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Irony In The Sniper

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“The Sniper” by Liam O’Flaherty is a short story about a sniper in Dublin, Ireland, who is trying to win a fight, but the enemy keeps shooting at him. He even ended up getting shot in the forearm due to his clumsiness. So the sniper crafts a plan to take down the enemy, but when his plan goes accordingly, he finds out that the “enemy” was actually his brother. Through the actions of the characters, readers understand that Liam O’Flaherty shows that people make terrible mistakes that lead to regret. At the beginning of the story, the sniper is settling himself onto a rooftop where he is in a very militarian type of stance / position. But, he breaks his very stiff stance to eat a sandwich and drink some water, in the middle of an active battle zone. He decides that it’s worth the risk and, “Placing a cigarette between his lips, he struck a match. There was a flash and a bullet whizzed over his head.” (page 58) It is at this moment that the sniper realizes that if he isn’t very careful, he could end up dead. Due to how his carelessness almost …show more content…

The old lady ends up having alerted the enemy soldier of the sniper’s position, so the sniper kills the old lady, in turn confirming his position for the enemy. He decided that nothing would come of it when, “Suddenly from the opposite roof a shot rang out and the sniper dropped his rifle with a curse … He stooped to pick the rifle up. He couldn’t lift it. His forearm was dead. “Blast!” he muttered, “I’m hit.” “ (page 58) The sniper tried to stop himself from being discovered by the enemy, but that ended up alerting the enemy even more. He knew that it was a risk, but he decided to do it anyway, which led to him getting shot in the forearm which made him regret having shot the old lady. This exhibits the idea that people will make terrible mistakes in life that lead to

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Even though the Sniper is a soldier and has authority, that doesn't mean that he should be going around making dangerous decisions that put him and others in danger. Nextly, an informer comes along and blows the Sniper's cover. She talks to another guy and points to the roof where the Sniper lies. The Sniper is furious that he's been found, since he has to portray himself as "ruthless" and "coldhearted", he had to do something to redeem himself and for him, violence is the key: "the sniper raised his rifle and fired. The head fell heavily on the turret wall.

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“Taking off his cap, he placed it over the muzzle of his rifle. Then he pushed the rifle slowly upward over the parapet, until the cap was visible from the opposite side of the street” (O’Flaherty 3). This just proves how the republican is trying to trick the other sniper across the wat. The sniper wants the other person to think that they had killed the sniper. That why when the other person thought that they had killed the sniper that is why the other person stood up and started walking off the roof.

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If the other sniper had not have been killed he would still be shooting at the sniper, and he would be killing other people or he would be shooting at them. The

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Among the rooftops, a vigilant sniper awaits for his adversary to approach. But this ruthless soldier does not let anything or anyone hinder his sacred duty. In Liam O’Flaherty’s “The Sniper”, irony and conflict vividly illustrates the harsh realities of war through the eyes of the protagonist, a Republican sniper in the Irish Civil War. O’Flaherty provides suspenseful twists interpenetrating the story, showcasing his use of situational irony. Firstly, an old, delicate woman walks over to the enemy’s armored car and points out the sniper's location.

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Man or woman, young or old, everyone on the opposite side was considered an enemy. To him, those people were just targets, an objective to kill. It highlights how war dehumanizes, in people’s eyes, the enemy. This narrative is further underscored using irony, the irony being that after killing the enemy sniper, our

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When the enemy shot he thought he had killed the Sniper; therefore, he was not paying attention when

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Due to this he cannot use his rifle, he must now be very strategic in order to kill the other sniper and survive. The main character would not have survived if he did not have better strategy than his opponents because, “She was pointing to the roof where the sniper lay (2).” The women made it very clear and obvious

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At the beginning of the story, the sniper was so excited, he couldn't eat. It was night in Dublin while he was just waiting. The author states,¨His face was the face of a student, thin and ascetic, but his eyes had the cold gleam of the fanatic. They were deep and thoughtful, the eyes of a man who is used to looking at death.¨(page 58) This statement infers that the man has killed many people and has no remorse.

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He shows that he is courageous when this happens “Cautiously he raised himself and peered over the parapet” (Flaherty 437). The Republican Sniper shows that he is courageous during this scene because he decides to look over the parapet even though he knows there is an enemy. Lastly, The Republican Sniper is also aware in the story. He is aware when he noticed this “Then round the corner of a side street came an old woman” (Flaherty 438).

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A similarity in “The Sniper” is when the sniper realized he had took a risky shot

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The Republican Sniper kills both a man and an elderly woman, before he kills the enemy sniper. After he kills the enemy sniper, “the sniper looked at his enemy falling and he shuddered.” The word “shuddered” reveals that the sniper was in a sense of disgust when seeing his enemy fall their death. The sniper’s reaction implies that this is the first war has been involved in, and the killings he commits is different than what he is used to in his daily life. The war had been occupying so much of his time; “…he began to gibber to himself, cursing the war, cursing himself, cursing everybody.”

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“During the Civil war was the first time they used snipers.” The author Liam O’ Flaherty wrote a story called “ The Sniper” in Civil war. Killing doesn’t matter until it’s your own is illustrated throughout the story as the author’s theme. The author uses descriptive language and simile throughout the story. Killing doesn’t matter until it’s your own is the primary theme in “ The Sniper.”

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The short story, “The Sniper,” takes place in Dublin, Ireland, in 1922, during the Irish Civil War. On the rooftops, lay two snipers who are in the middle of a shootout, after dusk. The main character of focus, a Republican sniper, is pursued throughout the whole story. He battles unbearable pain, the impossible situation placed before him, and when the time is right, he uses his utter cleverness to outsmart the free-state sniper, who he finds out to be his brother, who had changed sides in the war. The short story, “The Sniper,” takes place in Dublin, Ireland, in 1922, during the Irish Civil War.

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We always read or hear stories about the war and they are usually sad or really exciting. How would you like to live the rest of your life with the guilt of shooting a soldier on purpose, but even worse finding out its your brother? In The Sniper this soldier is doing his best to protect the city they were stationed in from getting blown into pieces, but in the mist of everything he thinks he is doing something right, but it turns out to be a tragic ending. I think that this short story is very symbolic, because in the end the soldier shot his brother not knowingly.

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The Sniper” –by Liam O’Flaherty 1) The year is 1922; you are sitting on the top of a building with rifle in your hand. You haven’t eaten in days, and probably will not for another few. You look around nervously, knowing you could be killed at any moment. One wrong move, one plan not correctly thought out, and you are done for. This is exactly what the sniper is going through over the course of the narrative.

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