Class 12 English Chapter 19 The Enemy Question Answer to each chapter is provided in the list so that you can easily browse through different chapters Assam Board Class 12 English Chapter 19 The Enemy and select needs one.
Class 12 English Chapter 19 The Enemy
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The Enemy
Lesson – 19
VISTAS (SUPPLEMENTARY)
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Page No – 24
1. Who was Dr Sadao? Where was his house?
Ans: Dr Sadao Hoki was an eminent Japanese surgeon and scientist.
His house was situated on the spot of the Japanese coast. The square stone house was built upon the rocks, well above a narrow beach that was outlined with bent pines.
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Page No – 27
1. Will Dr Sadao be arrested on the charge of harbouring an enemy?
Ans: Dr Sadao knew that they would be arrested if they sheltered a white man in their house. The wounded man was a prisoner of war who had escaped with a bullet on his back. Since Japan was at war with America, harbouring an enemy meant being a traitor to Japan. Dr Sadao could be arrested if anyone complained against him and accused him of harbouring an enemy.
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Page No – 31
1. Will Hana help the wounded man and wash him herself?
Ans: Yes, Hana helps the wounded man and washes him herself. When the maid, Yumi, refuses to do so out of fear, Hana rebukes her and takes on the task. She dips a clean towel into steaming hot water and carefully washes the man’s face and upper body. However, she hesitates to turn him over.
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Page No – 35
1. What will Dr Sadao and his wife do with the man?
Ans: Dr. Sadao and his wife, Hana, decided to help the wounded man. Initially, they told the servants that they only intended to revive him before handing him over as a prisoner. However, Dr. Sadao chose not to surrender a helpless man to the police. Instead, he brought him into their home, operated on him, and removed the bullet. He and Hana took care of the man, providing him with food and medical aid until he regained enough strength to walk on his own.
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Page No – 43
1. What will Dr Sadao do to get rid of the man?
Ans: Dr. Sadao informed the General about the white man, who promised to send assassins to kill him. However, when they did not arrive, Dr. Sadao decided to help the man escape. He prepared a boat with food and clothing, advising him to row to a deserted island and wait for a Korean fishing boat. He also gave him a flashlight to signal if he needed help. By doing this, Dr. Sadao ensured both the man’s escape and his own safety.
| READING WITH INSIGHT |
1. There are moments in life when we have to make hard choices between our roles as private individuals and as citizens with a sense of national loyalty. Discuss with reference to the story you have just read.
Ans: The central theme of the story “The Enemy” by Pearl S. Buck is the conflict between humanity and national loyalty. Dr. Sadao, a renowned Japanese surgeon, finds himself in a moral dilemma when he discovers a wounded American prisoner of war. As a loyal citizen of Japan, he knows he should hand over the enemy to the authorities. However, as a doctor, his ethical duty is to save lives, regardless of nationality.
A doctor’s primary responsibility is to heal, not to harm. The American soldier was on the verge of death, and Sadao, guided by his medical oath and compassion, chose to treat him. This decision put him at risk, as helping an enemy could be seen as betrayal. Despite this, he ultimately helped the soldier escape, balancing his duty as a healer with the pressures of his national identity.
Sadao’s dilemma represents a universal human struggle-choosing between professional ethics and patriotic duty. Many individuals face such conflicts in life, where moral values often challenge societal expectations.
2. Dr. Sadao was compelled by his duty as a doctor to help the enemy soldier. What made Hana, his wife, sympathetic to him in the face of open defiance from the domestic staff?
Ans: Initially, Hana was reluctant to let the wounded American soldier into their home. She even suggested that it would be better if he died on the shore. Even after Dr. Sadao decided to treat him, she was hesitant to assist. However, when the domestic staff refused to help and Dr. Sadao needed her assistance during the operation, she overcame her reluctance and agreed to administer anesthesia.
As she leaned over the soldier, she noticed his thin lips and realized the immense pain he was in. This reminded her of the heartbreaking stories she had heard about war prisoners-stories often dismissed as exaggerations. She also recalled how General Takima, who was celebrated for his victories, was known to have cruelly beaten his wife, yet no one spoke of it. This made her question the morality of war and the treatment of enemies.
