Society's View of the Soldier in "The Sniper"

Society’s view of the soldier
Present in many writings is a conflict between an individual and a group or a society. This conflict is generally caused by the individual deciding that one of the root beliefs of the society is immoral, wrong, or is hurting themselves. In “The Sniper” the main character is a soldier in a civil war when he isn’t mentally prepared. After killing a man the sniper has a breakdown and starts to rethink these ideals that have been thrust upon him.
The story takes place in Dublin, Ireland during a civil war between the Republicans and the Free Staters. Soldiers are expected to kill just to get the job done. They need to be ruthless, brave, and logical. As the soldier is being described to the reader the author describes his eyes, “They were deep and thoughtful, the eyes of a man who is used to looking at death,” (O’Flaherty 1). This quote tells us that this war has not started yesterday, but instead has been a constant struggle between the two sides. Upon finding out he is used to death we can assume that the main character has been in the military for some time now, and we can assume the civil war is asking them to kill their friends and fellow countrymen if they stand opposed to the beliefs of the others side. Also, a large amount of preparation goes into the following shot. “He took a steady aim. His hand trembled with eagerness. Pressing his lips together, he took a deep breath through his nostrils and fired… Then when the smoke cleared, he peered across and uttered a cry of joy,” (O’Flaherty 3). Any civilian’s first instinct would have been to climb down from the roof and get away before the other man notices what happened, but the training of the soldier has made him put his society’s views before his own life and attempts to take a shot at his enemy. His training has taught him to see things from the point of view of the whole and not that of his own. If the reader backs up and sees it from a larger point of view they can imagine...