The Sniper
- Introduction. "The Sniper," a story about the Irish civil war, was Liam O'Flaherty's first published piece of fiction.
- Author Biography. Liam O'Flaherty was born in 1896 on Inishmore, an Aran Island off the coast of Ireland. ...
- Plot Summary. ...
- Characters. ...
- Topics for Further Study. ...
- Compare & Contrast. ...
- Criticism. ...
What is the mood in the short story the sniper?
The scene is dark, creepy, and silent; that silence is broken only by gunfire. The mood is dark, foreboding, and always filled with tension in the anticipation of violence. The long June twilight faded into night.
What is the moral of the story the sniper?
What is the moral of The Sniper? The moral lesson of ''The Sniper'' is that no one wins in a civil war. Throughout the story, O'Flaherty shows the devastating effects of a civil... What are some symbols in The Sniper? The first sniper has a revolver and a rifle; the second sniper has a rifle. Guns are symbolic of aggression and harshness.
What is the suspense of the sniper short story?
Suspense is an intense feeling that a reader has while reading and waiting for the outcome of an event. The author of "The Sniper" is able to create suspense in this story by placing the protagonist in a dangerous and isolated situation. The Republican sniper is fighting in a civil war.
What is the plot of the sniper?
The plot of “ The Sniper ” involves two snipers positioned across the street from one another, both unaware that the other sniper is his brother. The story takes place in Dublin during the Battle of Dublin in 1922. The Republican sniper takes a bullet in his arm and realizes...
What is the plot in The Sniper?
The Irish Civil War was a one-year struggle that began in June 1922 and concluded in May 1923. “The Sniper” portrays the experience of a Republican (rebel) sniper first on the rooftop of the O'Connell Bridge and later in the environs of Dublin's high courts building known as the Four Courts.
What is the climax in the story The Sniper?
The climax of 'The Sniper' occurs when the Republican sniper tricks the enemy sniper across the street into revealing himself.
What is the main conflict in the story The Sniper?
In “The Sniper”, a realistic fiction story written by Liam O'Flaherty, there is a war waging in Dublin, Ireland. The sniper must kill his enemies, but it will be a challenge. Republicans against Free Staters, only one side can win.
What is the setting of the story The Sniper?
This story is set in Dublin, Ireland, in the 1920s, during a time of bitter civil war. On one side were the Irish Republicans (IRA); they wanted all of Ireland to become a republic, totally free from British rule.
What is the rising action of The Sniper?
Rising Action- An armored car slowly comes up the street, and met with an old woman who pointed towards where the Sniper was located. Out of the car a man appears, and the Sniper gets him in one shot…the old woman tried to run but got shot and fell into a gutter.
What is a falling action in a plot?
What Is Falling Action? In storytelling, falling action refers to the period after the dramatic confrontation of the climax. This portion of the narrative helps deflate the plot's tension and gives the character time to unwind after the emotional scene.
What is the main theme of the sniper?
In the short story The Sniper by Liam O'Flaherty, a main theme is that war is cruel. This is supported by many details within the story. War makes people do things that they normally wouldn't do, mostly because it is their duty to protect what they believe in or their country.
What does the main character want in sniper story?
"The cold gleam of the fanatic" tells us that the sniper is passionately devoted to one of two things. First, he could be devoted to the cause. Second, he could simply be a fanatic about killing people, and that is why he is a sniper.
Who is the protagonist in the sniper?
In 'The Sniper', the Republican sniper is the protagonist.
What is the suspense in The Sniper?
To create a suspenseful story, “The Sniper” develops multiple moments of suspense. For instance one illustration of suspense in “The Sniper” is, “He paused for a moment, considering whether he should risk a smoke. It was dangerous. The flash might be seen in the darkness, and there were enemies watching.
What is the setting of The Sniper and why was important to the story?
Answer and Explanation: The setting of The Sniper is an evening in Dublin on a June night when civil war has broken out between the Free Staters and Republicans in Ireland. The immediate setting is a ''rooftop near the O'Connell Bridge.
What are the symbols in The Sniper?
The SniperDivisions.War, Violence, and Enmity.Chance and Ingenuity.Pain and Perseverance.Humanity and Remorse.
What are the elements of the plot of The Sniper?
The five elements of plot in "The Sniper," as in any other work of fiction, are exposition, rising action, climax, falling action, and resolution.
What is the exposition of The Sniper?
We are introduced to a sniper that is used to seeing death, and he is perched on top of a building in Dublin during a civil war. The story's rising action has the sniper lighting up a cigarette and immediately coming under fire from another sniper. While worrying about that sniper, our protagonist still manages to shoot and kill other enemies; however, he is wounded in the process.
What does the Republican Sniper shoot dead with?
