The Enemy Important Questions Solved

Question 1.
Why did the General spare the American soldier?
Answer:
The General had his own selfish interest in sparing the American soldier. He knew Dr. Sadao was indispensable to
him and did not want him to be arrested. He did not trust other surgeons. In his capacity as a General he should
have had the American soldier arrested but he refrained from it in his personal self-interest.

Question 2.
Why was Dr. Sadao not sent to the battlefield?

Answer:
Dr. Sadao was a skilled and reputed surgeon who was in the process of perfecting an invention of rendering
wounds totally clean. Moreover, he was treating the old General who could need an operation. So he was not sent
to the battlefield as his valuable services could be needed at any time in his hometown.

Question 3.
Why did the messenger come to Dr. Sadao? What did Hana think about it? (All India 2010)
Answer:
The uniformed messenger comes to Dr. Sadao to inform him that the old General was in pain again. Hana felt relieved to
hear that the messenger had come only to inform Dr. Sadao about the General’s ill-health. She had earlier feared that the
servants had informed the police who had sent the man in the uniform to their house.

Question 4.
In what context does Hana remember General Takima? What does she infer? (All India 2018)
Answer:
Hana remembers General Takima who at home used to beat his wife cruelly though no one now mentioned it ever
since he had fought a victorious battle in Manchuria. She inferred that if a man like him could be so cruel to a
woman in his power, he would be extremely cruel to the wounded American soldier.

Question 5.
How did Hana help Dr. Sadao while he operated upon the enemy soldier?
Answer:
First Hana washes the wounded man’s face and body with warm water till it was quite clean. She then assists Dr.
Sadao during the operation even though she has never even witnessed an operation before. She brings in the
towels and though she is not comfortable at the sight of the bleeding wound she gives anaesthesia to the patient.

Question 6.
How does the writer indicate that Dr. Sadao’s father was a very traditional and conventional man?
Answer:
Though Dr. Sadao and Hana had fallen in love in America, he got married to her only after his father approved of
her. His father always wanted Sadao to get married to a girl who was pure in her race. Dr. Sadao’s marriage to
Hana was arranged by his father in the old Japanese way indicating that he was a traditional and conventional
man.

Question 7.
How did Dr. Sadao plan the American prisoner’s escape?
Answer: Dr. Sadao made elaborate arrangements for the prisoner’s safe escape. The prisoner was made to row to
a nearby island where no one lived. All the necessary things were given to him. He was told to signal two flashes
if he ran out of food. When Dr. Sadao received no signal, he was convinced the prisoner had escaped safely.
Question 8.
Did Hana think the Japanese tortured their prisoners of war? Why?
Answer:
When Hana noticed the deep red scars on the American soldier’s neck, she worriedly hoped that he had not been
tortured by the Japanese. She knew it was a common practice for the Japanese to torture their prisoners of war in
the most brutal manner.

Question 9.
What forced Dr. Sadao to be impatient and irritable with his patient? (All India 2015)
Answer:
Hana had never seen an operation and the sight of Dr. Sadao operating on the soldier made her sick and she
rushed out to the garden to retch. Dr. Sadao knew how distressed Hana was and his inability to go to her made
him impatient and irritable with his patient because of whom he could not be with his wife.

Question 10.
How nearly had Dr. Sadao missed marrying Hana?(nearly missed—coincidently met)
Answer:
Dr. Sadao had met Hana literally by chance at an American professor’s house. He actually did not want to go
there as the rooms of the house were small, the food was bad and the professor’s wife was rather voluble. But
nevertheless he had gone and there he had found Hana.

Question 11.
In what condition was the American sailor when Dr. Sadao found him?(Comptt. All India 2013)
Answer:
When Dr. Sadao found the American sailor the latter was badly wounded and unconscious. Blood was flowing
intensively when Dr. Sadao touched his wound. On the right side of the sailor’s lower back Dr. Sadao saw that the
gun wound had reopened and the flesh was blackened with powder.

Question 12.
Do you think Dr. Sadao’s final decision was the best possible one in the circumstances? Why/Why not? Explain
with reference to the story, ‘The Enemy’. (Delhi 2017)
Answer:
Dr. Sadao rose above narrow prejudices of race and country and not only saved the young American soldier from
dying, but also helped him to escape. Basic human goodness overpowered Dr. Sadao and the final decision that he
took was indeed the best possible one in the circumstances. He could not hand over a dying man, even if he was
an enemy, to the police. The ethics of his profession had taught him to save a dying man. His essential love for
humanity and his sincerity towards his duty as a doctor transcend all other narrow considerations. As a doctor, it
was his duty to save a dying man and so he put aside all other options and respected the ideals and principles of
his profession.