Moved by these thoughts and the soldier’s struggle for survival, Hana gradually developed sympathy for him. Her compassion deepened when she saw his helplessness, and she eventually cared for him as a mother would for a child, even feeding him with a spoon. Thus, her initial resistance transformed into empathy due to the soldier’s pitiable condition.
3. How would you explain the reluctance of the soldier to leave the shelter of the doctor’s home even when he knew he couldn’t stay there without risk to the doctor and himself?
Ans: The American patient’s survival was uncertain, but through the unwavering dedication of Dr. Sadao and his wife, he recovered. Upon regaining consciousness, he realized he had been saved by a Japanese family during a time of war between their nations. Initially fearing he would be handed over to the authorities, the compassionate care he received led him to hope otherwise. He felt a deep sense of attachment and gratitude toward the family who risked their lives for him. Ultimately, he forced himself to leave to alleviate the danger his presence posed to them.
4. What explains the attitude of the General in the matter of the enemy soldier? Was it human consideration, lack of national loyalty, dereliction of duty or simply self-absorption?
Ans: The General’s attitude toward the enemy soldier is primarily driven by self-absorption and personal interest. As Dr. Sadao’s patient, the General relies heavily on his medical expertise and fears that without Sadao, his own health could be jeopardized. This dependence leads him to overlook the moral and legal implications of harboring an enemy, as he cannot afford to lose his trusted surgeon. When Sadao informs the General about the wounded American in his home, the General promises to send assassins to eliminate the soldier but fails to follow through, admitting later that he was preoccupied with his own health issues and simply forgot. This negligence underscores his self-centered nature. While his inaction might appear as a dereliction of duty or lack of national loyalty, it is more accurately a reflection of his self-absorption and prioritization of personal well-being over broader responsibilities.
5. While hatred against a member of the enemy race is justifiable, especially during wartime, what makes a human being rise above narrow prejudices?
Ans: Hating individuals of one race just because of political disturbances between the countries is certainly not justified. The countries are at war mostly because of the political tensions between them and not because of the citizens that live there. It is a sheer lack of empathy and humanity. What makes you more human is when you rise above these pity issues and focus more on yourself and your duties than going with what the flock is doing. Dr. Sadao certainly sets an example for us all about how a human being should conduct himself in such situations. He risked his and his loved one’s life just to save the patient who was God sent to him by nature. He was gravely injured but because of his efforts and skills, he survived. He raised himself above these pity issues and gave himself a new life.
6. Do you think the doctor’s final solution to the problem was the best possible one in the circumstances?
Ans: After healing the American soldier, Dr. Sadao devised a plan to ensure both the soldier’s safe departure and his family’s security. He provided the soldier with a boat, food, water, and clothing, instructing him to row to a nearby uninhabited island and await rescue by a passing Korean fishing vessel. This strategy allowed the soldier to evade capture while mitigating the risk of repercussions for Dr. Sadao and his family.
7. Does the story remind you of ‘birth’ by A.J. Cronin that you read in Snapshots last year? What are the similarities?
Ans: Yes, the story does remind me of Birth by A.J. Cronin. Both the stories are about saving a human being from the mouth of death. In this story, if the soldier had not washed up to Dr Sadao’s beach he would have been captured or dead; and in the story Birth, the new-born baby who was given up for dead, would have been so, but for the doctor who tried hard for over thirty minutes, doing everything in his capacity until he finally brought the child back to life. Both are stories of victory of life over death, and of doctors holding their duty supreme over everything else.
8. Is there any film you have seen or novel you have read with a similar theme?
Ans: The Hindi film Dr. Kotnis Ki Amar Kahani (1946), directed by V. Shantaram, portrays the life of Dr. Dwarkanath Kotnis, an Indian physician who, during World War II, volunteered to provide medical assistance in China amidst the Japanese invasion. His dedication led him to join the Chinese resistance, where he treated wounded soldiers, combated a virulent plague, and ultimately sacrificed his life in service to humanity.
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