Connell’s short story begins with a foreboding tone as the ship on which Rainsford and Whitney are passengers passes by Ship-Trap Island in the darkness of the Caribbean waters. The island’s very name suggests danger, and Connell conveys a sense of evil through Whitney’s mention of crewmembers’ superstitions and imagery used to describe the intense darkness of the night. The blackness is described as “palpable,” “thick,” and “moist black velvet” (1), suggesting suffocating and tangible darkness. From the beginning, Connell’s use of tone, imagery, and setting indicates that readers should not expect a feel-good story.

The conversation between Whitney and Rainsford on the ship deck reveals a contrast between the two men’s natures. While Whitney is sympathetic and sensitive, Rainsford is dogmatic and prideful. It also introduces the activity around which the story’s action revolves: hunting. Whitney is willing to consider the point of view of the prey he hunts, but Rainsford is not. For Rainsford, hunting is a metaphor for life. Two classes exist: the hunters and the hunted—the haves and the have nots.