The story explores this theme through the character of Sanger Rainsford, a big-game hunter who finds himself being hunted by a Russian aristocrat named General Zaroff. Zaroff has created a private hunting reserve on a remote island, where he hunts human beings for sport. Rainsford must use all his skills and cunning to survive and ultimately defeat Zaroff.
The story also explores the idea of human beings as the ultimate predators, and the danger of unchecked human ambition. Zaroff is a symbol of this unchecked ambition, as he has become so obsessed with hunting that he has lost all sense of humanity. He sees his human prey as nothing more than animals, and he takes pleasure in their suffering. Rainsford, on the other hand, represents the idea of human beings as capable of both good and evil. He is a skilled hunter, but he is also horrified by Zaroff's cruelty. He must learn to fight for his life, but he also must maintain his humanity in the face of Zaroff's evil.
In the end, Rainsford is able to defeat Zaroff and escape the island. However, he is a changed man. He has seen the darkness that exists within human nature, and he knows that he can never be the same again.