Question 13.
Why did Dr. Sadao treat the American soldier even though it was an unpatriotic act on his part? (Comptt. All
India 2014)
Answer:
Dr. Sadao rose above narrow prejudices of race and country and treated the wounded American soldier. Basic
human goodness overpowers him and he treats the American soldier. Being a doctor, it was his duty to save a
dying man even though he belonged to the enemy’s camp.

Question 14.
Why did the General not order immediate arrest of Dr. Sadao who had sheltered a white man? (Comptt. All India
2014)
Answer:
After knowing that Dr. Sadao had operated on the white man with such success, the General realized how
indispensable Dr. Sadao was to him. He was the only one who could save him. So he could not let Dr. Sadao be
arrested lest he required Dr. Sadao’s medical expertise to save his own life.
Question 15.
What was Sadao’s father’s dream for him? How did Sadao realise it? (All India 2015)
Answer:
Dr. Sadao’s father had spent infinite pains on his only son and his education had been his father’s chief concern.
He had sent Dr. Sadao at the age of 22 to America to learn all that could be learned of surgery and medicine.
Before his father’s death, Dr. Sadao ensured that he saw him not only as a surgeon but also as a scientist.

Question 16.
What was his father’s chief concern about Dr. Sadao? (Delhi 2016)
Answer:
Sadao’s education was his father’s chief concern. For this reason he had sent Sadao to America to learn all that
could be learned about surgery and medicine. Before his death he had seen Sadao become famous not only as a
surgeon but as a scientist.

Question 17.
What dilemma was there in Dr. Sadao’s face? (Comptt. Delhi 2017)
Answer:
Dr. Sadao finds an unconscious wounded white soldier on a lonely coast near his house. Since Japan was at war
with America Dr. Sadao faces a dilemma between national loyalty and his duty as a doctor. He is confused as to
whether he should hand over the enemy to the Japanese authorities, or being a doctor do his foremost duty and
attend to a wounded man and save his life.

The Enemy Important Questions Long Answer Type Questions (5-6 Marks)

Question 1.
How did Dr. Sadao rise above narrow prejudices of race and country to help a human being in need?
Answer:
An American prisoner of war gets washed away to Japanese doctor, Sadao’s doorstep. Being a doctor, Sadao
gives top priority to saving the life of a dying man despite the ongoing war between America and Japan and the
fact that all Americans were considered to be their enemies. Being a doctor, Sadao’s duty was to save a dying man
but saving an enemy would be an act of treachery. But the doctor not only saved him from dying but did not even
hand him over to the police. He rose above narrow prejudices of race and country and helped the young soldier to
escape. Basic human goodness overpowers Dr. Sadao and he helps the wounded soldier first by saving his life and
then by arranging his escape, risking his own life and reputation in the process.

Question 2.
Describe the difficulties faced by Dr. Sadao when he decided to help the enemy soldier.
Answer:
A wounded American soldier who was bleeding was washed away to Dr. Sadao’s doorstep. Japan was at war with
America and giving shelter to a U.S. soldier was an anti-national activity for which Dr. Sadao could be arrested.
He could be severely punished on charges of harbouring an enemy. Dr. Sadao also had to face open defiance from
his servants who refused to cooperate with him and his wife. They wanted that “the white man ought to die”. Dr.
Sadao was in a fix. He could not hand over a dying man, even if he was an enemy, to the police and protecting
him could lead to Dr. Sadao’s arrest. But the ethics of his profession had taught him to save a dying man
irrespective of all things. So putting aside his dilemma he did what he ought to do as a doctor. He not only
operated upon and saved the enemy soldier but also arranged for his escape.

Question 3.
What explains the attitude of the General in the matter of the enemy soldier? Was it human consideration, lack of
national loyalty, dereliction (negligence) of duty or simply self-absorption?
Answer:
The General is a self-absorbed man who is too involved with his own self. He being a General, his illness and his
fear of death are his main concern. It is quite surprising that he fails to send his private assassins to kill the
American soldier at Dr. Sadao’s house. But here too he fears for his own self because he does not want the
assassins to even accidently cause any harm to Dr. Sadao and his wife as Dr. Sadao was indispensable for his
well-being and survival. So he feigns to be forgetful and chooses not to send his assassins to eliminate the soldier.
It is not neglect of duty or lack of patriotism which is responsible for the General’s irresponsible attitude towards
the enemy soldier. It is simply his self-interest and self-absorption that make the General take a lenient attitude
towards the presence and escape of the American soldier from Dr. Sadao’s house.

