THE ENEMY

Pearl S. Buck
ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Pearl S. Buck, June 26, 1892 - March 6,

1973 Pearl Sydenstricker Buck was an
American author, best know for her
novels about China. Buck was born on
June 26, 1892, in Hillsboro, West Virginia,
but as the daughter of Presbyterian
missionaries she was taken to China in
infancy.
INTRODUCTION
It is the time of World War. An American prisoner of war is washed
ashore in a dying state and is found at the doorstep of a Japanese
doctor. Should he save him as a doctor or hand him over to the Army as
a patriot?The story is set during the Second World War. A Japanese
doctor finds an American POW at his doorstep. He is in a dilemma that
being a doctor, should he save the wounded man or being a Japanese,
should he hand over the enemy to the army.
THEME
• The short tale “The Enemy” by Pearl S. Buck tackles the subject of
prejudice and its damaging impact on interpersonal relationships. The
plot centres on the connection between a Chinese doctor and an
American soldier, who are originally strangers, amid a period of
American war on Japan during the second world war. Despite their
difference in nationality, the Japanese has to remain loyal to his
profession and thus, saves the life of the injured enemy soldier.
However, this does not go well with his fellow men who consider him
not to be loyal towards his country. The narrative shows us how the
Japanese doctor, Sadao balances these two duties and emphasizes on
the importance of humanity over everything else.
 CHARACTERS
• Dr. Sadao Hoki
The doctor is a skilled surgeon and scientist, happily married to Hana, father to two children, and a loyal Japanese
citizen. He does not fight in the war because his medical services are needed for the General, so he is home when
a wounded American prisoner of war shows up on the beach near his home. Though his first inclination is to let
the man die, not wanting to offer aid and comfort to the enemy nor to be punished, his training takes over and he
successfully operates on the young man, saving his life. While he does not waver in his ambivalence toward the
man, constantly wondering why he acts as he does, he remains committed to his profession's expectations and
ethics.
• Hana
Hana is an intelligent, steadfast woman, wife to Sadao, and mother to their two children. She spent time in
America as well, which is where she met Sadao. She is pure-blooded Japanese, which Sadao wanted in a wife. She
has a moral compass like Sadao's, meaning she ultimately knows it is best to treat the enemy even though she
does not have to like him or help him beyond measure.
CHARACTERS
• Yumi
Yumi is the children's nurse. She loves them and seems like a good servant, but she is simple-minded and
stubborn. She is opposed to the American's presence in the home and quits with the other servants,
though she returns once the American is gone.

• Sadao's Father
Though he is not alive during the events of the story, Sadao thinks of his father often. The man was
elegant, exacting, and stern, and he wanted his son to be successful. He also was very nationalistic, only
wanting his son to marry a Japanese woman and requesting for everything in his room to be Japanese in
style and make.

• Gardener
The old gardener, who is also a servant, is very opposed to the American's presence and thinks Sadao and
Hana should have let him die. He quits with the rest of the servants, but he returns once the American is
gone.
CHARACTERS
• Tom
Tom is the "man," the "boy," the "American," and the "prisoner," among other things. He is an escaped
prisoner of war, found on the beach with a gunshot wound worsened by the rocks of the sea that he
tried to navigate in his escape. Sadao finds him "common" in appearance, and he is probably about 17-
20 years old. Upon his waking, he thanks the doctor but expresses casual racism in his remarks, using the
slur "Jap" and evincing a simplistic worldview about the war. He is grateful for Sadao saving his life more
than once, though, and follows the doctor's directions about how to escape.