The enemy sniper, thinking he is safe, stands up on his roof, and with a surge of pride and joy the sniper shoots him dead with is revolver. However, now that the adrenaline of battle is over, and the Republican sniper feels safe, “the lust of battle died in him. He became bitten by remorse.”.
How does the Republican Sniper get hit?
Distracted for a moment, the Republican sniper gets hit in the arm by the bullet of the enemy sniper. In tremendous pain, he can’t hold his rifle anymore. He pours an antiseptic over his wound, which is also extremely painful. In order to escape, he puts his rifle on the edge of the roof with his cap on its end; the enemy sniper shoots at it, and the Republican sniper ingeniously makes it look like he has been killed.
What does a Republic Sniper do?
A Republic sniper sits on a roof and lights a cigarette despite knowing that the flash of his lighter might tip off his enemy. It does, and an enemy sniper, a Free Stater, sends a bullet flying overhead. The enemy is just across the street on the roof opposite the Republican sniper.
Who informs the man in the armored car about the Republican sniper?
At the same time an armored car comes down the street, and an old woman comes around the corner and informs the man in the armored car about the Republican sniper. Before the man in the armored car can shoot at the Republican sniper, though, the Republican sniper shoots the man dead.
What does the sniper do to the corpses?
The sniper rips off his sleeve and ascertains that the bullet has lodged in his bone. He pours some iodine, a mild antiseptic, over his wound, and tries to withstand the terrible burning pain of it over the wound. In the street, the two corpses are immobile. The sniper realizes he needs a plan to escape, but he’s sure the enemy sniper has any escape route covered. He therefore has to kill his enemy, but because of the gunshot to his arm he can only use his revolver, not his rifle.
What happens when a sniper crosses the street?
Taking another risk, the sniper crosses the street. There is suddenly heavy firing near him, and he runs across the street with machine gun firing behind him, until he throws himself down against the enemy sniper’s corpse, in effect again successfully pretending to be dead to save himself.
What happens after the sniper eats a sandwich?
After hungrily eating a sandwich, the sniper takes a swig of whiskey and wonders whether he should risk lighting a cigarette . The danger is that the flash of the match might be seen in the darkness. Still, he decides to go ahead with it. After he strikes the match, a bullet hits the parapet of the roof he is on.
Why can't the sniper pick up the rifle?
Suddenly the enemy sniper on the other roof takes his chance and shoots the sniper. The sniper drops his rifle with a noise he thought might “wake the dead.” He can’t pick up the rifle because “his forearm was dead.” He exclaims that he is hit as blood starts oozing through the sleeve of his shirt, but he does not feel pain, just a numbness “as if the arm had been cut off.”
Why does the sniper not feel remorse at the people he has killed?
He does not feel remorse at the people he has killed because he cannot: he is in too much pain and must concentrate on protecting himself.
What does the sniper throw with an oath?
The sniper throws his revolver “with an oath.” It fires, but doesn’t hit him, though the shock “frightened [him] back to his senses.” He drinks all the whisky from his flask, and decides to find his commander, to report. Going downstairs, he does not believe there is much danger, since everything is quiet. When he reaches the street, though, he feels “a sudden curiosity as to the identity of the enemy sniper whom he had killed.” He wonders whether he knew him, whether the man “had been in his own company before the split in the army.”
What does the armored car represent in the movie?
The armored car is depicted as a kind of unnatural beast in the city street, again highlighting how war has distorted this world. The sniper now must kill or be killed: he cannot think.
What is the setting of The Sniper?
Setting is the time and place a story occurs. In the story "The Sniper" the story takes place in a war bound city somewhere in June at night. "The long June twilight" and "through the city" both support the setting.
Who are the main characters in The Sniper?
People or things who take part in a story. They play a significant role in the plot. In "The Sniper", the main characters are the Republican sniper, the protagonist, and the enemy sniper, the antagonist.
What is the climax of the story?
Climax is the most intense or exiting part of a story. In the story "The Sniper" the we know the climax is when the sniper is about to kill his enemy. "He took a steady aim" and "His hand trembled with eagerness" are evidence of the climax because it is the snipers last chance to kill his enemy.
What is the fall action in The Sniper?
In the story "The Sniper", falling action would include the Republican Sniper climbing down from the roof and being shot at by a machine gun but escaping.
What is the conclusion of a story?
The conclusion of a story is the end of a story. In the story the conclusion is when the sniper kills his enemy. "His enemy has been hit" and "The sniper looked at his enemy falling" both reveal that the sniper has killed his enemy.
What is the challenge of the Republican Sniper?
The Republican sniper is faced with the challenge of taking on the opposing sniper and the Free State troops.
Why is the Republican sniper victorious?
The Republican sniper is victorious because his opposition is now dead. Who was Impacted: The only person who was really affected at this point was the dead sniper. New Problems that Developed: Upon later observation, the Republican sniper realises that the opposing sniper was his own brother.
