In “The Man I Killed,” Tim O’Brien portrays a vivid story on how war affects individuals. Tim, Azar, and Kiowa are all at the Vietnam war in 1990 together fighting. Tim killed a man with a grenade and he feels deeply upset about the matter, while Azar shows no sympathy for the dead man whatsoever. Kiowa is the neutral man of the situation, trying to comfort and justify the death of the man because it was Tim’s job to protect his men. The story is told from the perspective of the protagonist, while O’Brien uses a sufficient amount of imagery throughout the reading to show the amount of guilt he has obtained from killing a man.
In the short story “The Sniper” by Liam O’Flaherty the theme is that war changes human beings to mere objects. The story of “The Sniper” sets in the city, fundamentally in the rooftop and in the streets of the city of Dublin, Ireland.
Liam O’ Flaherty does an outstanding job of creating a shocking and tense atmosphere within The Sniper. Throughout The Sniper, the author puts the Republican sniper in many close call situations that could potentially kill him. “A bullet flattened itself against the parapet of the roof... There was a flash and a bullet whizzed over his head,” (Page 1). When the sniper goes to peak after the first shot, the reader wonders if he is going to get hit with a bullet, which adds the atmosphere of .
In the book Fallen Angels Walter Dean Myers tells the story of soldiers who struggles with a problem involving what is right and wrong in war. Fallen Angels set in Vietnam during the Vietnam war, the story introduces the main character Perry, who faces obstacles, including death and killing. The author’s use of literary devices, specifically imagery, irony, and metaphors convey the theme warfare often forces soldiers to reconsider their traditional notions of right and wrong. The author employs imagery to express the theme that warfare often forces soldiers to reconsider their traditional notions of right and wrong.
Although the soldier he killed was an enemy soldier, instead of vilifying him he was able to humanize the man. O’Brien was able to describe the physical appearance of the soldier and imagine her life before war. The author was able to portray an emotional connection and made the line between friend and enemy almost vanish. This was able to reveal the natural beauty of shared humanity even in the context of war’s horror. O’Brien is able to find the beauty in the midst of this tragic and horrible event.
”(3) In this moment, the sniper’s overall view on the war changes within seconds. The quick mood change and regret towards killing the enemy establishes a sense of foreshadowing to what could come as a consequence. If the sniper had missed and both of the opposing fighters had gotten away, the consequence of a family divide would not have been conveyed. However, O’Flaherty uses these situations to give readers the takeaway of not only the outcomes of war but, the outcome of a family divided through
One thing pervasive in O’Flaherty’s writing is that “[t]he adventure… depends on anonymity” (Shuman). Ultimately, the sniper finally comes to his senses, if he has any left, and “began to gibber to himself, cursing the war, cursing himself, cursing everybody” (O'Flaherty). In the end, the true antagonist in this story is war and the atrocities it brings. Furthermore, the story “depicts several of the worst horrors of war. It shows that war makes life seem cheap” (Shuman).
In the story “The Sniper”, adversity was demonstrated when the republican sniper faced the problem of being in a war and having a high chance of death, but was
The short story the Sniper by Liam O’Flahtery is based in Dublin Ireland during the civil war. Trapped in the middle of this conflict between the Free Staters and the republicans is a young republican sniper. The short story showcases the horrors that are hidden and associated with war that are hiding behind the physical toll that war has. I believe that during war people lose focus on what they are trying to achieve. “The eyes of a man who is used to looking at death”.
He is also wounded, adding to his suffering. The sniper is a shell of the man he once was, and it is clear that war has taken a physical toll on him. The story is a powerful reminder of the human cost of war and the importance of peace. The writer gives powerful descriptions of the scenes in the story. The language used is descriptive, painting a vivid picture of the protagonist's physical
A significant theme in the text The Sniper by Liam O’Flaherty that has been communicated is the tragedy and futility of war. The theme highlighted teaches the message that war is pointless. By saying this, the author explains that going to war and fighting over an ideology is futile and will end in suffering, hurt and grief. The author expresses this message by highlighting the fact that innocent civilians will die, and people’s loved ones will be taken from them, which will result in no one winning the war because of the deep human impact. While reading this text, we learn many messages.
In O’Flaherty’s “The Sniper” and Hardy’s “The Man He Killed” both works use plot, irony, and theme to portray the idea that war causes you to kill those you care or may have cared about. There are many similarities and differences In the plot of both “The Sniper” and “The Man He Killed”, there are many similarities and differences.
This shows how the sniper’s actions without thought affect him for the worse. O’Flaherty establishes the theme of “The Sniper” by using description and irony. After the sniper turns over the dead body, he realizes what he has done. He was not thinking when he shot the enemy.
In Liam O’Flaherty’s The Sniper, the main character, a sniper, is in the middle of a civil war in Dublin, Ireland. It is his assigned duty to assassinate anyone on the the other side of the war, no matter who they are. This creates a huge conflict, considering that the sniper ends up killing his brother. This supports the central theme that war is cruel, and this can be supported by the craft elements of the dialogue used and the setting of the story.
In the short story The Sniper, Liam O’Flaherty recounts a story of an Irish sniper fighting for the republican army during the Irish Civil War. He wrote this short story based on his experience with time at war. Liam o’flaherty illustrates how war can reduce the value of family and human lives, betrayal, and suspense. In this essay I will be discussing these major themes as well as comparing this story to books such as The Odyssey and others containing similar themes. This essay also will discuss how suspense is used in Liam O’Flaherty’s The Sniper.
