- dramatic monologuenoun
A poem spoken entirely by one character addressing an implied listener, revealing the speaker's thoughts and feelings through their own words rather than through a narrator.
- tour of dutyphraseChapter 1 →
A fixed period of time a soldier is assigned to serve in a particular place, especially a combat zone, before rotating home.
- looternounChapter 1 →
A person who steals goods from shops or buildings, typically during a war, disaster, or period of disorder when normal law enforcement has broken down.
- probably armed, possibly notphraseChapter 1 →
A phrase expressing genuine uncertainty about whether the fleeing man was carrying a weapon, making the decision to shoot morally ambiguous from the outset.
“probably armed, possibly not.”
- bloodyadjectiveChapter 1 →
Used here both literally (covered in blood) and as a British intensifier expressing strong emotion, frustration, or emphasis — similar to 'damned' in American English.
“his bloody life in my bloody hands”
- dug inphraseChapter 1 →
Firmly and deeply established in a position from which it cannot easily be removed — borrowed from military language for troops entrenched in defensive positions.
- behind enemy linesphraseChapter 1 →
In military terms, inside territory controlled by the opposing force; used here metaphorically to describe the traumatic memory occupying a hostile, unreachable place inside the soldier's own mind.
- hauntingadjectiveChapter 1 →
Persistently and disturbingly present in the mind, returning again and again in a way the person cannot control or escape.
- traumatic re-experiencingphraseChapter 1 →
A symptom of psychological trauma in which a past event is relived so vividly — in flashbacks or intrusive images — that it feels as if it is happening again in the present.
- Land RovernounChapter 1 →
A rugged British military vehicle commonly used by British armed forces in conflict zones for transporting personnel and equipment.
RemainsShort story by Simon Armitage