Wait a second!
More handpicked essays just for you.
More handpicked essays just for you.
Details about the sniper essay
Analysis of the sniper by Liam O'Flaherty
Analysis of the sniper by Liam O'Flaherty
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
Recommended: Details about the sniper essay
Having an afternoon smoke becomes a lousy choice for an Irish Republican soldier in the short story “The Sniper” by Liam O’Flaherty because it almost costs him his life. A Republican sniper lights his cigarette when moments later, a bullet whizzes past his body. After some shooting in the street, the Free State sniper from across the street shoots again, this time the Republican sniper is wounded in the arm. The Republican sniper nurses his wound and tricks the enemy sniper into thinking he is dead. Armed with a revolver, the Republican sniper then kills the other sniper once the Free State sniper moves out from his hideaway. The remaining sniper begins to wonder who this other man is. The Sniper demonstrates resourcefulness, battle weariness, …show more content…
The author writes, “A paroxysm of pain swept through him. He placed the cotton wadding over the wound and wrapped the dressing over it. He tied the ends with his teeth” (12). The Republican sniper is not only able dress a wound, but one of his own with only one arm using his excellent skills as a soldier. The Sniper is able to push through the pain and keep on going all by himself. The author writes that “He must kill that enemy and he could not use his rifle. He had only a revolver to do it. Then he thought of a plan” (12). The Sniper knows that his rifle is useless due to his injured arm so his options are limited. Only one man will walk away alive and the Sniper know that he is at a disadvantage. He must outsmart the other man. In dealing with an injured arm and outsmart the enemy, the Sniper and his resourcefulness live to see another …show more content…
The author writes, “It was dangerous. The flash might be seen in the darkness, and there were enemies watching. He decided to take the risk” (10). The Sniper realises that what he is doing is risky, but he disregards the warning from his brain and continues on. The Sniper knows what the enemy looks for as he lights his cigarette anyway. The author says that “The sniper darted across the street. A machine gun tore up the ground around him with a hail of bullets, but he escaped” (14). There are people out there ready to shoot him but the Sniper decides to go out and see who the other soldier was. As bullets rain down on the Sniper, he courageously rushes on, even though his life is at risk. The Sniper’s bravery is exposed in his ability to stay calm and keep his composure until the job is
In the story, “The Sniper”, The sniper showed that he was an intelligent soldier. In the beginning, after Being shot by the enemy sniper the sniper took care of his wound and was able to compose himself and think of a plan. Thinking he had won the battle after the snipers successful decoy the enemy sniper dropped his guard and the second he did the sniper
middle of paper ... ...is “Christ, I’m hit.” The turmoil ‘overpowers’ the life of a soldier. The gory sights in the city of Dublin, torn apart and paralysed with War and fear is depicted by people bleeding in the gutters till they die and rapid gunfire everywhere, followed by a deafening silence. Killing is done in cold blood and even then, the sniper maintains calm.
Murder is a reprobate action that is an inevitable part of war. It forces humans into immoral acts, which can manifest in the forms such as shooting or close combat. The life of a soldier is ultimately decided from the killer, whether or not he follows through with his actions. In the short stories The Sniper by Liam O'Flaherty and Just Lather, That's All by Hernando Téllez, the killer must decide the fate of their victims under circumstantial constraints. The two story explore the difference between killing at a close proximity compared to killing at a distance, and how they affect the killer's final decision.
His quick thinking and desperate attempts to avoid an intricate situation ends with him killing his enemy, but the consequence is later revealed at the end of the short story. O’Flaherty writes, “Then the sniper turned over the dead body and looked into his brother’s face” (4). In other words, the enemy that the Republican sniper shoots at the end of the passage was not only his enemy, but his brother. The action of killing his brother shows that the Republican sniper is to blame because he takes action, without much thought, and does not consider that he is shooting his own flesh and blood. The Free Stater sniper is utterly the same as the Republican sniper because he views his enemy the exact same way. He does not ruminate on whether his enemy lives a different life outside of the war. Another sentence that is prominent in showing the mindset of the snipers wanting to create bloodshed from each other is, “ He must kill that enemy…” (3). O’Flaherty writes this to showcase the Republican sniper’s thoughts and feelings through his elaborate plan to assassinate the opposing sniper. The Republican sniper merely deliberates on how he will eliminate his
As we saw earlier, both authors of both stories were born in different places and did many things. “The Sniper” sets in Dublin, Ireland, during a time of a bitter civil war. It was a war between the Republicans, which wanted Ireland to become ...
The basic plot of the story is based during an evening within the Irish civil wars. It tells of a republican sniper sitting on a rooftop and neutralising enemy units as the cross a bridge. When a free-states sniper shows himself on an opposite roof they wage a fierce and innovative war to see who would end up the better. Eventually the republican sniper gains the upper hand and after taking a bullet in the arm destroys the worthy opponent. After a curious inspection to the identity of the enemy sniper he finds himself looking into the eyes of his dead brother.
