“The Sniper” is a short story written by the Irish writer Liam O'Flaherty who was born in 1898 and died in 1984, which means that he lived during World War I, the Easter Rising in Dublin, the Irish War of Independence against Britain and the Civil War between Free State army and IRA (Irish Republican Army). He even participated in the First World War. His life was very much involved with wars, which maybe explains why he wrote “The Sniper”. It was printed in London in the January 12, 1923, issue of a weekly socialist publication, The New Leader, while Ireland was in conflict.
The story is told in a restricted third-person’s point of view. The readers have access to the snipers thoughts but not the other characters’. It is chronology since it is told as the story develops without jumps in time. Unlike most short stories the climax occurs at the very end when the enemy sniper’s identity is revealed. The story is very easy to understand because of the use of short sentences as “Cautiously he raised himself and peered over the parapet. There was a flash and a bullet whizzed over his head. He dropped immediately. He had seen the flash. It came from the opposite side of the street.” (p. 64, ll. 27-30).
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