• The General
The General is an older military official whom Sadao is treating for a serious disease. The General is
weary of the obligations of his job but relishes his power. He needs Sadao to treat him and keep him
alive, so he is not angry when Sadao confesses that he has the American prisoner with him. He promises
to send assassins to take care of the matter but forgets to do so, as he is consumed with his illness. When
Sadao confesses tells him the prisoner escaped, the General agrees to keep his secret because exposing
Sadao would result in the only physician he trusts to keep him alive being punished.
QUICK RECAP
• Dr Sadao Hoki is portrayed in the story as a very virtuous physician.
• He had lived life according to the dire necessities and demands of
traditional Japanese society.
• Because his father wanted Sadao to have excellent formal education,
he went to America as a student of surgery and medicine at the age
of twenty-two.
• He met his wife Hana there at a professor’s house.
• Although he liked her, he waited to confirm her pure Japanese roots
before he fell in love with her
QUICK RECAP
• He knew his father would not have blessed their union otherwise.
• He did not marry Hana right away in America.
• Instead, he introduced Hana to his father first after his return to
Japan, and their marriage was arranged in the traditional Japanese
way.
• Due to Sadao’s skills and extraordinary talent as a doctor, he was not
sent to fight in the World War.
• Also, the General was being treated for some condition that might
need an expert surgeon like Sadao.
QUICK RECAP
• One evening, as Sadao and his wife, Hana, were standing on the
veranda of their house, looking at the ocean, they saw a worn-out
man wash up against the shore.
• As he lay there, the couple went to examine him.
• They saw that he was wounded, and to their astonishment, they
discovered that he was a white man – a U.S. soldier who looked like a
tortured prisoner who had escaped somehow.
• He was an enemy to them.
• Given the political climate of their country, they knew it was illegal to
harbour a white man from America.
QUICK RECAP
• They pondered the situation for a long time, assessing every single
outcome of their actions.
• They knew they could be punished for saving an enemy prisoner, but
their conscience did not allow them to leave a wounded man
unattended.
• They also worried about how the servants might react to this
situation.
• They decided to take this man to their house and inform the servants
that they would hand the prisoner back to the police when he was
healed
QUICK RECAP
• They pondered the situation for a long time, assessing every single
outcome of their actions.
• They knew they could be punished for saving an enemy prisoner, but
their conscience did not allow them to leave a wounded man
unattended.
• They also worried about how the servants might react to this
situation.
• They decided to take this man to their house and inform the servants
that they would hand the prisoner back to the police when he was
healed
QUICK RECAP
• Dr Sadao started his operation and seemed wholly absorbed in his
work.
• He asked Hana to help him with certain things, but Hana had never
seen an operation and felt distressed when she saw the brutal
wounds of the man being operated on by her husband.
• Sadao felt irritated at his inability to console his wife and became
more ruthless in his task.
• When the prisoner woke up after the surgery, Hana served him
herself.
PASSAGE ;
While she was thinking these thoughts, though not really liking the man better now
that he was no longer a child, she kept on washing him until his upper body was
quite clean. But she dared not turn him over. Where was Sadao? Now her anger was
ebbing, and she was anxious again and she rose, wiping her hands on the wrong
towel. Then lest the man be chilled, she put the quilt over him.
“Sadao!”
; she called softly.
He had been about to come in when she called. His hand had been on the door and
now he opened it. She sawt hat he had brought his surgeon’s emergency bag and
that he wore his surgeon’s coat.

Word meaning
Ebbing: decreasing gradually
Rose: stood up
Chilled: freeze due to cold weather
Quilt; is a multi-layered textile, traditionally composed of two or more layers of fabric or fiber.
Explanation
 Hana kept on cleaning the man’s upper body as she had these thoughts. She
did not like the man as he was not a child anymore. She did not have the
courage to turn him over and thought of Sadao. Hr anger was decreasing and
she started becoming restless. She stood up and wiped her hands with the
wrong towel. As she did not want the man to freeze due to the cold weather,
she put the quilt on him.
 Hana called out to Sadao softly.
 He had been on the door when she called him. He opened the door. Hana saw
that Sadao was carrying his surgeon’s emergency bag and was wearing his
surgeon’s coat. He was prepared to operate upon the injured man.
PASSAGE ;
“You have decided to operate!” she cried. “Yes,” he said shortly. He turned his back
to her and unfolded a sterilized towel upon the floor of the tokonoma alcove, and
put his instruments out upon it. “Fetch towels,” he said. She went obediently, but
how anxious now, to the linen shelves and took out the towels. There ought a0lso to
be old pieces of matting so that the blood would not ruin the fine floor covering.
She
; went out to the back veranda where the gardener kept strips of matting with
which to protect delicate shrubs on cold nights and took an armful of them. But
when she went back into the room, she saw this was useless. The blood had already
soaked through the packing in the man’s wound and had ruined the mat under him.

Word meaning
Sterilized: disinfected
Tokonoma alcove: The word ‘toko’ literally means “floor” or “bed”;
‘ma’ means “space” or “room.”
Explanation
 Hana asked Sadao that had he decided to operate the man.
 Sadao replied that he had decided to operate him. He turned his back to Hana
as he did not want her to object to his decision. Sadao started his work. He
opened a sterilized towel on the floor of the tokonoma alcove and placed his
surgical instruments on it.
 Sadao asked Hana to get some towels.
 Hana obeyed Sadao and went out to get the towels. She was curious as Sadao
was operating upon the injured man. She thought that the blood from his
wounds could stain the fine mats which covered the floor of the room. So, she
got some rough mats from the backyard which were used by the gardener to
cover the delicate shrubs from the cold weather.
 By the time Hana reached the room she saw that blood had flowed through the
bandage on the man’s wound and had stained the mat beneath him. Her effort
was futile.
PASSAGE ;
“Oh, the mat!” she cried. “Yes, it is ruined,” Sadao replied, as though he did not
care. “Help me to turn him,” he commanded her. She obeyed him without a word,
and he began to wash the man’s back carefully. “Yumi would not wash him,” she
said. “Did you wash him then?” Sadao asked, not stopping for a moment his swift
concise movements. “Yes,” she said. He did not seem to hear her. But she was used
to; his absorption when he was at work. She wondered for a moment if it mattered
to him what was the body upon which he worked so long as it was for the work he
did so excellently

