Theme Assessment Project

Breanna R. & Griselda S.

Period 2 English

7.7.2011

“The Sniper” & “Cranes”

Normally, stories of war do not involve enemies who know each other nor are friends. In the stories “The Sniper” and “Cranes,” the themes are alike because they both emphasize the importance of friendship over war. However, both themes are expressed differently in the stories. The message both authors convey through their stories is war tears families and friends apart.
     In “The Sniper,” a sniper kills his enemy, who happens to be another sniper. However, it turns out to be his brother. Both stories are about war, but in the story, one sniper has to choose between loosing his life and killing the enemy. The sniper makes a decision of following through with his duty. The sniper changes because he finally figures out that killing people isn't the way. Once he shot him he was happy but then he “revolted his from the sight of the shattered mass of his dead enemy” (214). He felt guilty and remorseful. The author’s message is war destroys families.
    “Cranes,” is another story that demonstrates the cruelty of war. Songsam, one of the main characters, has to “escort” Tokchae “to Chongdan” (222). While they are walking together, they talk about the memories they had in the past. It is then that Songsam reconsiders his duty as a peace police officer. Ultimately, he lets Tokchae go, so he does not lose someone he really cares about. Songsam unties Tokchae and crawled away. Songsam made the right decision because Tokchae is his childhood friend and he would have lost him. 
Family and friends matter more than the war. One’s duty to ones work cannot replace family or friends.

In both stories, the main characters are conflicted between choosing family and friend over war. These stories are the same because of the two conflicts they have as their main point of view. Both main characters are into a conflict in were they would have to lose a member of their life. As the story goes to an end, they both realize at one point that they were inflicted with an important person in their family.