Contradicting Character of The Sniper
In this Irish war we have two sides, but this can also be reflected in the two sides within the Sniper himself. The Sniper seems experienced yet amateur, cold yet emotional, lusting for war yet hating it, self-assured yet vulnerable, and clear-minded yet mad; he is a living contradiction.
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.
By contrast, the Sniper also possesses many traits of an amateur soldier. He is described as having “the face of a student”, and had been fasting because “he was too excited to eat”. The word “student” has the connotation of one who is young, inexperienced, and still learning, while his excitement implies that this fighting was new to him, because most people tend to be excited at new experiences. Furthermore, when passage states that as he heard the enemy car draw nearer “his heart beat faster”, which is another portrayal of his eagerness and desire to fight. Thus we see a disparity in the Sniper’s character, which is both experienced and amateur.
Another contradiction with the Sniper is that he is both apathetic and emotional. O’Flaherty described his eyes as having a “cold gleam”, and “cold” has the connotation of lacking feeling. In the scen...
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...his mental strain grows as in the midst of anger he “laughs”, although he has no reason to laugh what we picture as a maniacal laugh. Moreover, the sniper was drunk: “Taking the flask from his pocket, he emptied it at a draught. He felt reckless under the influence of the spirit”. The feeling of recklessness combines with his already crazy state of maniacal laughing to portray a sniper that has gone quite mad.
In conclusion, the Sniper is, interestingly, a complete contradiction in himself. He is both experienced and amateur, cold and emotional, lusting after war and hating it, self-assured and vulnerable, and logical and mad. This stark paradox may create much of the inner conflict that goes on within the Sniper, and also reflects the outer conflict of the Irish war- a war where both sides are essentially opposing parts of the same whole.
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.
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 Sniper” is a short story written by Liam O’Flaherty that was released on January 12, 1923 in an issue of a weekly socialist publication, called The New Leader. It’s a very easy read with a surprise twist at the end that I felt complimented what the author was trying to convey about civil wars. I enjoyed reading this story because of its militaristic and subtle political theme. It shows what humans are when conflict stirs. A huge downside to civil war is brought to the surface with this story’s surprise ending. I would recommend reading this because I believe it really shows the true nature behind wars and the effect it can have upon humans involved in wars. Being threatened for your life, a human can overcome unsurmountable feats with critical thinking and wit, but it’s not without its downfalls as this story shows.
Insomnia can be defined as a purpose or apparent complexity in falling and staying asleep. Dissimilarities in variables used for measurement sleep-onset time, time asleep, and time awake by some, sleepiness, irritability, or other impairment of daytime function by others, make difficult comparisons between studies. The insomnia treatments for which there is confirmation of efficacy include sleep restriction, in which the patient is instructed to remain in bed only as long as he is actually sleeping, stimulus control no activities in the bedroom except sleep and sex, and a variety of relaxation methods, particularly in the circumstance of multimodal sleep clinics (Rowe, 1995).
Sleep is an essential life process that has been accredited as a crucial role on our wholesomeness and well-being as individuals for thousands of years. Our knowledge on sleep has increased tremendously over the past century thanks to advances in technology and remarkable research that has been done. A lot more information of how sleep occurs and the effects it has enough has on the body, the brain and our everyday lives is now understood. With this information another interesting topic has gained recognition, which is sleep disorders. One specific sleep disorder is insomnia.
Almost everyone seem to suffer from not being able to get enough sleep at some time in their life. If you are always tired then that means that you’re not getting enough sleep. As we all know, inadequate sleep which is referred to as insomnia. Insomnia is basically one of the many sleeping disorders that some people may have and is one of the most common sleep disorder. There are many different effects of insomnia which includes some may become less productive, less ambitious, have a poor performance at school, work, or their everyday life tasks. Insomnia is not an illness but it is a symptom which can typically last no more than maybe a few days or it could be long term for some people. Who gets insomnia? According to Bayer (2001) “Approximately 36 out of every 100 Americans have reported experiencing this symptom [insomnia]. However, only 5 out of every 100 Americans consider the problem severe enough to seek medical help” (p. 22).