Word meaning
Concise: short
Explanation
 On seeing the stained mat, Hana cried that the mat had been spoiled. Sadao
agreed that the mat had been ruined in such a manner which indicated that he
was not bothered by it. Sadao ordered Hana to help him turn the man over. She
obeyed him and then Sadao started washing his back.
 Hana told Sadao that Yumi had refused to wash the injured man. Sadao asked
her that did she wash him. He did not stop cleaning him. He made fast small
movements of his hands as he cleaned him carefully. Sadao was engrossed in
work and did not seem to hear Hana. Hana wondered that Sadao was not
bothered who the injured man was. He was only concerned in performing his
work well.
PASSAGE ;
“You will have to give the anesthetic if he needs it,” he said. “I?” she repeated
blankly. “But never have I!” “It is easy enough,” he said impatiently. He was taking
out the packing now, and the blood began to flow more quickly. He peered into the
wound with the bright surgeon’s light fastened on his forehead. “The bullet is still
there,” he said with cool interest. “Now I wonder how deep this rock wound is. If it
is; not too deep it may be that I can get the bullet. But the bleeding is not
superficial. He has lost much blood.”

Word meaning
Anesthetic: a substance that induces insensitivity to pain
Superficial: existing or occurring at or on the surface.
Explanation
 Sadao told Hana that she would have to inject the injured man with a
substance that induces insensitivity to pain. Hana replied that she had never
done that earlier. Sadao said in a haste that it was very easy. Sadao was
removing the packing and now the blood started flowing faster. He looked at
the wound with the help of the bright surgeon’s light fixed on his forehead.
He announced that the bullet was inside the man’s body. He wondered that
how deep the wound made by the rock was. He said that if the wound was not
very deep, then he could get the bullet out. He added that the bleeding was
not from the surface of the skin which meant that the wound was deep and
the man had already lost a lot of blood.
PASSAGE ;
At this moment Hana choked. He looked up and saw her face the colour of sulphur.
“Don’t faint,” he said sharply. He did not put down his exploring instrument. “If I
stop now the man will surely die.” She clapped her hands to her mouth and leaped
up and ran out of the room. Outside in the garden he heard her retching. But he
went on with his work. “It will be better for her to empty her stomach,” he thought.
He
; had forgotten that of course she had never seen an operation. But her distress
and his inability to go to her at once made him impatient and irritable with this man
who lay like dead under his knife.

Word meaning
Leaped: jumped
Retching: vomiting
Explanation
 her face the colour of sulphur: sulphur is a yellow coloured element. The clause
means that her face became pale – yellowish in colour.
 When Hana saw Sadao inspecting the wound, she could not see the sight and
so, she coughed. Sadao looked at her and saw that her face was yellowish in
colour like the colour of sulphur.
 Sadao reacted and ordered Hana not to faint. He did not stop his work and
continued inspecting the wound. Sadao said that if he stopped, the injured man
would certainly die. Hana put both her hands on her mouth, jumped up and ran
out of the room. Sadao heard her vomiting in the garden but he continued with
his work.
 As Sadao needed Hana’s help to operate the man, he thought that it would be
better for her to empty her stomach so that she would not feel uneasy time and
again. He was reminded that Hana was seeing an operation for the first time
and it was not a pleasant thing to see. Sadao was irritated and impatient as his
wife was under stress and he was not able to help her due to the man who lay
under his knife. He was just like a dead person.
PASSAGE ;
“This man.” he thought, “there is no reason under heaven why he should live.”
Unconsciously this thought made him ruthless and he proceeded swiftly. In his
dream the man moaned but Sadao paid no heed except to mutter at him. “Groan,”
he muttered, “groan if you like. I am not doing this for my own pleasure. In fact, I
do not know why I am doing it.” The door opened and there was Hana again.
“Where
; is the anesthetic?” she asked in a clear voice. Sadao motioned with his chin.
“It is as well that you came back,” he said. “This fellow is beginning to stir.” She
had the bottle and some cotton in her hand. “But how shall I do it?” she asked.
“Simply saturate the cotton and hold it near his nostrils,” Sadao replied without
delaying for one moment the intricate detail of his work. “When he breathes badly
move it away a little

