Richard Edward Connell (1893-1949) was an American short story writer, journalist, novelist, and screenwriter. He was most popular for his two screenplays “Two Girls and a Sailor” and “Meet John Doe”. For “Meet John Doe”, he was nominated for Academy Awards in the mid-20th century for the best original story.
He also served in World War-I, in which he worked for the camp newspaper and issued articles and edited them. His most famous work is the short story “The Most Dangerous Game” which was published in 1924. Mostly, his works were published in the magazines, Collier’s Weekly and Saturday Evening Post. He had a smooth literary career and secured good positions in local papers because of his father’s connections at literary forums. His family had an influential literary background.
A Short Biography of Richard Connell
Richard Connell was born in Poughkeepsie, New York, on October 17, 1893. His father, Richard Edward Connell Sr. was an editor and reporter in a local newspaper, and in later life, a congressman. Connell Sr. began his political life when he accepted the position of commissioner in Poughkeepsie police. Later after failing in the elections for congress, his father became a delegate for Democratic National Convention from 1900 till 1904 when he died. His mother was Marie Miller Connell.
When Connell was 18 years of age, he got the position of editor in Poughkeepsie News-Press with his father’s influence as a former reporter for the press. He was also an influential political man at the time. With his father’s high place, he secured a literary career for himself.
Connell also took admission to Georgetown University to continue his higher education but left his studies in 1910 for a year when his father won a seat in Congress. He needed a secretary and Connell Jr. provided him the service. In 1912, his father’s sudden death occurred and Connell joined his studies again.
However, he was enrolled at Harvard University instead of Georgetown. Even there, Connell worked as the editor of forums The Harvard Lampoon and The Harvard Crimson. In 1915, Connell completed his studies and began his literary career. He first started his journalism career. However, World War-I began in the United Stated that needed young men. Therefore, he left his work and enrolled in the 27th New York division.
Richard Connell’s Writing Career
World War-I
In France, during his one-year stay, he edited Gas Attack, the military camp paper. When the war ended in 1919, Connell returned to America and got married to Louise Herrick Fox. He also published his first short story the same year.
The 1920s-1930s
In the 1920s-1930s, Connell published a major volume of his works including short stories, novels, and mainly, about ten screenplays. Although his works were categorized as good literary pieces, they did not bring him wide recognition and popularity.
The Most Dangerous Game
His most acclaimed story came in 1924, “The Most Dangerous Game” which earned Connell wide success. It is a thriller story that is even adapted nowadays and is read regularly. The story first appeared with the name “The Hounds of Zaroff”. It was published in the paper, Collier’s Weekly. Moreover, the tale was adapted in the style of hunting expeditions that were common among the American upper-class in the 1920s.
The tale, “The Most Dangerous Game” is the account of the Ship Trap Island of the Caribbean Sea. The island is controlled by sadistic general Zaroff. The protagonist of the story, Sanger Rainsford becomes a victim of the sadism of the general.
Short Story Collections
Connell published a total of five collections of short stories. These are Varieties, Ironies, The Sin of Monsieur Pettipon, Apes and Angels, and Other Humorous Tales. Varieties include “The Most Dangerous Game” in its collection. He wrote more than three hundred short stories in his writing career.
In this period of the mid-1920s, Richard Connell moved to California along with his family. During that decade, he published certain novels like “The Mad Lover”, “Playboy”, and “Murder at Sea”. His first novel was “The Mad Lover” that he published in 1927.
Screenplays
In California, he began his screenwriting career and most of his short stories were developed into television adaptations in silent mode. However, in 1929, the sound was added to his short story for the first time. With his successful career as a screenwriter, his story “Meet John Doe” was honored with the nomination of the best story for an Oscar in 1941.
Later in 1949, he suffered from a heart attack while he was still serving as a writer. He died on 22nd November in Beverly Hills soon after the attack at the age of 56. However, his stories continued to gain fame even after his demise.
Achievements
First, Connell served in the armed forces in World War-I and remained there till the end. His short fictive tale, “A Friend of Napoleon” was honored by the O. Henry Memorial Prize. Likewise, the same prize was also given to his most popular short story, “The Most Dangerous Game”.
This story inspired many other writings and remains one of the most adapted stories on television. Furthermore, many films have been made based on the story of “The Most Dangerous Game”.
Richard Connell’s Writing Style
Horror and Evil
Richard Connell composes his writing in a way that predicts a feeling of evil and danger. His works are constructed on the setup of the themes of Gothicism, horror, and mystery. Through his writing, he imparts a tinge of impending horror upon the lives of his characters. This makes his works suspenseful and appealing.
For instance, his most acclaimed work, “The Most Dangerous Game”, is set in the genre of gothic where the horrors of evil take an important part in the story. In the tale, the representation of the large rooms of the mansion, Zaroff’s mysterious evil character, his servant’s rifle, and the walls of the place with the mounted heads of dead animals display the gothic nature of the story. Also, his “Apes and Angels” represent a gothic style.
