The Enemy Sniper

The enemy sniper serves as the primary adversary to the protagonist. As a member of the Free State army, he shares several traits with the protagonist. Both men fulfill the same role in the conflict. The enemy sniper is a skilled marksman, earning the protagonist’s respect by the story’s conclusion. Positioned on a rooftop across the street, he symbolizes a mirror image of the protagonist.

The enemy sniper’s goal is to eliminate the protagonist. Initially, he seems to have the upper hand after wounding the protagonist. However, he makes a critical mistake by falling for the protagonist’s deception. Believing he has killed his opponent, the enemy sniper stands up, exposing himself as an easy target. The protagonist takes the shot, and the enemy sniper falls dead to the street below. It is then revealed to both the protagonist and the reader that the two snipers are brothers.

The Old Woman

The old woman reveals the protagonist’s rooftop location to a soldier in the turret. The protagonist subsequently shoots and kills her.

The Sniper

The protagonist is the central figure in the story. A young man in the Republican army, his eyes possess “the cold gleam of the fanatic.” As a seasoned fighter, he is “used to looking at death” and performs his soldierly duties with efficiency and precision. For example, after being shot, he manages to apply his own field dressing despite the severe pain. He occasionally makes risky choices, such as lighting a cigarette, which exposes his location to the enemy soldiers. He also ventures into the street to discover the identity of the enemy sniper, drawing machine gun fire in the process.

Stationed on a rooftop in Dublin, the protagonist’s specific mission is unclear, though it is likely to target enemy forces in the streets below. When the Free State soldiers become aware of his presence, he engages in a standoff with the enemy sniper on an opposing rooftop. Trapped on his rooftop, he cannot leave due to the enemy sniper’s coverage, nor can he remain until morning, as Free State soldiers would assuredly kill him. After being wounded by the enemy sniper, the protagonist formulates a clever ruse to make the enemy believe he is dead. Once the deception works, the enemy sniper lowers his guard, allowing the protagonist to take a fatal shot.

After eliminating the enemy sniper, the battle-hardened sniper undergoes a profound change. The thrill of combat dissipates. Gazing at the rooftop where he has just killed three individuals—the soldier in the turret, the old woman, and the enemy sniper—the sniper is overcome with remorse. His revulsion for the civil war manifests physically; his teeth begin to chatter, and he starts cursing both himself and the conflict. Once he regains his composure, his fear subsides enough that he even risks exposure to enemy fire to discover the identity of the Free State soldier he has just killed. Only then does he realize he has killed his own brother.

Throughout the narrative, the sniper remains a somewhat enigmatic, one-dimensional figure. The story divulges little about his emotions regarding the events unfolding around him, nor does it reveal his reaction upon realizing he has killed his brother. Instead, the focus remains on the sniper's actions and thoughts during the battle. His sole identity is that of a soldier.

The Soldier in the Turret

The soldier in the turret belongs to the Free State army. He learns of the sniper's position on the rooftop from the old woman. However, before he and his men can act, the sniper kills him with a rifle shot.