Word meaning
Ruthless: harsh, merciless
Moaned: made low, soft sounds due to pain
Paid no heed: did not pay attention to
beginning to stir: gaining consciousness.
Saturate: wet
 Explanation
 Sadao thought that there was no reason for him to make efforts to save the man
because there was no reason for him to live.
 Sadao became merciless and started working fast. The injured man moaned in his
state of unconsciousness but Sadao kept on working without paying attention to the
man’s pain.
 Sadao said to the injured man that he was free to cry in pain. Sadao was not
concerned that the man was in pain. He did not want to operate him and did not
have any reason for doing so.
 Hana entered the room and asked Sadao for the anaesthetic which she had to
administer to the injured man. Her voice was clear which shows that now she was
prepared to help him. Sadao moved his chin to guide her to the bottle of
anaesthetic. He added that it was good that she came as the man had started to
gain consciousness and it was important to sedate him. Hana held the bottle and
some cotton in her hands. She asked what she was supposed to do. He told her to
put some anaesthetic on the cotton and to place the cotton near the man’s nostril.
He did not stop his delicate work and added that she should remove the cotton
when the man started to breathe badly.
PASSAGE ;
She crouched close to the sleeping face of the young American. It was a piteously
thin face, she thought, and the lips were twisted. The man was suffering whether
he knew it or not. Watching him, she wondered if the stories they heard sometimes
of the sufferings of prisoners were true. They came like flickers of rumour, told by
word of mouth and always contradicted. In the newspapers the reports were always
that
; wherever the Japanese armies went the people received them gladly, with
cries of joy at their liberation. But sometimes she remembered such men as General
Takima, who at home beat his wife cruelly, though no one mentioned it now that he
had fought so victorious a battle in Manchuria. If a man like that could be so cruel to
a woman in his power, would he not be cruel to one like this for instance?

Word meaning
Crouched: sit in a squatting position
piteously: causing you to feel sad and sympathetic
by word of mouth: people tell it to each other rather than it being printed in written
form.
Manchuria: Manchuria (Northeast China) is the homeland of the Manchu people. To
the Chinese, the region is simply known as the Northeast.
Explanation
 Hana sat in a squat and went close to the face of the sleeping American man.
She felt sad and sympathetic towards him as she saw his thin face and twisted
lips. She knew that he was suffering. She wondered whether the stories that
she had heard about the torture meted out to the prisoners were true. The
stories were like rumours which spread when people told them to others. On the
other hand, in the printed media like the newspapers, it was mentioned that the
Japanese army was welcomed wherever it went, and people praised it for their
freedom. Hana recalled an officer of the Japanese army, General Takima who
was cruel to his wife and would beat her. No one talked about it anymore as he
had won the war in Manchuria. Hana thought that if a man could be cruel
towards his wife then he could also be cruel to the prisoners in his captivity.
PASSAGE ;
She hoped anxiously that this young man had not been tortured. It was at this
moment that she observed deep red scars on his neck, just under the ear. “Those
scars,” she murmured, lifting her eyes to Sadao. But he did not answer. At this
moment he felt the tip of his instrument strike against something hard, dangerously
near the kidney. All thought left him. He felt only the purest pleasure. He probed
;with his fingers, delicately, familiar with every atom of this human body. His old
American professor of anatomy had seen to that knowledge. “Ignorance of the
human body is the surgeon’s cardinal sin, sirs!” he had thundered at his classes year
after year. “To operate without as complete knowledge of the body as if you had
made it — anything less than that is murder.”

Word meaning
Scars: marks
Probed: searched
Anatomy: the branch of science concerned with the bodily structure of humans,
animals, and other living organisms,
Cardinal: basic, first
Explanation
 Hana hoped that the man had not been tortured by the army. Just then she saw
deep red coloured marks (injury marks) on his neck, under the ear.
 Hana mentioned the scars to Sadao and asked about them. Sadao did not
answer. At that moment, the tip of his instrument hit something hard (the bullet).
It was very close to the kidney. Sadao was not thinking of anything else. He was
happy to have finally found the bullet. He moved his fingers inside the wound.
Sadao was familiar with the tiniest part of the human body. His professor of
anatomy in America had told them that if a surgeon ignored the knowledge of
any part of the body, it was the first misdeed that he had committed. To operate
upon a body without detailed knowledge of it as much as the person who
makes it has would amount to committing murder of that body. Sadao’s
professor would repeat these words in his class often.
PASSAGE ;
“It is not quite at the kidney, my friend,” Sadao murmured. It was his habit to
murmur to the patient when he forgot himself in an operation. “My friend,” he
always called his patients and so now he did, forgetting that this was his enemy.
Then quickly, with the cleanest and most precise of incisions, the bullet was out.
The man quivered but he was still unconscious. Nevertheless he muttered a few
English
; words. “Guts,” he muttered, choking. “They got...my guts...” “Sadao!”
Hana cried sharply. “Hush,” Sadao said. The man sank again into silence so profound
that Sadao took up his wrist, hating the touch of it. Yes, there was still a pulse so
faint, so feeble, but enough, if he wanted the man to live, to give hope.

