“The Sniper” teacher discussion notes



Bell Work: - Please take out your homework and share your responses with a partner while I come around and check. (

What does the sniper do to trick the enemy into revealing himself?

How does this characterize the sniper (clever under pressure, a quality one needs in battle)

When the sniper examines the body of his enemy, what does he see?

He sees his brother. He has just shot family. This can be taken literally or metaphorically. War divides families. War divides human beings. War can destroy humanity.

1. Why does he feel no hesitation in shooting the man in the tank or the woman informer?

Killing them is a matter of self-defense. The man in the tank would otherwise kill him and the woman gave away his hiding spot. War forces us to have inhumane behavior.

What are some physical hardships the sniper faces?

• Tired and hungry.

• Wounded in the arm and must dress his own wound

• Must bear the pain without fainting

• Must live

2. Refer to passage in which he kills enemy….

What is his first reaction when the smoke clears?

o “cry of joy”; relieved to kill his enemy.

• Then, when he sees the dying soldier fall…

o He is overcome with guilt and the horror of the situation

This internal conflict makes the sniper a dynamic character

Why do you think he curses himself?

B/c he is breaking down under the strain of physical and psychological hardships of the day.

Why does he want to see the identity of his enemy?

Sudden curiosity and respect for the competence of his enemy.

Maybe a perverse desire to see what he has destroyed.

How do you think he feels when he realizes the man he killed is his brother?

Overwhelmed by the horror and wastefulness of war.

How do you think the writer feels about war? What is his message?

Literary Analysis: How do the following help to create meaning in the story?

1. Setting:

The setting of a civil war portrays the dividing nature of the connection between human beings

Two rooftops – equal plain

Note: The theme deals with Civil War in Ireland but the theme deals with any war.

Themes are universal.

2. Suspense:

O’Flaherty’s prose is straightforward and easy to understand. In "The Sniper," he frequently uses short sentences to maintain suspense, as if the sentences are quickening heartbeats. Here is an example:

The turret opened. A man's head and shoulders appeared, looking toward the sniper. The sniper raised his rifle and fired. The head fell heavily on the turret wall. The woman darted toward the side street. The sniper fired again. The woman whirled round and fell with a shriek into the gutter.

Here is another:

There was a small hole where the bullet had entered. On the other side there was no hole. The bullet had lodged in the bone. It must have fractured it. He bent the arm below the wound. The arm bent back easily. He ground his teeth to overcome the pain.

3. Situation Irony:

The soldier’s motive is to survive, through killing and fighting his enemy. His enemy turns out to be his brother.

The connotation of war is separation, fighting, anger, hatred, blame, etc., which has destroyed family, brotherhood which is sacred, loving, and harmonious

On a larger scale, this can be seen as metaphorical (on a figurative level)

4. Imagery:

Imagery is the most frequently used device. It is an appeal to any of the five senses--taste, touch, sight, sound, and smell. It paints pictures in our mind.

Sound and Sight Imagery

O'Flaherty's sound and sight imagery is likewise uncomplicated and easy to understand, as the following examples illustrate:

• Here and there through the city, machine guns and rifles broke the silence of the night, spasmodically, like dogs barking on lone farms.

• His face was the face of a student, thin and ascetic, but his eyes had the cold gleam of the fanatic.

• There was a flash and a bullet whizzed over his head.

• The sniper could hear the dull panting of the motor.

• The sniper fired again. The woman whirled round and fell with a shriek into the gutter.

• Then the dying man on the roof crumpled up and fell forward. The body turned over and over in space and hit the ground with a dull thud.

5. Mood:

Symbolism

One point of symbolism is how the conflicts between the two different sides of the country is similar to the conflict between the brothers. In this symbol the country represents the family the brothers are part of, and the different sides of the war represent the two different brothers.

Also one of the symbols in this short story is the cold nature of war which is represented by the unnamed characters the story is consistent of. Without the audience knowing the names of all the characters, it shows how it is in most wars, thoughtless kills. When the sniper finds his enemy is his brother, it shows how brutal war can be and that it turns brothers against each other.

................
................

In order to avoid copyright disputes, this page is only a partial summary.

Google Online Preview   Download