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Battery
A breastwork is a defense structure—either a manmade wall or a natural feature of the earth—that protects troops when they are behind the lines of combat. It is supposed to allow peace and safety from the battlefield as well as a clear vantage point of the front lines. The lieutenant is shot while dividing coffee behind his company’s breastwork, and the fact that he gazes out beyond the supposedly defensive structure highlights how surprised he must be to have been hit behind-the-scenes.
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Breastwork Term Timeline in An Episode of War
The timeline below shows where the term Breastwork appears in An Episode of War. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
An Episode of War
...to enact “a great triumph in mathematics.” A group of corporals, lined up along the breastwork, watches him expectantly, “throng[ing]” forward and eager for their portion.
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...bit, and then straightens himself so he can stand in silence, staring out over the breastwork at the distant forest where “little puffs of white smoke” appear. Only the lieutenant’s “hoarse...
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...a shoulder. The lieutenant waves him away “mournfully,” looking “helpless.” He stares again over the breastwork at the forest before sauntering off, holding his wrist “tenderly” as the men glance back...
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