What change becomes apparent in the sniper after he succeeds in killing his opponent? How do you explain this change?

Once the sniper confirms that his opponent has been hit, he utters "a cry of joy" and watches him die. The immediate elation is followed by remorse and anger—at himself, at others, and at the war as a whole. The joy experienced is understandable because the sniper likely would have died either from a gunshot wound or at the hand of an enemy solder if he had not killed the sniper across the street. The remorse and cursing that follow the death are also understandable; taking human lives is a heavy burden to bear; in this short story alone, the sniper kills three people simply to protect himself.
After his initial reactions to the kill, the sniper throws his revolver down in anger. It almost hits him with an errant shot; he quickly experiences fear, shock, and laughter as a result of the near miss. The plethora of reactions that follow the sniper's carefully planned kill indicate the complicated psychology that many soldiers and veterans are faced with daily. This quick tale of one soldier's evening spent on a rooftop depicts the horrors, frustrations, and futilities brought about by war.

After successfully killing the enemy sniper positioned on the opposite roof, the sniper is "revolted" at the sight of the enemy sniper's body smashing into the pavement below. Liam O’Flaherty writes that the sniper's teeth chatter as he begins to curse the war, himself, and everybody. The sniper then makes an oath and throws his pistol to the ground in disgust. After narrowly dodging a bullet from his own pistol, the sniper begins to chug alcohol out of his flask, which makes him feel reckless and provides him with a brief respite.
The change in the sniper's personality reflects the psychological effects of war and violence on a soldier's mind. Compared to the beginning of the story when the sniper was excited and anxious to fight, the sniper is portrayed as disgusted, upset, and troubled with his actions and situation. His response to killing the enemy sniper illustrates how the violence and constant fighting has taken a toll on his psyche. The sniper wishes that the violence would end and does not want to kill any more enemy soldiers.

When the sniper kills his opponent, an important change comes over him. All of a sudden, he loses the "lust of battle," for example, and he feels "revolted" by the sight of the dead sniper. This contrasts sharply with the sniper's appearance and character before the killing, when his eyes were like those of a "fanatic" and he was described as being "used to looking at death."


By creating this change, the author makes an important point about killing. Specifically, that there is no glory in causing the death of another person, no matter what the circumstances or context.
Even though the sniper has killed before, he is clearly affected by the death of his opponent. This suggests that death leaves an emotional scar on the killer, no matter how many times he has done it in the past. This is significant because it draws the reader's attention to the human cost of war, made all the more poignant in the closing line when the sniper learns that he has, in fact, killed his own brother.