Word meaning
Precise: accurate
Incisions: surgical cuts
Quivered: shivered, trembled
Muttered: spoke
Guts: informal word for bravery and determination
Profound: very great or intense
Pulse: heartbeat
Feeble: weak
Explanation
 Sadao spoke to the injured man. He said that the bullet had just missed his
kidney. When Sadao would get engrossed in the operation, he would start talking
to the patient. He addressed thet patient as ‘my friend’. He called the injured man
also ‘my friend’. He forgot that this man was not a friend but an enemy.
 Sadao was quick. He made a few surgical cuts on the body and removed the
bullet. The man trembled in pain but remained unconscious. He spoke a few
words in English which were an expression of the pain that he was experiencing.
 The injured man choked and said “guts,” “They got my guts”. He meant that he
was brave and courageous and the Japanese army would have a tough time
while punishing him. Upon hearing him Hana cried out to Sadao. Sadao hushed
her to keep quiet. The man became so quiet that Sadao held his wrist to check
his heartbeat. He was checking if the man was still alive. His pulse was there
although it was very weak. Sadao thought that it was enough for a person who
had a desire to live. There was still hope that the man would survive.
PASSAGE ;
“But certainly I do not want this man to live,” he thought. “No more anesthetic,” he
told Hana. He turned as swiftly as though he had never paused and from his
medicines he chose a small vial and from it filled a hypodermic and thrust it into
the patient’s left arm. Then putting down the needle, he took the man’s wrist
again. The pulse under his fingers fluttered once or twice and then grew stronger.
“This
; man will live in spite of all,” he said to Hana and sighed. The young man
woke, so weak, his blue eyes so terrified when he perceived where he was, that
Hana felt compelled to apologise. She herself served him, for none of the servants
would enter the room.

Word meaning
Vial: a small container, typically cylindrical and made of glass,
used especially for holding liquid medicines.
Hypodermic: needle, syringe, injection
Thrust: pushed
Fluttered: trembled
Compelled: forced
Apologise: feel sorry
Explanation
 Sadao was sure that he did not want the man to live.
 Sadao stopped Hana from administering anaesthetic. He turned quickly and
chose a small bottle from the medicines. He filled a syringe with the medicine
and pushed the vaccine into the man’s left arm. Sadao placed the needle down
and held the man’s wrist. The pulse shivered once or twice and then improved.
 Sadao took a deep breathe as he told Hana that the injured man would live. He
woke up, his blue coloured eyes were full of fright as he realized were he was.
Hana felt sorry for him. She served him food as the servants refused to enter
the room where he was kept.
PASSAGE ;
When she came in the first time, she saw him summon his small strength to be
prepared for some fearful thing. “Don’t be afraid,” she begged him softly.
“How come… you speak English…” he gasped.
“I was a long time in America,” she replied.
She saw that he wanted to reply to that but he could not, and so she knelt and fed
him
; gently from the porcelain spoon. He ate unwillingly, but still he ate.

Word meaning
Summon: to gather
Gasped: to catch one’s breathe due to astonishment
Knelt: sat on her knees
Porcelain: a white vitrified translucent ceramic also called china used for making
utensils, pottery, etc.
Explanation
 When Hana met the injured man for the first time she saw that the man was
gathering strength and he was full of fear.
 Hana said softly to the injured man that he should not be afraid. He was
astonished that she could speak English. Hana replied that she had lived in
America for a long time. The man wanted to speak further but was not able to
speak. Hana fed him gently with a spoon made of porcelain. The man did not
want to eat but still he ate.
PASSAGE ;
“Now you will soon be strong,” she said, not liking him and yet moved to comfort
him.
He did not answer.
When Sadao came in the third day after the operation, he found the young man
sitting up, his face bloodless with the effort.
“Lie
; down,” Sadao cried. “Do you want to die?”
He forced the man down gently and strongly and examined the wound. “You may kill
yourself if you do this sort of thing,” he scolded.
“What are you going to do with me?” the boy muttered.
He looked just now barely seventeen. “Are you going to hand
me over?”

Word meaning
Explanation
 As Hana fed the man, she said that soon he would become strong. She said so
despite the fact that she disliked him. The man did not reply to her.
 Sadao visited the man on the third day after the operation. The young boy was
sitting but his face was pale and weak due to the effort that he made while
sitting. Sadao screamed at him and ordered him to lie down He said that the
man would die if he stressed himself. Sadao forced him down and inspected the
wound that he had operated upon. He scolded the man that he could die if he
tried to exert himself.
 he boy asked Sadao that what would he do with him now.
 It seemed that the boy was hardly seventeen years old. He asked Sadao that
would he hand him over to the Japanese army.
PASSAGE ;
For a moment Sadao did not answer. He finished his examination and then pulled
the silk quilt over the man.
“I do not know myself what I shall do with you,” he said. “I ought of course to give
you to the police. You are a prisoner of war — no, do not tell me anything.” He put
up his hand as he saw the young man was about to speak. “Do not even tell me your
name
; unless I ask it.” They looked at each other for a moment, and then the young
man closed his eyes and turned his face to the wall. “Okay,” he whispered, his
mouth a bitter line.
Outside the door Hana was waiting for Sadao. He saw at once that she was in
trouble.

