The Hunt
Encyclopedia
"The Hunt" is an episode of the American television anthology series The Twilight Zone
.
, Hyder jumps in after him, but only the raccoon comes up out of the water. Next morning, Hyder and Rip wake up next to the pond. When they return home, Hyder finds that neither his wife, the preacher, nor the neighbors can hear him or see him—they seem to think that he and Rip are dead.
Walking along the road, he encounters a fence he doesn't recognize, and decides to follow it. Presently, both come to a gate tended by a man. Simpson asks him if he is Saint Peter
. Explaining only that he is a gatekeeper, the man explains that Simpson can enter the Elysian Fields
. Simpson is appreciative, but disheartened to hear that there is no raccoon hunting there, nor are there any of his other usual pleasures. When he is told that Rip can't enter and will be taken elsewhere ("up the road"), he declines and angrily goes on down the "Eternity Road" rather than enter the gate without his beloved dog. Simpson states, "Any place that's too high-falootin' for Rip is too fancy for me." Later, after stopping to rest, Simpson and Rip are met by a young angel whose job is to find and bring them to Heaven
.
Simpson tells the angel about his experience at the first gate, commenting "Son, that'd be a helluva place without Rip!" The angel replies "Mr. Simpson, you ain't far wrong - that is Hell! Heaven's up yonder apiece," pointing up Eternity Road. When asked by Simpson why the gatekeeper at the gate to Hell
wouldn't let him bring Rip inside with him, the angel explains that the reason Rip was not allowed in was because the dog would have been able to smell the brimstone
and alert Simpson that something was wrong. The angel says, "You see Mr. Simpson, a man, well, he'll walk right into Hell with both eyes open. But even the Devil can't fool a dog!"
The angel also tells Hyder that there will be a raccoon hunt in Heaven that night, "right after the square dance," and assures him that his wife, who will be coming shortly, will not have any trouble with the Devil up the way.
known as Yudhisthira's final test. Located in the 17th parva, Yudhisthira refuses to go into heaven unless he can take his dog. Thus proving his loyalty, he passes the second test of three tests for heaven and the dog transforms into Dharma, or Dharmaraja, his father, who is the Lord of Death and Justice.
The Twilight Zone (1959 TV series)
The Twilight Zone is an American anthology television series created by Rod Serling, which ran for five seasons on CBS from 1959 to 1964. The series consisted of unrelated episodes depicting paranormal, futuristic, dystopian, or simply disturbing events; each show typically featured a surprising...
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Synopsis
Hyder Simpson lives with his wife and his hound-dog Rip in the backwoods. Mrs. Simpson does not like having the dog indoors, but Rip saved Hyder's life once, and Hyder won't be parted from him. Mrs. Simpson has seen some bad omens recently, and warns Hyder not to go raccoon hunting that night. When Rip dives into a pond after a raccoonRaccoon
Procyon is a genus of nocturnal mammals, comprising three species commonly known as raccoons, in the family Procyonidae. The most familiar species, the common raccoon , is often known simply as "the" raccoon, as the two other raccoon species in the genus are native only to the tropics and are...
, Hyder jumps in after him, but only the raccoon comes up out of the water. Next morning, Hyder and Rip wake up next to the pond. When they return home, Hyder finds that neither his wife, the preacher, nor the neighbors can hear him or see him—they seem to think that he and Rip are dead.
Walking along the road, he encounters a fence he doesn't recognize, and decides to follow it. Presently, both come to a gate tended by a man. Simpson asks him if he is Saint Peter
Saint Peter
Saint Peter or Simon Peter was an early Christian leader, who is featured prominently in the New Testament Gospels and the Acts of the Apostles. The son of John or of Jonah and from the village of Bethsaida in the province of Galilee, his brother Andrew was also an apostle...
. Explaining only that he is a gatekeeper, the man explains that Simpson can enter the Elysian Fields
Elysian Fields
-General use:* Elysium, in Greek mythology, the final resting places of the souls of the heroic and the virtuous- Places :* Elysian Fields, Hoboken, New Jersey, site of the first organized baseball game* Elysian Fields Avenue, New Orleans* Elysian Fields, Texas...
. Simpson is appreciative, but disheartened to hear that there is no raccoon hunting there, nor are there any of his other usual pleasures. When he is told that Rip can't enter and will be taken elsewhere ("up the road"), he declines and angrily goes on down the "Eternity Road" rather than enter the gate without his beloved dog. Simpson states, "Any place that's too high-falootin' for Rip is too fancy for me." Later, after stopping to rest, Simpson and Rip are met by a young angel whose job is to find and bring them to Heaven
Heaven
Heaven, the Heavens or Seven Heavens, is a common religious cosmological or metaphysical term for the physical or transcendent place from which heavenly beings originate, are enthroned or inhabit...
.
Simpson tells the angel about his experience at the first gate, commenting "Son, that'd be a helluva place without Rip!" The angel replies "Mr. Simpson, you ain't far wrong - that is Hell! Heaven's up yonder apiece," pointing up Eternity Road. When asked by Simpson why the gatekeeper at the gate to Hell
Hell
In many religious traditions, a hell is a place of suffering and punishment in the afterlife. Religions with a linear divine history often depict hells as endless. Religions with a cyclic history often depict a hell as an intermediary period between incarnations...
wouldn't let him bring Rip inside with him, the angel explains that the reason Rip was not allowed in was because the dog would have been able to smell the brimstone
Brimstone
Brimstone is an alternative name for sulfur. It may also refer to:* Fire and brimstone, an idiomatic expression of signs of God's wrath in the Bible* Brimstone , a DC Comics character...
and alert Simpson that something was wrong. The angel says, "You see Mr. Simpson, a man, well, he'll walk right into Hell with both eyes open. But even the Devil can't fool a dog!"
The angel also tells Hyder that there will be a raccoon hunt in Heaven that night, "right after the square dance," and assures him that his wife, who will be coming shortly, will not have any trouble with the Devil up the way.
Cultural references
The story resembles a tale in the MahabharataMahabharata
The Mahabharata is one of the two major Sanskrit epics of ancient India and Nepal, the other being the Ramayana. The epic is part of itihasa....
known as Yudhisthira's final test. Located in the 17th parva, Yudhisthira refuses to go into heaven unless he can take his dog. Thus proving his loyalty, he passes the second test of three tests for heaven and the dog transforms into Dharma, or Dharmaraja, his father, who is the Lord of Death and Justice.