What are the dilemmas in "The Sniper" by Liam O'Flaherty?

A dilemma could be defined as a situation which demands a difficult choice. Often, the choice is between two things that are equally undesirable. There are at least three dilemmas in Liam O'Flaherty's short story "The Sniper." The first dilemma leads directly to the second. After spending a long day on a Dublin rooftop watching the streets below, the Republican sniper contemplates the risks of smoking a cigarette. He knows lighting a match may reveal...

A dilemma could be defined as a situation which demands a difficult choice. Often, the choice is between two things that are equally undesirable. There are at least three dilemmas in Liam O'Flaherty's short story "The Sniper." The first dilemma leads directly to the second. After spending a long day on a Dublin rooftop watching the streets below, the Republican sniper contemplates the risks of smoking a cigarette. He knows lighting a match may reveal his position to his enemies, but he cannot resist.

Placing a cigarette between his lips he struck a match, inhaled the smoke hurriedly and put out the light. Almost immediately, a bullet flattened itself against the parapet of the roof. The sniper took another whiff and put out the cigarette. Then he swore softly and crawled away to the left.

Having revealed his whereabouts, the sniper's second dilemma involves a plan to kill the enemy sniper who wounds him in the arm. He cannot reveal himself and will not be able to leave the roof until he eliminates the Free State sniper. He devises a "ruse" to draw his opponent into the open by raising his rifle covered with his cap and actually dropping the rifle to the ground. The falling rifle causes the enemy to believe he has been victorious, but, when he shows himself, the Republican sniper kills him with his pistol. The final dilemma occurs when the sniper becomes curious over the identity of his fallen enemy. He thinks he may know the man and is willing to risk his life to find out. Despite being fired at by a hidden machine gun, he safely crawls to the corpse to discover the dead man is his brother.