How Is Imagery Used In The Sniper

“The Sniper” is a short story based during the Civil War between the Republicans and the Free Staters. A young Republican sniper, Dublin is on a night watch for enemies while under the cover of darkness on a parchment rooftop when he decides to take a risk of lighting a cigarette, knowing that his enemies were watching and waiting. Dublin now realized that he had to be much more cautious of his enemies as one of his enemies fires but misses Dublin. All throughout the story Dublin is avoiding his enemies while trying to kill them also. On the opposite side of the street on top of a roof a shot rang out hitting Dublin in his forearm. He could not pick up his sniper, he “must have fractured the bone” (Flaherty 2), so he cleaned his wound with

Imagery is “when the author uses words to create mental images to help the reader visualize more realistically. The author does this when he describes the setting “The long June twilight faded into the night… in the darkness but for the dim light of the moon that shone through fleecy clouds, casting a pale light as of approaching dawn over the streets and the dark waters of the Liffey” (Flaherty 1). Simile is comparing and contrasting two things using the words “like” or “as”. For example when the author is describing the rapid gunfire in the streets, “Here and there throughout the city, machine guns and rifles broke the silence of the night, spasmodically, like dogs barking on lone farms” (Flaherty 1). Another literary element present would be conflict, conflict is the resistance of the protagonist from something that is in his/ her/it dream or reach/aim. Specifically mentioned when the republican sniper, Dublin is shot at by his enemy after lighting a cigarette, “Cautiously he raised himself and peered over the parapet [suddenly] there was a flash and a bullet whizzed over his head” (Flaherty

All throughout the story there was unexpected twists that added even more suspense to the story. It was sad at the end when the Republican sniper, Dublin had killed his brother unknowingly but overall it was a very surprising and enjoyable read. When I put myself in the protagonist’s situation when Dublins is put in danger and has to kill the enemy, I would have probably just decided to try to shoot the antagonist but not kill him because after all it was his brother that Dublin has killed. I also think that when he had tricked his enemy into thinking he was dead then he should have gotten to safety while he was still able to. Also if I was in his situation I would never have lit the cigarette because he knew that it would lead the enemy to his location, he also knew that it was a large and dangerous