Question 4.
Draw a character sketch of the old General in the lesson, ‘The Enemy’. (All India 2011)
Answer:
The old General is a man whose personal considerations overweighed all other considerations. Even though the
Second World War was in progress and a doctor of the calibre of Dr. Sadao would have proved to be a blessing
for the wounded soldiers on the front, he was retained in Japan because he was indispensable to the General’s
health and well being. Despite knowing about the presence of the American soldier at Dr. Sadao’s house he
refrains from sending his private assassins to kill the enemy soldier. He understands Dr. Sadao’s importance for
his own survival and so does not want to take a chance in case the assassins accidently harm Dr. Sadao or his
wife. The General, therefore, comes across as a strange and selfish person who is actually too preoccupied with
his own self. He being a General, his illness and his fear of death outweigh all his other considerations, even those
towards his country.

Question 5.
Why did Sadao Hoki go to America? Narrate his experiences there. (All India 2012)
Answer:
Dr. Sadao was a dutiful son who was aware that his education was his father’s chief concern. So at the age of
twenty-two Sadao’s father sent him to America to study surgery and medicine. He had met his wife, Hana in
America. He had ‘found’ Hana casually and by chance at an American professor’s house. The professor and his
wife were kind people anxious to help out their foreign students. Dr. Sadao had gone to the professor’s house
most reluctantly and there he had found Hana. He had not married Hana heedlessly in America. The two had
finished their work at school, had come home to Japan and when his father had approved of her, their marriage
was arranged in the traditional Japanese way. Dr. Sadao had returned from America at the age of thirty as a full-
fledged qualified surgeon.

Question 6.
Dr. Sadao was more a dutiful doctor than a loyal citizen. Substantiate the statement by quoting suitable evidence
from the story, ‘The Enemy’. (Comptt. Delhi 2017)
Answer:
Dr. Sadao is a dutiful doctor and when it comes to commitment towards his profession even his obligation
towards his country becomes secondary to him. He brings back to life a man who is on the verge of death without
caring about the fact that the person whose life he is saving is a soldier of the enemy camp. It is Dr.Sadao’s
conscience and professional ethics that supersede his patriotism and so he saves the American soldier. He rises
above narrow prejudices as he realizes his job as a doctor is to save a life and not to take it away. Even after he
told the General everything about the American soldier he felt restless for three consecutive nights at the thought
that he was actually waiting for someone to be killed. Finally, he decided to help the soldier to escape so that he
could be at peace with himself and put his mind to rest.

Question 7.
A doctor is supposed to be gentle and humane. How did Sadao show these qualities in the story, “The Enemy”?
(Comptt. Delhi 2016)
Answer:
Dr. Sadao is gentle and humane. When he came to know that the stranger was an American soldier, he wanted to
throw him back into the sea but could not. So he took him to treat him although he belonged to the enemy’s camp.
Then he decided to hand the soldier over to the police after he had operated upon him and saved his life, but in the
end was unable to do so. Instead he gave him proper post-operative treatment. He risked his and his family’s life
by giving the stranger shelter. He even risked the resentment and wrath of his servants who were so upset with
him for harbouring a soldier from the enemy’s camp that they left his house. Finally, Dr. Sadao gave the soldier
his own boat, food and clothing and told him to sail to a nearby island and save himself. Dr. Sadao was not a
traitor but could not let someone, whom he had saved himself, die.
Question 8.
Dr. Sadao was a patriotic Japanese as well as a dedicated surgeon. How could he honour both the values? (Delhi
2015)
Answer:
Dr. Sadao was indeed a patriotic Japanese as well as a dedicated surgeon. An American run away prisoner in a
badly wounded condition is washed ashore on Japanese doctor Sadao’s doorstep. The doctor is initially a little
hesitant to save the prisoner’s life when he discovers the latter’s real identity. But being a dedicated surgeon he
decides to treat the enemy soldier. He is able to save the prisoner’s life but being a patriotic Japanese he informs a
superior Japanese Army General about the prisoner’s presence in his house and even agrees to have him killed by
the General’s assassins. He waits for the assassins to carry out their job but when they do not arrive, he gives the
prisoner his boat and helps him to escape safely thus honouring both the values that he was a pa-triotic Japanese
as well as a dedicated surgeon.

Question 9.
Dr. Sadao faced a dilemma. Should he use his surgical skills to save the life of a wounded person or hand an
escaped American P.O.W. over to the Japanese police? How did he re-solve this clash of values? (All India 2015)
Answer:
Dr. Sadao gives priority to his professional ethics over his patriotism and uses his surgical skills to save the life of
a wounded man even though he belonged to the enemy’s camp. He rises above narrow prejudices and realizes his
duty as a doctor. The surgeon in him instinctively inspires him to operate upon the dying soldier and save his life.
But he is also a responsible and patriotic citizen of his country so he decides to inform a senior Japanese Army
General about the prisoner’s presence in his house and even agrees to have him killed by the General’s assassins.
He even spends three restless nights waiting for the assassins to carry out their job. But the assassins did not
arrive. In this way, Dr. Sadao is able to resolve the clash of his values and appease his conscience of having done
his duty as a responsible citizen of his country.