Liam O 'Flaherty's The Sniper'

“The Sniper” by Liam O’Flaherty is a short story that tells the story of a man who is a sniper during the Irish Civil War. O’Flaherty uses “The Sniper” to show the harsh reality of a war as it relates to the physical dangers and the psychological consequences affecting the sniper. Some of the physical dangers of war in this short story include, people starving, informers risking their lives to do their job, and soldiers taking the risk of being shot. Some of the psychological consequences are PTSD, depression, attempting and/or committing suicide, families turning against each other, and the trauma from being shot or shot at could leave someone permanently scarred.

“The Sniper” is set during the Irish Civil war between June 1922 and May 1923.

The Sniper is positioned on a roof near the O’Connell Bridge; this alone is a physical danger because, he could potentially fall off the roof. O’Flaherty makes a point to include that the sniper had not been able to eat since morning. In the third paragraph, the narrator says, “He was eating a sandwich hungrily. He had eaten nothing since morning.” (O’Flaherty 7). By saying this, the author makes it known that when fighting a war there is not always time to eat and properly nourish their bodies. Another danger is the job of the informer. “She was pointing to the roof where the sniper lay. An informer… The woman’s corpse lay still in the gutter.” (O’Flaherty 8). The woman had to have known when she became an informer that there was a chance she would die. Soldiers took the risk of being shot. “’I’m hit,’ he muttered.” (O’Flaherty 8). When getting involved in a war one of the most obvious physical dangers is being shot; which the sniper was. When he was shot he had to fix himself up as soon as it happened because, now he ran the risk of getting an infection. There are many more dangers that are physical, but many people forget about the psychological consequences of war.

Some of the most common psychological consequences of war are PTSD, depression, aggression, etc.

“The lust for battle died in him. He became bitten by remorse.” (O’Flaherty 9). Some people go into war without having prepared themselves mentally, emotionally, and psychologically. Even with preparation, people can still feel the things listed above. Families do not always choose the same sides of war. “Then the sniper turned over the dead body and looked into his brother’s eyes.” (O’Flaherty 10). The “lust for battle” already died within the sniper and now he has to live with the fact that he killed his brother. When people choose sides, they do not always realize exactly what that means. The sniper will most likely have some psychological effects because of that. The trauma of being shot or shot at can leave someone permanently scarred. “’I’m hit,’ he muttered.” (O’Flaherty 8). When people are shot, everyone seems to focus on the healing, physically, and the PT (Physical Therapy). However, another side effect of being shot is PTSD, which can be caused by a traumatic event.

In conclusion, O’Flaherty included a number of both psychological and physical risks in “The Sniper”. By doing so, he informed readers of just how bad war can get. The ending of the short story can teach readers to consider what they could be risking before fighting for a cause and decide whether it is worth

it.