Word meaning
Explanation
 Sadao did not reply instantly. He completed examining the boy and then put the
silk quilt on him.
 Sadao said that he himself did not know what he should do with the boy. He
added that he was supposed to hand him over to the police. He also disclosed
that he knew that the boy was a prisoner of war. As Sadao saw that the boy
was about to speak, he raised his hand to indicate him not to do so. Sadao
asked him not to speak and not to tell his name also unless he asked him to do
so.
 Sadao and the boy exchanged glances and then the boy closed his eyes and
turned his face towards the wall. He said okay in a low voice as he felt bitter by
Sadao’s words.
 Outside the door Hana was waiting for Sadao. He saw that she was in some
sort of a trouble.
PASSAGE ;
“Sadao, Yumi tells me the servants feel they cannot stay if we hide this man here
any more,” she said. “She tells me that they are saying that you and I were so long
in America that we have forgotten to think of our own country first. They think we
like Americans.” “It is not true,” Sadao said harshly “Americans are our enemies.
But I have been trained not to let a man die if I can help it.” “The servants cannot
understand
; that,” she said anxiously.
“No,” he agreed.
Neither seemed able to say more, and somehow the household dragged on. The
servants grew more watchful. Their courtesy was as careful as ever, but their eyes
were cold upon the pair to whom they were hired.

Word meaning
Explanation
 Hana said to Sadao that Yumi told her that the servants would not stay with
them if the American man lived there any longer. She also said that Sadao and
Hana had been in America for such a long time that they had forgotten their
country’s priority. Yumi and the servants thought that Hana and Sadao liked
Americans.
 Sadao reacted harshly and said that this was not true. He said that Americans
were their enemies. He had been trained in such a way that he could not let a
man die and would help to save him in whichever way he could. That was what
Sadao had done.
 Hana said that the servants could not understand Sadao’s predicament.
 Sadao agreed with this.
 Both of them had nothing more to say. The chores of the house continued but
the servants were vigilant. They were polite but unfriendly towards their
masters.
PASSAGE ;
“It is clear what our master ought to do,” the old gardener said one morning. He
had worked with flowers all his life, and had been a specialist too in moss. For
Sadao’s father he had made one of the finest moss gardens in Japan, sweeping the
bright green carpet constantly so that not a leaf or a pine needle marred the velvet
of its surface. “My old master’s son knows very well what he ought to do,” he now
said,
; pinching a bud from a bush as he spoke. “When the man was so near death
why did he not let him bleed?”
“That young master is so proud of his skill to save life that he saves any life,” the
cook said contemptuously. She split a fowl’s neck skillfully and held the fluttering
bird and let its blood flow into the roots of a wistaria vine. Blood is the best of
fertilisers, and the old gardener would not let her waste a drop of it.

Word meaning
Moss: a very small soft green plant
Pine needles: very thin, sharp leaves that grow on pine trees
Marred: spoiled
Contemptuously: disrespectfully
Wistaria wine: a flowering plant used for decoration
Explanation
 One morning, the old gardener said that it was obvious what their master
should have done. The old gardener had worked with flowers all his life and
specialized in moss. He had been employed by Sadao’s father. The gardener
had made one of the best moss gardens in Japan for Sadao’s father. He would
sweep the bright green coloured carpet of the moss clean so that the sharp
leaves of pine tree could not spoil the soft velvety surface. He plucked a flower
bud from the bush as he said that his master’s son i.e. Sadao knew very well
what he was supposed to do. He added that when the man was almost dead,
he should have left him to bleed to death.
 The cook said disrespectfully that their master was so proud of his skill at
saving lives that he did not bother whose life he was saving. She cut the neck of
a hen skilfully and held the bird as it shivered. She let the blood of the hen flow
into the wisteria plant. The old gardener had instructed her that blood was the
best fertilizer for the plants and he did not allow her to waste a single drop of it.
PASSAGE ;
“It is the children of whom we must think,” Yumi said sadly. “What will be their
fate if their father is condemned as a traitor?”
They did not try to hide what they said from the ears of Hana as she stood arranging
the day’s flowers in the veranda near by, and she knew they spoke on purpose that
she might hear. That they were right she knew too in most of her being. But there
was
; another part of her which she herself could not understand. It was not
sentimental liking of the prisoner. She had come to think of him as a prisoner. She
had not liked him even yesterday when he had said in his impulsive way, “Anyway,
let me tell you that my name is Tom.” She had only bowed her little distant bow.
She saw hurt in his eyes but she did not wish to assuage it. Indeed, he was a great
trouble in this house.

