morning, Zaroff inquired _____ whether Rainsford had slept well.

7. But Zaroff lacked the ____ that moral people have.

8. He saw nothing wrong with hunting a human _____.

9. In fact, with an odd, or a(n) _____, smile he stalked his prisoners.

10. Rainsford strongly disagreed with Zaroff and refused to ____ his hunting.

11. Zaroff was _____ in tracking down his victims.

12. Rainsford soon found that Zaroff had a(n) _____ ability to follow difficult trails.

 

Task 3: Survival Skills 

There are many dangers besides Zaroff in the jungles of Shiptrap Island - snakes, bugs, poisonous plants, cold nights, starvation, large animals, etc. Complete the following survival tasks.

Food:

While out in the wild, you must forage for your own food. However, there are many plants that could be deadly. To avoid being poisoned,  identify the three berry plants here to find out which one is edible using the dichotomous key.

1. Identify each plant's scientific name.

2. Identify which berries are poisonous and their affects if eaten.

Attacks: 

3. How you would survive an attack from a wild animal.

4. You step on a branch, the sound it makes attracts General Zaroff and his hunting party. What do you do to survive this?

Shelter: 

5. Explain how you would set up a camp at night, where you could sleep to be alerted of any potential dangers.

 

Task 4: Journal Entries

Goal: You decide to start keeping a journal of your experiences on the island.  Between the different landscapes you come across, your methods of survival, close encounters you may have with General Zaroff, and the numerous other goings on during your adventure, there are certainly many things for you to write about!

You will put yourself in the shoes of a main character that is being hunted in "The Most Dangerous Game." Imagine that you are a lost sailor that washed up on Shiptrap Island. You found General Zaroff's mansion sitting in the middle of the island. He brings you in, feeds you, and seems to be a courteous host. However, you quickly find out that you aren't a guest...rather, you are the hunted. 

Zaroff gives you some food, clothing, a hunting knife, and the instruction that he will stop hunting you should you avoid being captured or killed for three days. You start out on your journey for survival.

On day 1, you happen to find a small leather-bound notebook and a pen (presumably belonging to a former participant in the "game"). As you read the journal entries, you learn that the previous owner made many mistakes that likely led to his death. Over the course of your 3 days running through the jungle, you decide to document your journey in the hope that someone will eventually find the journal should you get trapped or die.

If someone finds your journal, the entries could possibly lead to your rescue...they would at least bring Zaroff to justice should you not make it through the hunt.

For this task, you will write 3 journal entries that document your time in the jungle.

Your journal entries must...

• Be written in first person point of view
• Included details covering a total of 3 days in the jungle 
• Follow all parts the plot diagram - exposition, conflict, rising action, climax, falling action, resolution
• Include vivid imagery and figurative language
• Include details from the original story (ex: Zaroff should look, sound, and act like Zaroff from the story) 

Your journal entries should take place BEFORE Rainsford's story (it wouldn't make sense to take place after because Zaroff is presumably dead at the end of the story). 

This is not simply a retelling of the short story, but rather an account of what you would do in a situation such as this. It should be no less than three pages. You should write it from the perspective of someone who is not sure whether or not they are going to survive (you can decide whether or not you survive at the end).

 

ALL tasks should be completed in a PowerPoint presentation. Each task should be clearly labeled in a heading on your slides. If you chose to hand-draw your visual, this can either be uploaded as a photo and inserted into your PowerPoint or you can submit it separately.