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CBSE Class 12 English★ 4-10 marks · CBSE Class 12 English Core (Vistas) Chapter 4

The Enemy (Pearl S. Buck)

A wounded American soldier washes up on the shore of a Japanese doctor's home — during World War II, when Japan and America are at war. Dr. Sadao must choose: save the 'enemy' (his medical oath) or turn him over to the army (his national duty). Pearl S. Buck's profound story of humanity vs. patriotism. CBSE Class 12 English (Vistas) Chapter 4.

⏱ 18 min readMedium difficulty✓ Free · NCERT-aligned

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By the end of this chapter you'll be able to…

1Describe Dr. Sadao's dilemma when he finds the American POW Tom on the beach
2Explain Dr. Sadao's final decision to save Tom and secretly arrange his escape — and the reasons behind it
3Analyse the role of Hana (Sadao's wife) and the servants in the story
4Explain the General's role — why he did not expose Sadao, and what this says about power and loyalty
5Discuss the story's central theme: that humanity transcends national boundaries and wartime enmity

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Why this chapter matters

The Enemy is the most ethically complex chapter in the Vistas syllabus. Dr. Sadao's internal conflict — patriotic duty to Japan vs universal medical ethics — generates long-answer questions about moral dilemmas, the definition of 'enemy', and whether universal humanism can transcend war. Pearl S. Buck's background gives context MCQs regularly test.

The Enemy — Pearl S. Buck

"If I had not been trained as a surgeon, I would turn him over to the police. But I am a surgeon. I cannot let a man die."

1. About the Story

Set in JAPAN during WORLD WAR II. Dr. Sadao Hoki, a Japanese surgeon trained in America, finds a wounded WHITE MAN washed up on the beach near his home. The man is an AMERICAN SOLDIER — an 'enemy' of Japan. Sadao faces an IMPOSSIBLE CHOICE: his MEDICAL OATH (save the man) vs. his PATRIOTIC DUTY (turn him over to the army, which will execute him). He chooses to SAVE the enemy. The rest of the story is the AFTERMATH — his internal conflict and the quiet, unexpected ways his choice plays out.

2. Characters

Dr. Sadao Hoki

Japanese surgeon. Studied in AMERICA. Met his wife Hana there.
A man of SCIENCE and MEDICAL ETHICS. 'I cannot let a man die.'
He saves the American soldier — operates on him, nurses him, hides him
BUT: he is NOT a rebel. He REPORTS the soldier to the General. He is CONFLICTED — torn between his training and his country.
The STORY DOES NOT JUDGE HIM. It simply presents his conflict.

Hana (Sadao's Wife)

Also studied in America. SPEAKS ENGLISH.
She HELPS Sadao — washes the soldier, assists in the surgery, feeds him
She too is CONFLICTED — but her loyalty to her HUSBAND overrides her fear
Her COURAGE is quieter than Sadao's — but EQUALLY ESSENTIAL

Tom (The American Soldier)

Wounded, unconscious when found. A young man. An 'enemy' by nationality — but, first: a HUMAN BEING.
GRATEFUL. Quiet. Understands his position.
At the end: Sadao arranges his ESCAPE — puts him on a boat to a nearby island at night. 'He will find a Korean fishing boat.'
The soldier leaves. Sadao never sees him again.

The General

An old Japanese general. Sadao's patient and superior.
He OFFERS to have the American 'removed' by assassins — 'They will do it quietly. They are experts.'
But the General FORGETS. 'I forgot about your enemy. It is not my habit to forget, but I am ill.' (He IS ill. But the convenient forgetting is SUSPICIOUS — does he deliberately let the American escape?)
The General represents: the STATE. He can order a man's death — but he 'forgets.' The state's violence is both POWERFUL and NEGLIGENT.

The Servants

Yumi, the children's nurse. The gardener. The cook.
They REFUSE to help with the 'enemy.' 'We cannot stay in a house where an American is sheltered.'
They LEAVE. They represent: ORDINARY PEOPLE's nationalism. Their fear. Their conformity.

3. Key Themes

1. Professional Ethics vs. National Duty

Sadao's conflict: as a SURGEON, he must save a life. As a JAPANESE CITIZEN, he should let the enemy die. The two identities are INCOMPATIBLE. Sadao chooses his MEDICAL ETHICS. But the choice HAUNTS him.

