“I mean, you ran like a rabbit after you killed Lejeune.”
Why it's great
The rabbit image brands him a coward in one stroke, with no room to explain.
Register
Informal
Use it yourself
When the alarm rang, he ran like a rabbit.
00:00 / 02:36
00:00 / 02:36
Paris Accuses Roget After the Patrol, Explained
Paths of Glory · 1957
Chapter 4 of 17 · 2'36"
Back from a night patrol, Corporal Paris accuses Lieutenant Roget of killing Lejeune with a grenade and then running away. Roget answers with rank and threats — "You're speaking to an officer" — then quietly offers to rewrite the report so the death looks like an accident of war.
Key moments
Start here, then watch the full scene- 0:02–0:34
Paris Accuses Roget of Running
32s - 1:29–1:55
❝ Monologue · 10 lines Roget Offers to Rewrite the Report
27s
Paris Accuses Roget After the Patrol, explained
What happens
After a night patrol, Corporal Paris confronts Lieutenant Roget: Roget threw the grenade that killed Lejeune, then fled. Roget threatens Paris with charges, then offers a deal — he will falsify the report so Lejeune's death looks like a patrol accident. Colonel Dax arrives and asks for the report.
What's really going on
The scene is a class war inside an army. Paris has the truth and none of the power; Roget has the rank and knows exactly how the system works. That is why he can say, "It's my word against yours," and mean it as a threat rather than a plea — a corporal's accusation against an officer will not survive paperwork. What makes Roget chilling is the way he moves from bullying to bargaining without a pause: first the list of charges, then the offer to rewrite the report so the killing disappears 'once and for all.' Paris refuses to be managed, insisting a man, not an officer, would not have done it. Then Colonel Dax walks in, and everything unsaid suddenly has to become a document.
Key lines & what they mean
- “I mean, you ran like a rabbit after you killed Lejeune.”
- Paris's accusation, plain and unsparing: Roget killed Lejeune and then bolted, and Paris will not pretend otherwise.
- “It's my word against yours, you know.”
- Roget's threat: with no witnesses, the dispute comes down to whose account is believed, and rank decides that.
- “And whose word do you think they're gonna believe?”
- Roget spelling out the imbalance of power: whatever Paris says, the army will side with the officer.
- “Honestly, I know you don't like me, but what kind of a man do you think I am?”
- Roget trying to become a person instead of a rank, looking for sympathy after failing to intimidate Paris.
- “Should feel very proud of yourself. Go get some sleep.”
- Dax dismissing Roget with irony, praising him in front of the men while refusing to hear more.
- “You're speaking to an officer. Remember that.”
- Roget checking Paris's tone and pulling rank, using the uniform as a shield the moment he is accused.
Theme
- Power — Roget uses rank and the machinery of military justice to silence a corporal who saw what he did.
- Lies — The offer to rewrite the report so Lejeune's death looks accidental is a lie meant to bury the truth.
What this chapter teaches
Teaching points
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Language points
Click a card to jump to its moment in the videoGolden lines
A great line in its own right — why and how to use it“It's my word against yours, you know.”
Why it's great
A common phrase for a proof-less standoff, and a quiet reminder of who has power.
Register
Informal
Use it yourself
With no witnesses, it's my word against yours.
“And whose word do you think they're gonna believe?”
Why it's great
The answer hides inside the question, and the question is the threat.
Register
Informal
Use it yourself
Whose word do you think they'll believe in court?
“Honestly, I know you don't like me, but what kind of a man do you think I am?”
Why it's great
He concedes the dislike, then makes the question itself his defence.
Register
Neutral
Use it yourself
What kind of a man do you think I am, to lie to you?
“Should feel very proud of yourself. Go get some sleep.”
Why it's great
Praise laid over a cold act makes the irony land like a slap.
Register
Informal
Use it yourself
You broke it and blamed me. Feel proud of yourself?
“You're speaking to an officer. Remember that.”
Why it's great
He leans on rank alone; the line is about power, not manners.
Register
Formal
Use it yourself
You're speaking to your manager. Remember that.
Monologue
One character carrying the scene — shadow the whole passage❝ Roget's threat and offer
Philippe, have you ever tried to bring charges against an officer? It's my word against yours, you know. And whose word do you think they're gonna believe? Or l-let me put it another way. Whose word do you think they're going to accept? Now, I'll tell you what I'm willing to do. So far, all I have written in this report... is that you and Lejeune were killed while out on patrol. I'll fix this to read that you made your way back... after becoming separated during the skirmish.
He stacks charges and rank, then dangles a rewritten report as the way out.
Up next · 05as clear as mudThe scene: The Night Before the AttackTakeaways
What you walk away with- Rank decides whose story wins when there is no proof.
- Calling a man a rabbit is a soldier's worst insult.
- A rewritten report can bury a death and a coward.
- Dax's quiet questions are a refusal to be fooled.
People also search
Questions, then the linesWhy does Paris accuse Roget?
He believes Roget threw the grenade that killed Lejeune on patrol, then ran back to the trench instead of staying or reporting it honestly.
Why does Roget threaten Paris with charges?
To make the accusation costly. He lists insubordination, threatening an officer, and refusing orders, and points out how they would look in writing.
What deal does Roget offer Paris?
He offers to change the report so that Lejeune was killed and Paris was separated, which would end the matter and let everyone go on.
What does "my word against yours" mean?
It means the truth comes down to two conflicting accounts, with no way to prove which is right. Here it is also a threat, because rank decides who is believed.
What does Colonel Dax want at the end?
He asks for the patrol report. Roget stalls, saying it is not quite finished, and Dax orders him to bring it to his dugout immediately.