O’Brien’s unique verisimilitude writing style fills the novel with deep meaning and emotion. Analyzing the novel through a psychological lens only adds to its allure. Understanding why characters act the way they do helps bring this novel to life. The reader begins to empathize with the characters. Every day, the soldiers’ lives hang in the balance. How these soldiers react to life-threatening situations will inspire the reader. Life has an expiration date. Reading about people who are held captive by their minds and who die in the name of war, will inspire the reader to live everyday as if they are currently in the
Usually when someone is murdered, people expect the murderer to feel culpable. This though, is not the case in war. When in war, a soldier is taught that the enemy deserves to die, for no other reason than that they are the nation’s enemy. When Tim O’Brien kills a man during the Vietnam War, he is shocked that the man is not the buff, wicked, and terrifying enemy he was expecting. This realization overwhelms him in guilt. O’Brien’s guilt has him so fixated on the life of his victim that his own presence in the story—as protagonist and narrator—fades to the black. Since he doesn’t use the first person to explain his guilt and confusion, he negotiates his feelings by operating in fantasy—by imagining an entire life for his victim, from his boyhood and his family to his feeling about the war and about the Americans. In The Man I Killed, Tim O’Brien explores the truth of The Vietnam War by vividly describing the dead body and the imagined life of the man he has killed to question the morality of killing in a war that seems to have no point to him.
The setting to “The Sniper” plays a vital role in understanding the meaning O’Flaherty was trying to convey. The main character is sitting on a rooftop near O’Connell Bridge in Dublin Ireland. During the Irish Civil War, the river that flowed beneath the bridge, was the dividing line in the Battle of Dublin. From the beginning, when civilians watched the opening attacks from atop the bridge, to the end, when it shook from the final bombing that forced the Republicans to surrender, the bridge was a key factor to the end result of the war. (Black,
Insomnia occurs when someone experiences difficulty falling and staying asleep (New Perspective, 2010). For some people, insomnia’s a major condition that greatly affects their daily life from how they behave towards others, to how they feel about themselves. There’s a reason why they’re unable to get a goodnight’s rest and those factors vary from person to person. For example, maybe they’re plagued by nightmares which create an atmosphere they’re unable to fall asleep in. Maybe they just moved to a new place much different from their last, or maybe they consumed too much caffeine earlier that day and the effects are still present in their system. Insomnia is a major condition and should be treated as such which is why it’s important to understand
Insomnia means having trouble with the quality or quantity of sleep. It can be caused by difficulties in either falling asleep or staying asleep. Self-reported sleeping problems, hating the sleep quality and day time tiredness are the only defining characteristics of insomnia because it is such an individual experience. The concept of good sleep is different from person to person. While the average night's sleep for an adult is around seven or eight hours, some people only need four, while others like up to 10 hours or more. What seems like insomnia to one person might be considered a good sleep by another (Florence Cardinal, Your Guide to Sleep Disorders.)
Insomnia is a common sleep disorder. People who have insomnia have trouble falling asleep, staying asleep, or both. As a result, they may get an little amount of sleep or have a poor-quality of sleep. They may not feel refreshed when they wake up. There are four types of Insomnia. One is called Primary Insomnia; Primary Insomnia dictates that a person is having problems sleeping that are not directly correlated with any other health condition or problem. Then there is Secondary Insomnia, Secondary Insomnia indicates that a person is having sleep problems due to something else, such as a preexisting health condition. Acute Insomnia is short-term insomnia with minimum problems. Chronic Insomnia is ongoing and may have more problems. Many different things in everyday life can cause Insomnia. Symptoms can vary to, people may find themselves waking up in the middle of the night, or just can't sleep at all. Treatments may very also, different sufferers may try different treatments to help their problem.
Whereas insomnia is a serious condition, it is also a treatable condition. Depending on the severity of the issues that is causing sleeplessness, therapy is an option to care for the condition. Restorative treatment is a less invasive way to cure insomnia. In order for therapy to work, it will be important to identify the root of the problem such as behavior patterns, psychological issues, or the type of disorder one is experiencing. Once the issues that are preventing sleep are uncovered, it may be possible to eliminate or reduce the factors that are promoting the cause (Drake, et al). It is as simple as educating the individual about good sleep habits or easing their anxiety with psychological conditioning. Consequently, if therapy does not do the trick, natural