World War-I
When Richard Connell began his writing career, World War-I started. Therefore, he had to leave his literary life to serve in the war in France. There he worked as an editor of the camp paper Gas Attack. When the war ended, Connell returned to the US.
In this way, his works have a stark representation of a difficult life and depict the psychological effect of World War-I. For example, “The Most Dangerous Game” was composed after the war that has an evil general, who victimizes Rainsford. It also has the representation of a rifle and other weapons.
Use of Imagery
Connell’s writing style is that of a fast-paced, economical mode. He fills his writing with genuine and vivid imagery to project his thoughts into the minds of readers authentically. Connell’s mastery in imagery development can also be seen in his most acclaimed story “The Most Dangerous Game”.
The Caribbean Sea and its island with the vast jungles are constructed in beautiful yet mysterious imagery that enforces the themes of the tale more clearly. Likewise, the imagery of the heads of animals hanging on the walls of Zaroff’s mansion adds to the suspenseful plot and its gothic effect.
Genre
Richard Connell’s writing style separates him from other literary writers of the time by making his stories full of action and adventure. For instance, he blends the genre of adventure and mystery to form unique pieces of art. This makes his works of art concise and energetic.
He depicts the wild adventures and experiences of the main characters in most of his works. For example, “The Mad Lover” and “Playboy” have certain features of action and extreme conditions in the lives of the main characters.
Emphasis on colors
In Connell’s writings, there is a certain emphasis on the colors and background of the scenes. The writer goes on to give a detailed account of colors and modes to present the main theme of the story. This emphasis also helps in the development of the genre of gothic and adventure elements.
For example, in “The Most Dangerous Game”, there are many references to the black color and darkness. For instance, Zaroff’s black eyebrows and beard, Ivan’s black beard, the darkness of the beginning scene, etc. depict the shady and suspenseful nature of the tale.
Themes in Richard Connell’s Writings
Degradation of Man
Most of Richard Connell’s stories are based on the degradation of human life as he had seen the holocausts of World War-I. In war, human life degrades to a major extent because war involves bloodshed, wretchedness, and cruelty. Likewise, after the end of the war, many people develop a mentality of mistrust, terror, and disgust for humanity because of seeing the evil nature of man.
This degradation of man can be seen in Richard Connell’s works. For example, in “Playboy”, “The Mad Lover” and “The Most Dangerous Game”, we can see a disgraced and extreme side of human life.
In “The Most Dangerous Game”, Zaroff unveils his true character through a steady progression in the story. He changes from an animal hunter to a hunter of human beings as Rainsford calls him a murderer. Likewise, Rainsford also shows his natural degradation that is common to men. As he does not value animal life, he has sympathy for humans and shows his disgust for Zaroff’s behavior. However, in the end, he kills Zaroff to continue living. This causes his natural eroding when he becomes a murderer from a sympathizer of human beings.
Revenge
Richard Connell’s stories are mostly revenge-driven and end in suspenseful turns of the tale. Moreover, he weaves this theme to impart a strong end to the story where poetic justice is fulfilled and the antagonist is revenged for his evil deeds throughout the story.
For instance, in “The Most Dangerous Game”, Rainsford kills Zaroff despite his winning of the match. This action cannot be exclusively termed as self-defense in front of a cruel master. Although Zaroff gets defeated in the game and readily sets Rainsford free, he still kills Zaroff. This shows how revenge changes the personality and psyche of a person to become what he is not.
Shift into a Different Personality/ Inversion
Another significant theme of Connell’s writing is the main character’s shift from one personality type into a more refined and grave personality. His main character is a round character who self-contradicts his peculiar values and thoughts as the story progresses.
For example, in “The Mad Lover”, the main character is a young man with a very meager interest in life. His only point of interest is engaging in women, wine, and polo. However, through the course of the story, he learns to adopt a better way of living and make himself a productive person.
Likewise, in “The Most Dangerous Game”, the main character is first a victim of the rule of Zaroff who is the general of the island. However, over time, Rainsford learns how to tackle him and engages in a fight with him. Eventually, he defeats Zaroff gains new confidence, and frees himself from his cruelty. This shows the shifting of modes from one personality type to another.
Hunter versus Hunted
Richard Connell, in his screenplays and other works, tried to give an impression of the cunningness of humans in fooling others to gain their ends. For example, in “The Most Dangerous Game”, there is a vivid representation of hunting in the character of Zaroff who hunts animals as well as humans. On the other hand, Rainsford is prey for Zaroff as he victimizes him in every way when he is washed up on an island that is under Zaroff’s control. In the end, Zaroff ends up being hunted by the victim of his commands, Rainsford.
Likewise, in an unaccredited screenplay, “The Cowboy and the Lady” in 1938, the upper-class protagonist, Mary Smith, fools a cowboy for being the maid of her boss. It is because she likes him but the cowboy disgusts elites. She eventually hunts him by marrying him according to her wish. However, the cowboy does not know about her reality and he becomes a victim of her desires. Later the same girl adopts the lifestyle of a simple, poor lady to convert her foolery into a reality for her husband.