How Does Liam O Flaherty Use Characterization In The Sniper

Characterization in The Sniper, by Liam O’Flaherty

The Sniper by Liam O’Flaherty explored the theme of how war can dehumanize those involved through the thoughts, actions, and names of the characters. The story began as O’Flaherty introduced the main character as a young Republican sniper fighting in the civil war of Dublin, Ireland. While waiting for enemies to appear, he began smoking a cigarette which draws an enemy sniper to shoot at him. In the rising action, he was forced to kill an old woman who informed on him and was shot in the arm by an enemy sniper immediately afterwards. His firing arm was disabled and he devised a clever plan to take down the enemy. At the climax, the sniper was forced to take a difficult shot with his revolver

to kill his enemy which resulted in success. Then, the sniper lapsed into an emotional breakdown where he cursed everything around him and threw his revolver to the ground, almost killing himself. The story concluded without complete resolution as the sniper found the dead sniper to be his brother.
One of the most prominent themes in The Sniper was the corruption of people’s humanity due to the pressures of war. For example, when an old woman informed on the sniper, he killed her as “...he fired again. The woman whirled around and fell with a shriek...” (1). Killing an old woman should be a traumatic experience for anyone, particularly a younger soldier. However, he had shown no hesitation nor did he seem perturbed at all. Another example of his degraded state of mind was when he killed his enemy and “...uttered a cry of joy” (2). Again, the enemy had threatened his life which gave him the right to fight back. However, his reaction to his success was much more significant. Smiling before firing and crying for joy afterwards was an abnormal response to overcoming death at the expense of another human’s life. Being in war changed the psychology of the sniper so drastically that his mind adapted to his environment by labeling all who went against him as just an enemy; their deaths were necessary for his survival which is one of the unfortunate aspects of war, when families are torn apart and turned against one another.
In The Sniper, O’Flaherty utilized characterization in the form of the characters’ thoughts, actions, and names to present the theme that war could consume the humanity of the people of whom it involved.

After shooting the old woman and not showing any remorse, he placed iodine on his bullet wound as “a paroxysm of pain swept through him” (1). The contrast between his ability to feel physical pain and not emotional pain clearly shows off how numbed his moral senses were because of the war. Secondly, when the sniper threw his revolver on to the ground in frustration of the war and it accidentally discharged close to his head, “he was frightened back to his senses” (2). This perspective into his thoughts about war and himself enhances the author’s portrayal of how devoid of humanity he became in order to survive. Finally, the lack of names throughout the entire story added to the dehumanizing tone: “...the sniper… the enemy… his brother’s...” (1). Not having names for any of the characters was intentional because it reflected the sniper’s point of view when he saw the other characters. Also, not having a name emphasized how these characters were merely one of many being controlled by people more important than them, a common occurrence in warfare. Even by the dramatic ending, his brother, a member of his own family, remained nameless which represented an extreme situation of war, when brother is turned on

brother.
The sniper’s thoughts, actions, and lack of a name were all displayed in this fictional story by O’Flaherty to show how a person’s personality can be overwhelmed by war. However, the toll war takes on its participants is very real. Some soldiers return to their homes alive, but thoroughly changed and suffering due to post traumatic stress disorder or PTSD. After rewiring their minds to survive like the sniper did, many are unable to change back. Their lives could be ruined and families never the same again.