The mood of the story is dark and weary. In this scene the sky is gloomy and there are Republican and Free Starter soldiers fighting in the Irish Civil war, “The long June twilight faded into the night. Dublin lay enveloped in darkness but for the dim light of the moon that shone through the fleecy clouds.. machine guns and rifles broke the silence of the night, spasmodically” (O’Flaherty 1). Although the mood of the story is creepy and dim for the most part, it is silent with the sudden sounds of guns firing. As the story progresses, the sniper’s emotions begin reflecting on his actions. He begins to feel guilt and remorse for killing someone and the mood shifts to tension and violence.
The theme of The Sniper was the civil war and how war can destroy a man both in body and mind for the rest of his life. Liam O’Flaherty suggests the horror of war not only by presenting its physical dangers, but also by showing its psychological effects. We are left to wonder which has the longer lasting effect-the visible physical scars or the ones on the inside? The theme of The Most Dangerous Game was hunter hunted and shows the author's point of view on how one who has intellect can overcome one who has intelligence or instinct. The two stories are similar in showing that even under pressure a man can use his reasoning to keep him alive.
A tribute released by his Battalion Commander on the occasion of his death was the first document to associate his sniping ability with his “Indian blood.” Since then Canadian historians such as L. James Dempsey have perpetuated this association by crediting his talents to a childhood spent in the woodlands of central Alberta. However, despite Norwest’s reputation as one of the best snipers in the British army very little attention has been devoted to his life on the Western Front. In fact, scholar Leslie Parker Mepham argues that military historians often neglect to examine the role of snipers in the First World War. This gap seems significant in light of the fact that the actions of snipers were frequently mentioned in the 50th Battalion’s official war diary and that detailed accounts of Norwest’s prowess stand in stark contrast to the diary’s dry summation of daily military activities. First World War veteran Victor Wheeler’s frequent references to Norwest as a distant but deeply respected figure in his personal history of the 50th Battalion prove that Norwest’s actions were of interest to the average soldier as well as high command. A close examination of Norwest’s experiences on the frontlines of the First World War is necessary to understand the important role played by snipers, and why they were
It was 1984, and photographer Steve McCurry was walking through a refugee camp on the border of Afghanistan and Pakistan, taking photographs of refugees that had fled from the war. The refugee camp was a sea of tents; he walked through them, approaching a school tent. Inside the school tent he noticed a girl with incredibly bright blue and green eyes. Sensing her shyness, he waited to approach her, photographing other students first. The girl told him he could take her picture. “I didn’t think the photograph of the girl would be different from anything else I shot that day,” he recalls. Little did McCurry know, that photo would become the defining image of his career, and one of the most famous National Geographic covers ever published. The photo was titled “The Afghan Girl” and has been called "the First World's Third World Mona Lisa". Her name was Sharbat Gula, which means "Sweetwater flower girl" in Pashtu, the
Johnson, Peter. "Like the Sniper, Story Seems Unstoppable." USATODAY.com. N.p., 23 Oct. 2002. Web. 29 May 2013. .
In “The Sniper” the conflict is man vs man, which means main character is tasked with killing his enemy, but it proves to be quite a challenge. Even though there were many challenges the sniper followed through with his job and persevered even after he was shot in the arm. Wanting to kill his enemy, stay alive, and be one step closer to ending the war was his main goals. Being brave, he took off his hat, placed it on his gun, and raised it above the edge of the roof. Instantly the enemy shot at it and the sniper, pretending to be dead, waited until the enemy got up for him to shoot him. He did some quick thinking and, with determination, handled the conflict quite well.
The Sniper exhibits qualities that are both experienced and amateur. O’Flaherty describes the Sniper as “a man who is used to looking at death”, from which we can infer that the sniper has seen many deaths, since a person who is exposed frequently to death gradually grows senseless to it. In the passage, “There was a flash and a bullet whizzed over his head. He dropped immediately.”, we can tell from the “dropped immediately” that the sniper has exceedingly quick reflexes, something usually apparent in those who are experienced in the techniques of war.
War can destroy a man both in body and mind for the rest of his life. In “The Sniper,” Liam O’Flaherty suggests the horror of war not only by presenting its physical dangers, but also by showing its psychological effects. We are left to wonder which has the longer lasting effect—the visible physical scars or the ones on the inside?
The 2013 Film American Sniper deals with the experience of postmodern warfare. While at first glance the film glorifies war and American imperialism, this is a surface level interpretation of the film. The film depicts the heroism of battle but does not shy away from the darker aspects of war. Navy SEAL sniper Chris Kyle is portrayed as a brave combatant but does not hesitate to depict the strain put on his family or the hard choices which are part of the nature of warfare. The film is even-handed in its depiction of warfare. The central message of the film is ambivalent about the value of war and has aspects which are both pro and anti-war. Clint Eastwood is correct when he states that film has an antiwar aspect and that it shows just how devastating war is for survivors and their family;