Find the best tutors and institutes for Class 12 Tuition
Search in
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.
Life has many facets. We live it by maintaining a delicate balance between the various facets it offers to us as part of our existence as an individual in a society. Living for our own self, family, profession and country are just a few of them. However at times, it becomes difficult to maintain this balance, and gets overpowered by confusion and dilemmas.
The story about Dr Sadao, Hana and the war prisoner exemplifies this. On finding a wounded war prisoner washed ashore, Dr Sadao and Hana are unable to decide what to do. They are confused whether they should save and tend the injured or leave him to die or inform the army.
Eventually, Dr Sadao strikes a balance by deciding to save him before handing him over to the army. He and his wife sympathetically tend him but the pressure, of secretly hiding a war prisoner in their home and going against the rule of the law, subdue their sympathetic self. In a bid to get rid of this burden, Dr Sadao reveals it to the General who promises to get the prisoner killed through assassins. But Dr Sadao’s humane side again pops up asking him to ply with the voice of his soul, and he goes out of his way to help the enemy soldier flee to safety.
Dr Sadao was compelled by 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?
Dr Sadao and Hana knew that their decision to save the enemy soldier would be questioned by everyone. However, they firmly followed their sense of duty. For Dr Sadao this sense of duty came from the profession he was in; but for Hana, the duty was purely humanitarian. From bearing the unrest in her domestic staff to being forced to do all the chores of house-hold herself, she does all with grace and dignity. Hana’s loving, considerate and sympathetic nature shines out. She washed and fed the soldier although it was not her job. Her care helped recuperate the soldier fast. It is also apparent from the story that she respected her husband, and as a sense of duty towards him, did the needful. This explains why she, even after feeling sick, comes back to the room and readily does whatever is told by her husband during the operation.
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?
When the American war prisoner came to consciousness and realized that he was saved by a Japanese family, he feared that he will be soon handed over to the army. However, as he noticed the amount of concern and care given to him by the family, he understood that he was in safe hands. He knew that although he was a threat to the doctor’s family, his own life might be saved there. Burdened with gratitude towards the family, he ultimately decides to comply with what the doctor planned for him - the escape.
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?
The General was totally governed by self absorption. He was a patient of Dr Sadao and did not trust anyone except him when it came to his health. He could not take the risk of living unprotected if the doctor was executed for treachery. He had personal assassins whom he promised to use for killing the injured soldier. But ironically, he ‘forgot’ his promise to help the doctor. Human consideration was not his cup of tea.
While hatred against a member of the enemy race is justifiable, especially during war time, what makes a human being rise above narrow prejudices?
News of war is fast becoming a way of life. The moment one picks up a newspaper, one is bombarded with news of wars between different countries, directly or indirectly. It is obvious that the countries at war are enemies and hatred is a part of this enmity. However the success of humanity comes when we rise above this enmity and show our love towards the civilization as a whole. Dr Sadao did the same. He did whatever he could to save the life of a man whom he knew was a war prisoner. The instant he saw the injured man, he was filled with concern. Ignoring the fact that he was the enemy of his country and must have killed so many Japanese and may kill even more, if alive, he saved him.
Do you think the doctor’s final solution to the problem was the best possible one in the circumstances?
The doctor tried his best to save the injured soldier as a part of his duty. But the ultimate question was what to do next. It cannot be said that he betrayed his country as he told the truth to the General. However when he noticed that the soldier was to be killed not for the benefit of the country but only to save the doctor’s life, he decided to help him flee. In such a situation, the doctor's final solution to the problem was the best possible one.
Does the story remind you of ‘Birth’ by A. J. Cronin that you read in Snapshots last year? What are the similarities?
The story definitely reminds one of “Birth’ by A. J. Cronin. There is a striking similarity between both the stories. Both revolve around doctors who try their level best to save the lives of nearly dead human beings. In the story ‘Birth’, Dr Andrew saves the life of an almost still born baby boy with lot of effort, while ‘The Enemy’ deals with the story of Dr Sadao who saves an American soldier from the enemy troops during the times of war. Both the stories deal with humanity, love, affection, selflessness and a strong sense of duty.
Is there any film you have seen or novel you have read with a similar theme?
The story ‘The Enemy’ is built on the pillars of selflessness, sense of duty, kindness and generosity. There have been many films and novels based on this theme. One such example is the film ‘My Name is Khan’, where the protagonist, with a sense of duty and generosity, goes to the flooded Georgia to save the lives of his friends, Mama Jenny, Joel and other natives. He selflessly works to save the town without thinking twice about the possible dangers to his own life.
How helpful was it?
How can we Improve it?
Please tell us how it changed your life *
Please enter your feedback
UrbanPro.com helps you to connect with the best Class 12 Tuition in India. Post Your Requirement today and get connected.
Find best tutors for Class 12 Tuition Classes by posting a requirement.
Get started now, by booking a Free Demo Class