Word meaning
Traitor: a person who betrays his country
Impulsive: sudden, thoughtless
Assuage: decrease, reduce
Explanation
 Yumi was worried about the fate of Sadao and Hana’s children. She wondered
that when they grew up they would be labelled as the children of a traitor. As
Sadao was helping an American, all the people of Japan would consider him to
be an enemy of Japan, a traitor of his country.
 As Hana stood in the verandah arranging the flowers, the servants discussed
the matter in her presence as they wanted her to know their views about the
matter. Hana also felt that the servants were right, but she had some feelings
for the injured man which she could also not analyse. She did not like the
Prisoner neither was she attached towards him. The day before the injured man
told her that his name was Tom. Hana did not like him at that moment also. She
had reacted by bowing her head mildly. She saw that her reaction hurt the
injured man, but she did not want to reduce this hurt that she had caused to him
because the injured man was a great trouble to her. His presence was a threat
to Hana and Sadao.
PASSAGE ;
As for Sadao, every day he examined the wound carefully. The last stitches had been
pulled out this morning, and the young man would, in a fortnight be nearly as well
as ever. Sadao went back to his office and carefully typed a letter to the Chief of
police reporting the whole matter. “On the twenty-first day of February an escaped
prisoner was washed up on the shore in front of my house.” So far he typed and
then
; he opened a secret drawer of his desk and put the unfinished report into it.

Word meaning
Explanation
 Sadao was performing his role perfectly. He would examine the wound every
day. One morning the last stitches were removed from the injured man’s body
and he would be as well as ever in the next 15 days. In the meantime, Sadao
went to his office and wrote a letter to the chief of the police to report the entire
matter to him. Sadao started his report and he wrote that on the 21st of
February an escaped prisoner was washed up on the shore in front of his
house. Sadao had just typed this much of the report. He opened the drawer of
his desk and kept this unfinished report in it.
PASSAGE ;
On the seventh day after that, two things happened. In the morning the servants left together,
their belongings tied in large square cotton kerchiefs. When Hana got up in the morning
nothing was done, the house not cleaned and the food not prepared, and she knew what it
meant. She was dismayed and even terrified, but her pride as a mistress would not allow her
to show it. Instead, she inclined her head gracefully when they appeared before her in the
kitchen, and she paid them off and thanked them for all that they had done for her. They were
crying,
; but she did not cry. The cook and the gardener had served Sadao since he was a little
boy in his father’s house, and Yumi cried because of the children. She was so grieving that
after she had gone she ran back to Hana.
“If the baby misses me too much tonight, send for me. I am going to my own house and you
know where it is.”
“Thank you,” Hana said smiling. But she told herself she would not send for Yumi however the
baby cried.

Word meaning
Kerchief: square piece of cloth
Dismayed: shocked
Mistress: a woman in a position of authority or control
Inclined: bent towards one side
Grieving: in a state of sadness
Explanation
 On the seventh day after that two things happened. The servants of the house left
in the morning. They had tied their belongings in huge pieces of cloth. When Hana
got up in the morning, she saw that the work had not been done – the house was
dirty, and the food had not been cooked. She realized that the servants were up to
something. She was shocked and horrified when she came to know that the
servants were leaving. Hana did not show her feelings to the servants, instead she
remained calm and maintained her grace as the lady of the house. She paid the
servants and thanked them for their services. As the servants had been working
there for many years, they were crying but Hana did not cry. The cook and the
gardener were very old employees. They had been employed by Sadao’s father
and had served Sadao since his childhood. Yumi was crying because she would
miss the children. She was so sad that she ran up to Hana after she had left.
 Yumi said to Hana that if the baby missed her at night she could call her. She
further added that she was going to her own house and Hana knew where her
house was. Hana smiled and thanked her for the offer but to herself she said that
in case the baby cried she would not call for Yumi.
PASSAGE ;
She made the breakfast and Sadao helped with the children. Neither of them spoke
of the servants beyond the fact that they were gone. But after Hana had taken
morning food to the prisoner, she came back to Sadao.
“Why is it we cannot see clearly what we ought to do?” she asked him. “Even the
servants see more clearly than we do. Why are we different from other Japanese?”
Sadao
; did not answer. But a little later he went into the room where the prisoner
was and said brusquely, “Today you may get up on your feet. I want you to stay up
only five minutes at a time. Tomorrow you may try it twice as long. It would be well
that you get back your strength as quickly as possible.”

