A Short Story...
The SNIPER
by Liam O’Flaherty
The SNIPER
by Liam O’Flaherty
New Vocabulary
1. Create a list of vocabulary words that are newto-you or that you don’t know the meaning of.
Common Literary Devices
2. Can you find any common literary devices?
Copy any that you find.
A Short Story...
The SNIPER
Part 1: Comprehension questions
Part 2: Vocabulary
Part 3: Lesson on Elements of Fiction
Part 4: Narrative Point of View
Part 5: Irony (Another common literary device)
Part 6: Sound and Sight Imagery
Part 7 Conflict
Part 8: Analysis Questions (Challenge questions!!)
Vocabulary
Find each word and copy the sentence it
appears in. To show you understand the
meaning of the word, cross it out in your
sentence and replace it with an alternate word.
1. Ascetic
3. Enveloped
5. Lodge
7. Reel
9. Remorse
11.turret
13.Parapet
2. beleaguered
4. fanatic
6. spasmodically
8. ruse
10. paroxysm
12. gibber
14. ruse
Comprehension Questions
(Answer in complete sentences.)
..\1 - English Language Arts Grade 7-9\Short Stories\The
Sniper - Comprehension questions.doc
Elements of Fiction
See PWPT…notes go into Skills scribbler
Narrative Point of View
Look through your notes to review
common points of view used by
writers.
Describe the point of view used by
Liam O’Flaherty.
Irony
(Another common literary device!!)
Where an event occurs which is
unexpected, in the sense that it is
somehow in absurd or mocking
opposition to what would be expected
or appropriate.
Mere coincidence is generally not
ironic; neither is mere surprise.
• Example:
Jem and Scout are saved by Boo
Radley, who had, ironically, been
an object of fear and suspicion to
them at the beginning of the
novel.
The bitter irony to the ending of
The Sniper lies in the fact that he 16
had killed his own brother.
Irony
The author chooses to end the story
using irony.
Can you explain the irony?
Imagery
• Example:
Language which describes
something in detail, using
words to substitute for and
create sensory stimulation,
including visual imagery
and sound imagery.
Liam O’Flaherty uses sight and
sound imagery in The Sniper.
Sound imagery:
“Here and there through the city,
machine guns and rifles broke the
silence of the night, spasmodically,
like dogs barking on lone farms.”
Sight imagery:
“His face was the face of a student,
thin and ascetic, but his eyes had the
cold gleam of the fanatic.”
18
Imagery
(Sound and Sight)
Liam O’Flaherty makes very skillfull use
of imagery- both sights and sounds.
Find and copy examples of sentences
that provide sight and sound imagery.
Conflict
What is the nature of the conflict in The Sniper?
Is there more than one type? Describe.
Analysis Questions
1. After seeing and realizing the dead sniper is his brother,
what do you think the IRA sniper is now
thinking/wondering/realizing?
2. Find evidence from the story to describe how the sniper was
feeling. You should be able to see a transition as you find
evidence. PROVE IT! (Copy words, phrases, sentences that show
how he was feeling.)
3. Did the sniper have a hard or easy time killing people? Find
evidence from the story to support your answer.
4. Would you consider the protagonist in this story to be
static/flat (little to no growth or evolution as a character) or
dynamic/round (obvious growth and evolution as a
character)?
Short Story Analysis Chart
Complete your Short Story Analysis
Chart for The Sniper.
You will have to write small in order to
complete each column. You need wellwritten, detailed answers!! (fit it all in!)
Assessment
4
English Outcome SCO 7.2 recognize that print and media texts are
constructed for particular readers and purposes; begin to identify the textual
elements used by authors (Exploring and understanding ELEMENTS of
FICTION)
English SCO 6.3 find evidence and examples in texts to support personal views
about themes, issues, and situations. (Comprehension questions and exploration
of themes)
3
2
1