2. Humanity Beyond Nationality

The American soldier is an 'enemy.' But when Sadao operates on him, he is a BODY — a wounded HUMAN. The story argues: HUMANITY precedes NATIONALITY. We are humans first; citizens of nations second.

3. The Psychology of the 'Enemy'

The word 'enemy' is an ABSTRACTION. The soldier washed up on the beach is a CONCRETE, suffering human being. Sadao can 'kill an enemy' in the abstract. He cannot kill THIS man — not when the man is lying on his operating table.

4. Moral Courage and Its Cost

Sadao saves the soldier. The servants leave. His reputation is at risk. The General's assassins might (or might not) have come. Sadao pays a price — social, psychological, professional — for doing the RIGHT THING.

4. Key Lines

"I cannot let a man die. That would be the real failure of my training."
"The man was an American. The enemy."
"I will have him killed. My private assassins. They will do it quietly."
"I forgot about your enemy. It is not my habit to forget. But I am ill."

5. Common Mistakes

Sadao is an absolute hero / absolute traitor — He is NEITHER. He is a COMPLEX human being who CHOOSES his medical ethics over national duty — but reports the soldier to the General. He is not a saint. He is a man making impossible choices.
The General's forgetting is genuine — Maybe. But the timing ('I am ill') and the CONVENIENCE (Sadao can now help the American escape) suggest it may be DELIBERATE. The General MAY have chosen to let the American go — without ever SAYING so.

6. Conclusion

'The Enemy' is a story about the MOMENT when ABSTRACT PRINCIPLES meet CONCRETE HUMANITY:

SADAO: A surgeon. A Japanese man. A HUMAN BEING. He saves an enemy.
THE SERVANTS: They leave. They represent: SOCIETY's judgment.
THE GENERAL: He can kill — but he 'forgets.' The state's violence is erratic.
THE SOLDIER: An 'enemy' who becomes a patient. A life saved. A man set free.

Pearl S. Buck asks: What would YOU do? And she refuses to provide an easy answer.

Key formulas & results

Everything you need to memorise, in one card. Screenshot this for revision.

Author: Pearl S. Buck

American novelist, 1892–1973. Nobel Prize in Literature 1938. Pulitzer Prize for 'The Good Earth' (1931). Born in West Virginia; raised in China by missionary parents; lived most of her early life in China. Known for: novels about China and the relationship between East and West, humanitarian work (adopted mixed-race children, founded Welcome House), and advocacy for Asian-Americans.

MCQs ask: nationality (American), Nobel Prize year (1938), most famous novel ('The Good Earth', 1931), and her background (grew up in China, wrote about East-West relations). She is NOT Chinese — a common MCQ trap.

Dr. Sadao Hoki — The Central Character

Dr. Sadao Hoki: Japanese surgeon, trained in America (educated in San Francisco and at an American university), returned to Japan, married Hana, serves as a personal surgeon to the aging Japanese General. He is patriotic but also a man whose training has given him a universal medical ethic.

The details matter: he was TRAINED IN AMERICA (which is why he speaks English and connects with Tom as a human), he is the GENERAL'S personal surgeon (which both gives him protection and creates his loyalty conflict), and he is a man of DUAL FORMATION — Japanese nationalist and American-trained doctor.

The Dilemma

Dr. Sadao finds an American soldier (Tom) washed up on the beach — wounded, barely alive. Japan is at war with America. Tom is technically an enemy POW. Sadao's choices: (1) Hand him over to the Japanese military (duty to Japan, certain death for Tom). (2) Let him die on the beach (inaction). (3) Save him (as a doctor, he cannot let a patient die). He chooses to save him — in his house, secretly.

The dilemma is structured as a three-way conflict: national duty (hand him over) vs passive inaction (let him die) vs medical ethics (save him). Sadao cannot let a patient die regardless of nationality — his training won't allow it.

The General's Role

Sadao reports Tom to the General (his patient), expecting to be punished for harbouring an enemy. The General promises to have the American 'removed' by his assassins. But the General FORGETS — he becomes preoccupied with his own health and never sends the assassins. Sadao eventually arranges Tom's escape himself to a nearby island with a rowboat, food, and supplies.

The General's forgetting is ambiguous: was it genuinely forgetfulness, or did the General choose to look the other way, knowing Sadao was valuable to him? This ambiguity is worth noting in exam answers.

Hana and the Servants

HANA (Sadao's wife): Initially reluctant, she ultimately helps care for Tom. She was also educated partly in America. Her decision to help reflects the same tension Sadao faces — she assists despite her fear and patriotic discomfort. THE SERVANTS: The servants refuse to serve the American or cooperate with having an enemy in the house — and eventually leave. Their departure shows that ordinary Japanese people could not override their national identity as easily as Dr. Sadao.

The servants' departure is significant: it shows that Sadao and Hana's decision was exceptional, not typical. Most Japanese in wartime could not (or chose not to) see their national enemy as a human patient.

Tom — The American Soldier

Tom is young, scared, wounded. He was a POW/escaped soldier. He is NOT presented as heroic or symbolic — he is a specific young American who needs medical help. When Dr. Sadao saves him and prepares his escape, Tom rows away with supplies to an uninhabited island, then signals a passing submarine.

Tom's departure is the resolution — he escapes safely. The story ends with Sadao thinking of Tom and wondering if he was picked up. Tom is the 'enemy' who becomes simply a human being who needed care.

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Common mistakes & fixes

These are the exact errors that cost students marks in board exams. Read them once, save yourself the trouble.

WATCH OUT

✗ Writing that Dr. Sadao reported Tom to the General to get rid of the responsibility

✓ Sadao reported Tom to the General as a form of DUAL COMPLIANCE — he was trying to both fulfil his national duty (report the enemy) AND protect Tom (hoping the General, his patient, would handle it discretely). He was not trying to escape responsibility; he was trying to navigate an impossible situation. When the General fails to act, Sadao arranges Tom's escape himself — TAKING responsibility directly.

WATCH OUT

✗ Saying Pearl S. Buck was Chinese or lived in China as an adult

✓ Pearl S. Buck was AMERICAN. She was born in West Virginia and raised in China by missionary parents. She returned to China and lived there as an adult, but she was an American citizen. Her Nobel Prize was given for her work on China-America relations. She is NOT Chinese.

WATCH OUT

✗ Writing that the General sent assassins who were stopped by Sadao

✓ The General FORGOT. He promised to send assassins but became preoccupied with his own health and never sent them. Sadao waited nervously, expecting them. They never came. Eventually Sadao arranged Tom's escape himself.

NCERT exercises (with solutions)

Every NCERT exercise from this chapter — what it covers and how many questions to expect.

Reading with Insight

Questions on: Sadao's dilemma, Hana's role, why servants left, the General's forgetfulness, Sadao's final decision to arrange Tom's escape, and the story's theme about humanity transcending national boundaries

Questions

Practice problems

Try each one yourself before tapping "Show solution". Active recall > rereading.

Q1EASY· sadaos-dilemma

What dilemma does Dr. Sadao face when he finds the American soldier? How does he resolve it?

▶ Show solution

Dr. Sadao finds an American soldier (Tom) washed up on his beach — gravely wounded. Japan is at war with America. Sadao faces a DUAL OBLIGATION: as a JAPANESE CITIZEN, his duty is to hand over an enemy soldier to the military. As a DOCTOR, his training absolutely forbids him to let a patient die when he can save them — regardless of nationality. He cannot let Tom die (medical ethics), but sheltering an enemy is dangerous. RESOLUTION: Sadao decides to save Tom, treats him in his house, and reports him to the General (his powerful patient), hoping the General will handle Tom's removal discretely. When the General fails to act, Sadao arranges Tom's secret escape — a rowboat, food, a flashlight — to a nearby uninhabited island, from which Tom signals a submarine and escapes.

Q2MEDIUM· servants-and-humanity

Why do the servants leave Dr. Sadao's house? What does their departure reveal about the story's themes?

▶ Show solution

REASON FOR DEPARTURE: The servants cannot accept having an American enemy soldier in the house. They believe it is wrong — even treasonous — to shelter and nurse the enemy of Japan. They are disturbed by the situation and by their own moral confusion: they respect Sadao and Hana, but they cannot override their national identity and wartime indoctrination. They choose to leave rather than participate. WHAT THEIR DEPARTURE REVEALS: (1) ORDINARINESS OF NATIONAL IDENTITY: The servants represent ordinary Japanese people who could not separate their national identity from their human response. For them, an American soldier was THE ENEMY — not a wounded human being. Their departure shows that Sadao's decision was EXCEPTIONAL, not representative. (2) THE COST OF MORAL CHOICE: Sadao and Hana's decision to save Tom has a real cost — they lose their household staff. Moral choices in wartime are not free; they require sacrifice. (3) THE LIMITS OF AUTHORITY: Even Dr. Sadao's social position (a respected surgeon, the General's personal doctor) cannot compel his servants to act against their national identity. (4) BY CONTRAST — SADAO AND HANA'S EXCEPTIONALISM: The servants' departure makes Sadao and Hana's choice more remarkable. They could have sent Tom away like the servants would have wanted. They didn't. Their American education, their exposure to a wider world, allowed them to see Tom as a human patient, not an enemy. This is the story's central argument: education, exposure, and human empathy can transcend the enmity that nationalism creates.

Q3HARD· long-answer

Is Dr. Sadao a patriot or a traitor? What does the story say about the conflict between national duty and universal humanistic values?

▶ Show solution

THE QUESTION — PATRIOT OR TRAITOR?: Dr. Sadao treats and shelters an American enemy soldier during wartime. By the laws of Japan and the logic of war, this is treason — he harboured and ultimately helped escape a POW. Yet the story never presents him as a villain or even a morally compromised man. Why? THE CASE FOR TRAITOR: Sadao broke Japanese law. He sheltered an enemy. He arranged his escape rather than turning him in. His country is at war; his actions potentially helped the enemy (Tom could report back, engage in further combat). By the strict calculus of wartime nationalism, Sadao betrayed Japan. THE CASE FOR PATRIOT: Sadao reported Tom to the General — he DID attempt to fulfil his national duty. His medical ethics (not personal disloyalty) prevented him from turning Tom in immediately. He saved Tom not from anti-Japanese sentiment but from a deeper commitment: a doctor does not let patients die, regardless of who they are. He is not acting against Japan; he is acting for a principle that transcends Japan (and America). THE DEEPER QUESTION — WHAT DEFINES DUTY?: The story argues that 'duty' has more than one source: national identity is one source; but medical ethics, training, and human empathy are also sources of duty. Sadao's two duties conflict. He does not choose to be a traitor; he chooses WHICH duty takes precedence when they cannot both be honoured. His American training — the years in San Francisco, the teachers who shaped him as a surgeon — gave him a different community of obligation alongside his national one. THE GENERAL'S TACIT APPROVAL: The General knows Sadao sheltered an American. He promises to send assassins, then forgets. The 'forgetting' can be read as a tacit acknowledgment: the General needs Sadao alive, healthy, and practising. A doctor who saves every life — including enemy lives — is exactly the kind of doctor a general needs. The General's pragmatism and Sadao's humanism arrive at the same conclusion by different routes. THE STORY'S ANSWER: Pearl S. Buck does not resolve the patriot/traitor question directly — she leaves it open. She argues, through the story's outcome (Sadao is not punished, Tom escapes, Japan is not measurably harmed), that universal human values and national duty CAN coexist, but the coexistence requires exceptional individuals — the education, exposure, and moral clarity that Dr. Sadao possesses — and a great deal of luck. The story is a plea for the possibility of humanity in inhuman circumstances.

5-minute revision

The whole chapter, distilled. Read this the night before the exam.

•Author: Pearl S. Buck (1892–1973), American; Nobel Prize 1938; 'The Good Earth' (1931); raised in China by missionary parents — NOT Chinese
•Dr. Sadao Hoki: Japanese surgeon, trained in America, personal surgeon to the General; finds American POW Tom washed up on beach
•Dilemma: national duty (hand over the enemy) vs medical ethics (cannot let a patient die); chooses medical ethics
•Hana: Sadao's wife; reluctantly assists; also American-educated; represents the same dual formation as Sadao
•Servants: refuse to serve the American, eventually leave — represent ordinary Japanese who cannot see past national enmity
•General: Sadao's powerful patient; promises assassins, then forgets; his forgetfulness (intentional or not) allows Tom to survive
•Resolution: Sadao arranges Tom's escape — rowboat, food, flashlight; Tom rows to uninhabited island, signals submarine, escapes
•Theme: universal human values (medical ethics, human life) transcend national boundaries; this requires exceptional individuals; war creates impossible conflicts between valid duties

CBSE marks blueprint

Where the marks come from in this chapter — so you can plan your prep.

Typical chapter weightage: 4-10 marks

Question type	Marks each	Typical count	What it tests
Extract-based MCQ	4	1	Comprehension of Sadao's internal conflict, vocabulary in context, or identification of the dilemma's nature
Short Answer	2	1	Sadao's dilemma, servants' departure, General's role, or Tom's escape
Long Answer	6	occasionally	Sadao as patriot vs traitor, theme of humanity transcending national boundaries, or character sketch of Sadao/Hana

Prep strategy

Know Pearl S. Buck's biography facts: American (NOT Chinese), Nobel 1938, 'The Good Earth' (1931 Pulitzer); MCQs regularly present 'Pearl S. Buck was Chinese' as a trap
The General's 'forgetting' is a key ambiguity: was it genuine forgetfulness, or a deliberate choice to look away? Acknowledge the ambiguity in answers — it shows literary sophistication
For the patriot/traitor question: structure as (1) the CASE FOR TRAITOR (what Sadao did that breaks Japanese law), (2) the CASE FOR PATRIOT/HUMANIST (why he did it, his medical ethics, his reporting to the General), (3) the story's resolution (he is not punished) — this three-part structure earns full marks

Where this shows up in the real world

This chapter isn't just an exam topic — it lives in the world around you.

The Medical Neutrality Principle

The Geneva Conventions (1949) codified in international law what Dr. Sadao practised instinctively: medical personnel must treat all wounded, regardless of nationality or side in a conflict. Doctors Without Borders (Médecins Sans Frontières) operates on this principle today — treating patients in conflict zones without regard to political affiliation. Dr. Sadao's decision is the foundational principle of humanitarian medicine.

Exam strategy

Battle-tested tips from teachers and toppers for this chapter.

For the dilemma question: ALWAYS name BOTH horns — (1) Japanese national duty to hand over the enemy and (2) medical ethics that forbid letting a patient die — vague answers that only mention 'conflicting feelings' score half marks
For the General: mention the AMBIGUITY of his forgetting — was it genuine (old man's preoccupied mind) or deliberate (he needed Sadao too much to prosecute him)? Showing awareness of the ambiguity marks a more sophisticated answer

Going beyond the textbook

For olympiad aspirants and curious learners — topics that build on this chapter.

Read Pearl S. Buck's 'The Good Earth' (1931) — the China-based novel that won her the Nobel Prize; her empathy for Chinese peasants in that novel mirrors her empathy for both Sadao and Tom in 'The Enemy' — both are about seeing the full humanity of people across cultural and political divides
Research the Geneva Conventions (1949) specifically the provisions on treatment of POWs (Third Convention) and wounded soldiers (First Convention) — Dr. Sadao's actions are an illustration of these principles before they were formally codified in international law

Where else this chapter is tested

CBSE board isn't the only one — other exams test this chapter too.

CBSE Class 12 Board (English Core)High

CUET (English)Medium

UPSC GS II (International Relations / Human Rights)Medium

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Questions students ask

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The moment Sadao saw Tom was wounded, his medical training took over: 'he might die.' The decision to save Tom's life was almost involuntary — a trained surgeon cannot watch a patient die when he can prevent it, regardless of national identity. This is not a political decision; it is a professional reflex, an ethical imperative. Once Tom was in his house being treated, the decision was already made. Turning him in after saving him would have felt like a betrayal of the act of saving.

The title is ironic. Tom is Japan's 'enemy' — yet he is treated, nursed, and helped to escape by a Japanese doctor. The story strips away the political label 'enemy' and replaces it with something more fundamental: a human being who needs medical care. The title asks us to question what 'enemy' means: is Tom really Sadao's enemy? Is national enmity more real than the human connection between a doctor and his patient?

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