Word meaning
Briskly: quickly
Explanation
 The next morning Hana prepared the breakfast and Sadao helped her by looking
after the children. Neither of them talked regarding the servants but after Hana
served the morning food to the Prisoner of War she came back to Sadao probably
to talk something.
 Hana was very worried, and she questioned that why they were not very clear
about what they ought to do. She added that even their servants were very clear
as compared to them. She said that why were they behaving differently from other
Japanese people. Hana wanted to say that as Americans were their Enemies they
should not have treated that Prisoner Of War and they should have let him die just
like any other Japanese would have done.
 Sadao did not reply to Hana but after some time he went into the room where the
Prisoner of War was resting and spoke very fast. He said that that day the man
could get up and stand on his feet. Sadao wanted him to stand only for 5 minutes
at a time. Further he added that the next day he could try to stand for double the
time that is 10 minutes. Sadao also said that it would be good for everyone that the
man regained strength as soon as possible. Sadao hinted that they wanted to get
rid of the American as early because he had become a cause of trouble for them.
PASSAGE ;
He saw the flicker of terror on the young face that was still very pale. “Okay,” the
boy murmured. Evidently he was determined to say more. “I feel I ought to thank
you, Doctor, for having saved my life.”
“Don’t thank me too early,” Sadao said coldly. He saw the flicker of terror again in
the boy’s eyes — terror as unmistakable as an animal’s. The scars on his neck were
crimson
; for a moment. Those scars! What were they? Sadao did not ask.

Word meaning
Crimson: bright red colour
Explanation
 Sadao saw that his words brought a hint of terror and scare on the face of the
young boy. His face was still very pale and colourless because he was very
weak. The boy spoke in a low voice and said “Okay”. It appeared that he
wanted to speak something more but he just said that he wanted to thank
Sadao for saving his life.
 Sadao was very expressionless when he said that the boy did not need to thank
him yet. As he spoke this he saw that the hint of scare again appeared in the
boy’s eyes. The writer compares the boy’s terrorized eyes to that of a scared
animal. The injury marks on the neck of the boy turned the bright red in colour
for a while. Sadao thought that what has caused those injury marks, but he did
not ask the boy about them.
PASSAGE ;
In the afternoon the second thing happened. Hana, working hard on unaccustomed
labour, saw a messenger come to the door in official uniform. Her hands went weak
and she could not draw her breath. The servants must have told already. She ran to
Sadao, gasping, unable to utter a word. But by then the messenger had simply
followed her through the garden and there he stood. She pointed at him helplessly.
Sadao
; looked up from his book. He was in his office, the other partition of which
was thrown open to the garden for the southern sunshine.

Word meaning
Unaccustomed labour: not used to perform hard work
Gasping: struggling to breathe, unable to speak
Explanation
 That day the second incident happened in the afternoon. Hana was busy with
the household work as the servants had left. All of a sudden, she had to
perform all the work which she was not used to. She was very tired. She saw
that a messenger wearing official uniform had come to the house. As she saw
him her hands went week and she was unable to breathe. This was because
she felt that the servants must have told the authorities that they were
sheltering an enemy. Hana ran up to Sadao and she was struggling to breathe.
She was unable to speak. By that time the Messenger also followed her through
the garden and he stood in front of Sadao. Hana was helpless, and she pointed
her finger towards the Messenger.
 Sadao was reading a book and when he saw Hana, he looked up. He was
sitting in his office which had a partition in it. The part of the office beyond the
partition opened into the garden and was full of shady sunshine.
PASSAGE ;
“What is it?” he asked the messenger and then he rose, seeing the man’s uniform.

“You are to come to the palace,” the man said. “The old General is in pain again.”
“Oh,” Hana breathed, “is that all?”
“All?” the messenger exclaimed.
“Is
; it not enough?”
“Indeed it is,” she replied. “I am very sorry.”
When Sadao came to say goodbye, she was in the kitchen, but doing nothing. The
children were asleep and she sat merely resting for a moment, more exhausted from
her fright than from work.

Word meaning
Explanation
 Sadao asked the messenger the matter due to which he had visited them.
When he saw that the Messenger was wearing a uniform he stood up as a mark
of respect.
 The Messenger said that Sadao was supposed to accompany him to the palace.
He added that the old general was suffering in pain and Sadao was supposed
to visit him and treat him as a doctor.
 Upon hearing this Hannah was relieved and she said, “oh”. With this, she took
a deep breath and asked that was that all for which the Messenger had come.
The messenger reacted and said, “All?” he could not understand that what
else could it be for which he was supposed to visit the house. He asked that
was that not enough, did they want any other reason for him to visit them.
Hana was sorry for her reaction and said that the reason was enough for the
messenger to visit them. She did not need any other reason for him to visit
them.
Explanation
 As Sadao had to accompany the Messenger, he went to Hana to say goodbye.
Hana was in the kitchen but she was not doing anything. The children had gone
to sleep, and Hana was taking rest. She was more tired due to the scare on
seeing the messenger than she was from doing the household work.