Liam O 'Flaherty's Short Story The Sniper'

Improved Essays
War can be deadly to everyone, it can affect everyone, and it can kill innocent people. The Revolutionary war between the Irish free staters, and the Irish republicans. The free staters want to agree to Britain's rules, and still be a territory of Britain but have a little more freedom. The Irish Republicans want total freedom from Britain they want to become totally separate. The short story “The Sniper” by Liam O’Flaherty uses the scenes of violence to depict that war is not always for a good cause, by giving the readers a mental picture of what is happening.
In the short story it is the Irish free staters versus the Irish Republicans, notice the correlation there Irish and Irish, so this was family against family. On both sides of this meaning

Related Documents

  • Improved Essays

    The Dangers of War Many know of the dangers of war, soldiers come back injured, civilians are hurt, and much is lost. In “The Sniper”, Liam O’Flaherty tells a story of these very threats in which a young sniper is eager to participate in a civil war in Dublin, Ireland. The soldier constantly encounters danger wherever he goes. As he faces the battle, he gets hurt and experiences the effect of the war because in the end, it turned him against his own brother. This short story illustrates the horrors of war and reveals the physical and psychological scars a soldier is left with after battle.…

    • 531 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    This criticism of a controversial aspect of war is thrown in the face of the reader when Yossarian suddenly has new roomates. They bust in to his tent and begin rejoicing at the opportunity to see real combat. Heller paints wide eyed men who look up to heroes, surrounded by those who have been in war, and have yet to spot or become heroes themselves. Yossarian pities them in their childlike awe, wishing he “could be young and cheerful, too” (Heller 349). He follows up that wish with another thought, that “one or two were killed and the rest wounded”, causing them to stop romanticizing war (Heller 349).…

    • 779 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Another strength of this book is vivid describing of war, which often includes examples of individual horror such as the one of a man from Portsmouth, who is afraid to send food to his sisters in Boston because his life would be threatened by British army: “I have two sisters married in Boston… but I dare not assist them tho I know they now suffer, having nothing but salt meat for their babies and children” (p 61). Moreover, the author quotes a lot of diaries and letters for a better understanding of the subject. For instance, quoting The Declaration of Independence gives a better insight in rights demanded by the Americans: “We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty, and the…

    • 925 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Unlike Glenn Moots, Patrick Henry’s words show no lenience but instead a desperate urgency to protect his liberty. Today’s America has a greater population of citizens that approach war from a global or liberal perspective, understanding that nothing is ever black and white. Yes, violence and devastation are more painful when it is happening in our front yard, however, it’s refreshing to read an American’s analysis of the ethics behind these events. Overall, this article successfully rips open the stitching of the American Revolution and prompts the reader to reexamine how justifiable certain actions…

    • 496 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Even though war can defeat tyranny, although that is very rare, no matter what war never ends with a happy ending because people are changed forever, people die, and families break apart. In Liam O’ Flaherty’s short story The Sniper it is shown how war can, and will, change everyone and anyone which can lead to the destruction…

    • 365 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    War is always a way for men to get what they want or in most cases to settle a disagreement they have with each other. War is never a good thing because many innocent people die at war, they have their own lives and are dragged into fight for something they were originally not a part of. In some cases, however, men are more than glad to go into war and fight for anything, some treat it as an honorable thing to do, while others do it for their pride. The poems Red Badge of Courage by Stephen Crane and Camouflaging the Chimera by Yusef Komunyakaa are an example of the different points of view of two men who think differently about war.…

    • 611 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    Great War Dbq

    • 1639 Words
    • 7 Pages

    Throughout history, war has often proven to be a transformative event not only to the countries involved, but also to the soldiers and citizens who lived through and experienced the war. World War 1, also known as the Great War, was one of the most globally transformative events in human history. This war mainly pitted Germany, Austria-Hungary, and the Ottoman Empire against France, Britain, Russia, and Italy. War is not only tragic, but it transforms the public’s opinion about their enemies and of war in general. The true horrors of war are shown by the effect on the soldier’s minds.…

    • 1639 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    “War does not determine who is right- only who is left,” is a quote by Bertrand Russell. This spectrum expresses the casualties of war. In other words, Russell means war is used as an outlet to define a “winner”, or in this case, someone who is right. The veiled truth is that there are no true winners of war when comparing the damage created and the lives lost. Looking at war through that perspective, John F. Kennedy, among others, also agreed.…

    • 1616 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Decent Essays

    Carolina Orsini January 22,2016 Compare and Contrast Essay The Sniper and Cranes Violence is not the answer, so what you think about war? In the stories "The Sniper" and "Cranes" by Lian O'Flaherty's and Peter H.Lee both have the topic of war. "The Sniper" is about having no boundaries and shows violence. " Cranes" is about having freedon even if you made enough mistakes.…

    • 402 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The Sniper by Liam O’Flaherty,Suspense Set during the weeks of the long and horrible irish civil war. A brave soldier fight’s back almost getting himself killed multiple times,the confused but brave sniper ends up killing his brother over the war. ”Almost immediately,a bullet flattened itself against the parapet of the roof” (O’flaherty page 1) In The Sniper the author creates suspense by the use of timing,action and word choice.…

    • 406 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    War In The Yellow Birds

    • 513 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Pages 20-21 in the novel "The Yellow Birds" written by Kevin Powers demonstrates how war can force some to act against their own will. In the extract, the main character and narrator, John Bartle is faced with conflict, and based on his thoughts and actions, clearly shows the reader just how war can make someone act completely in an opposite way to how they might feel about the situation. 'A man ran behind a low wall in a courtyard and looked around astonished to be alive, his weapon cradled in his arms. My first instinct was to yell out to him, "You made it buddy, keep going," but I remembered how odd it would be to say a thing like that.' In this extract from page 20, we can understand that John isn't the cold hearted brute that we'd expect…

    • 513 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    War has been a constant part of human history. Whether it was World War I or World War II, war has greatly affected all aspects of life. Soldiers, families, countries, and societies, have all suffered through these times. Ultimately, the effects of war are extremely detrimental. Timothy Findley’s masterpiece The Wars portrays the detrimental effects of war and how these effects are endured on a personal level, familial level, and a communal level.…

    • 1571 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    War stories are gruesome. They capture the reality of war--death, grief, and pain. “The Sniper” and “Where Have You Gone, Charming Billy?” (by Liam O’Flaherty and Tim O’Brien respectively) are both shining examples of this; unpacking the glorification of victory to reveal how humans are dehumanized and trained to kill other people. Their differences outline a common theme: how war dehumanizes people from killing and guilt, and how that all builds into a catastrophe later on in life.…

    • 726 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Wars are cruel. No matter how many conflicts are presented in the society, it’s still better to not start a war. War has been always considered the worst solution for any problem, because it has many bad effects on individuals and the society without solving the problem itself. In the short story “Dangerland” by Oakland Ross, the cruelty of war causes the lack of morality.…

    • 447 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    French Resistence Quotes

    • 1436 Words
    • 6 Pages

    This war has two sides and both sides are shown as good and bad. The author intends to switch perspectives to convey the true sadness and unnecessary means of war…

    • 1436 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays