The Enemy
by Pearl S. Buck
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Set in Japan during the Second World War, the story sets human fellow-feeling against national loyalty. Dr Sadao Hoki, a distinguished Japanese surgeon trained in America, finds a wounded, unconscious American prisoner of war washed ashore near his home. Torn between his duty as a patriot to hand over the enemy and his duty as a doctor to save a life, Sadao and his wife Hana bring the man in and Sadao operates on and saves him, despite the servants' disapproval, who then leave. Sadao reports the matter to the General in a letter but does not send it. The old General, who needs Sadao for an operation, promises to have the American killed secretly by his private assassins, but they never come. Unable to keep the man hidden any longer, Sadao helps him escape: he gives the American, Tom, his own boat, food, clothes and a flashlight, and instructs him to row to a nearby island and signal if he needs food. The American escapes safely. The story shows how a doctor's humanity and professional ethics rise above racial hatred and wartime enmity.
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The story explores the conflict between a person's professional and humanitarian duty and their loyalty to their country, ultimately affirming that compassion transcends the hatred of war.
The wounded enemy
Dr Sadao Hoki, a renowned Japanese surgeon, and his wife Hana discover a wounded, half-drowned American prisoner of war on the beach near their house. His cap reads 'U.S. Navy'. Though he is their enemy, and sheltering him could mean arrest, Sadao's training will not let a man die, and the couple carry him inside.
The operation
Sadao operates on the man to remove a bullet near his kidney, with a reluctant Hana giving the anaesthetic. The servants are terrified and disapproving, believing the master is betraying his country by saving an enemy. After a few days, all the servants leave the household in protest.
Duty versus conscience
Sadao writes a report to the police about the escaped prisoner but keeps it in a secret drawer, unable to send it. Summoned to treat the ailing old General, Sadao confesses his dilemma. The General, who needs Sadao alive for his own operation, offers to send private assassins to kill the American quietly, and Sadao agrees to leave his window open for them.
The escape
The assassins never come, for the General, absorbed in his illness, forgets his promise. Realising he cannot keep the American hidden, Sadao helps him escape: he gives Tom his own boat, food, water, clothes and a flashlight, telling him to row to a nearby island and to flash the light at night if he runs out of food. The American escapes safely, and Sadao, though puzzled by his own act, is freed of the burden, his humanity having triumphed over enmity.