Liam O Flaherty The Sniper Analysis

A little-known fact about the Irish Civil War is the number of casualties. Experts estimate that as few as 1,500 people died (Dorney, 2012). While that may not seem like many deaths for a war, it is important to keep in mind that all the dead soldiers are all from the same country. No matter the death toll, war is a waste of valuable human life. There are many books and stories about war and its terrors. One such story is "The Sniper." Liam O'Flaherty wrote "The Sniper" about the Irish Civil War which was fought between the Republicans and the Free Staters. According to Dorney (2012), the Republicans did not want to accept a treaty with Britain that would make Ireland a free state but still belonging to Britain. If the citizens of Ireland acceded to the terms of the treaty, they would also surrender three naval bases into Britain's control (Dorney, 2012). In Dorney's article (2012), he states that the Free Staters felt that compromising with Britain was necessary, and it was acceptable to make sacrifices in order to be considered free. O'Flaherty displays the darker side of the disagreement

As noted by Bruce Stewart (2011), O'Flaherty was born and raised in Ireland. He choose to write about Ireland and war because they both were such a large part of his life. In 1914, O'Flaherty enlisted in the Irish Guards under the name Bill Ganly (Stewart). He was able to write about war accurately because he had firsthand experience in situations similar to those. He knew what it felt like to have to kill or be killed. O'Flaherty was released for the army due to head injuries, and that could be one reason why he writes negatively about war (Stewart, 2011). The Encyclopedia Britannica (2015) states the once he was no longer a soldier, he involved himself in the resistance movement in Ireland. His allegiance to the Republicans is shown by the Republican sniper being the main