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Heavy fighting has come up in Dublin between radical Republicans opposing the idea of the Free State (like the sniper) and those people who accept the dominion status of Ireland after the Anglo-Irish Treaty of 1922 (the Free-Staters). Killing some “enemies” – among them even his own brother – the sniper experiences the cruelty and senselessness of that war and shows feelings of Irish togetherness when he is forced to look into his dead brother´s face.
2. What different sections does the story fall into? Give proof of your findings in a coherent text and use appropriate literary terms for some structural units.
As to the structure of the short story you can easily recognise typical aspects of a short story. In the exposition (ll. 1-9) O´Flaherty introduces the reader to the situation, the main characters and the setting. He also sets the atmosphere of war so that the reader is involved in the mood of the time of the Civil War. An open beginning (“Dublin lay enveloped in darkness …”) is characteristic in that it catches him from the start. The main part of the story comprises details of the difficult political situation of that time with strikes and counterstrikes following one another uninterruptedly. When the sniper succeeds against his immediate opponent by way of a trick, the story seems to have reached its climax. That experience marks the turning-point in the …show more content…
Opposing Sniper: Enemy gunman posted on a roof across from the IRA sniper.
Turret Gunner: Man shot by the IRA sniper.
Old Woman: Informer who betrays the position of the IRA sniper to the turret gunner.
Unseen Machine Gunner: Person who fires at the IRA sniper after the latter leaves the roof.
Point of View
.......O'Flaherty wrote "The Sniper" in limited third-person point of view, in which he presents the thoughts of the IRA sniper but does not present the thoughts of any other character. He wrote "The Sniper" while Ireland was embroiled in sectarian conflict.
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Historical Background
.......In 1919, the newly formed Irish Republican Army launched guerilla warfare during the Irish War of Independence to liberate Ireland from the British. Unable to contain the rebels, London agreed in the 1921 Anglo-Irish Treaty to create anIrish Free State. However, the agreement would recognize the Free State only as a dominion in the British Commonwealth of Nations. Moreover, it would permit six counties in Northern Ireland to withdraw from the Free State, allow the British to maintain ports in the south, and require the Free State to pay part of the debtBritain incurred in waging the war. Consequently, not all Irishmen accepted the agreement, the provisions of which became effective in 1922. (The six northern counties seceded, as expected.) Once-united Irish fighters were now split into two factions—disgruntled IRA members
2. What different sections does the story fall into? Give proof of your findings in a coherent text and use appropriate literary terms for some structural units.
As to the structure of the short story you can easily recognise typical aspects of a short story. In the exposition (ll. 1-9) O´Flaherty introduces the reader to the situation, the main characters and the setting. He also sets the atmosphere of war so that the reader is involved in the mood of the time of the Civil War. An open beginning (“Dublin lay enveloped in darkness …”) is characteristic in that it catches him from the start. The main part of the story comprises details of the difficult political situation of that time with strikes and counterstrikes following one another uninterruptedly. When the sniper succeeds against his immediate opponent by way of a trick, the story seems to have reached its climax. That experience marks the turning-point in the …show more content…
Opposing Sniper: Enemy gunman posted on a roof across from the IRA sniper.
Turret Gunner: Man shot by the IRA sniper.
Old Woman: Informer who betrays the position of the IRA sniper to the turret gunner.
Unseen Machine Gunner: Person who fires at the IRA sniper after the latter leaves the roof.
Point of View
.......O'Flaherty wrote "The Sniper" in limited third-person point of view, in which he presents the thoughts of the IRA sniper but does not present the thoughts of any other character. He wrote "The Sniper" while Ireland was embroiled in sectarian conflict.
.
Historical Background
.......In 1919, the newly formed Irish Republican Army launched guerilla warfare during the Irish War of Independence to liberate Ireland from the British. Unable to contain the rebels, London agreed in the 1921 Anglo-Irish Treaty to create anIrish Free State. However, the agreement would recognize the Free State only as a dominion in the British Commonwealth of Nations. Moreover, it would permit six counties in Northern Ireland to withdraw from the Free State, allow the British to maintain ports in the south, and require the Free State to pay part of the debtBritain incurred in waging the war. Consequently, not all Irishmen accepted the agreement, the provisions of which became effective in 1922. (The six northern counties seceded, as expected.) Once-united Irish fighters were now split into two factions—disgruntled IRA members