How Does Liam O Flaherty Use Characterization In The Sniper

Characterization in The Sniper, by Liam O’Flaherty

The Sniper by Liam O’Flaherty explored the theme of how war can dehumanize those involved through the thoughts, actions, and names of the characters. The story began as O’Flaherty introduced the main character as a young Republican sniper fighting in the civil war of Dublin, Ireland. While waiting for enemies to appear, he began smoking a cigarette which draws an enemy sniper to shoot at him. In the rising action, he was forced to kill an old woman who informed on him and was shot in the arm by an enemy sniper immediately afterwards. His firing arm was disabled and he devised a clever plan to take down the enemy. At the climax, the sniper was forced to take a difficult shot with his revolver

After shooting the old woman and not showing any remorse, he placed iodine on his bullet wound as “a paroxysm of pain swept through him” (1). The contrast between his ability to feel physical pain and not emotional pain clearly shows off how numbed his moral senses were because of the war. Secondly, when the sniper threw his revolver on to the ground in frustration of the war and it accidentally discharged close to his head, “he was frightened back to his senses” (2). This perspective into his thoughts about war and himself enhances the author’s portrayal of how devoid of humanity he became in order to survive. Finally, the lack of names throughout the entire story added to the dehumanizing tone: “...the sniper… the enemy… his brother’s...” (1). Not having names for any of the characters was intentional because it reflected the sniper’s point of view when he saw the other characters. Also, not having a name emphasized how these characters were merely one of many being controlled by people more important than them, a common occurrence in warfare. Even by the dramatic ending, his brother, a member of his own family, remained nameless which represented an extreme situation of war, when brother is turned on