The Enemy

Buck opens the story by introducing the setting. The remote nature of Sadao’s home on the Japanese coast plays an essential role in the plot of “The Enemy.” The sea becomes a central symbol in the narrative, as the medium that washes up a moral dilemma for the main characters, in the form of Tom, eventually carries him away again.

Significantly, the narrative begins with flashbacks before entering the present-day plot. Sadao’s memories of his childhood and meeting his wife Hana in America help establish the Asian protagonists as fully rounded characters—one of the notable elements of Buck’s story. The details of Sadao’s childhood give Western readers insight into the influences that have shaped him, thereby eliciting empathy.

In these early flashbacks, the theme of Oaths and Duty is introduced as Sadao is shown to have grown up deeply loyal to his father’s values. Sadao’s father embodied Japanese tradition and was staunchly loyal to his cultural customs, even refusing to sleep in a bed or sit on a chair in his own home. As a father in Japanese society, he was greatly concerned with honor and his son’s reputation. Consequently, when Sadao met Hana in America, he checked that she was Japanese before allowing himself to fall in love with her, as “[h]is father would never have received her unless she had been pure in race” (41). This statement highlights Sadao’s father’s racial bias and also indicates the prejudice inherent to Japanese culture. At the same time, Buck establishes Sadao as a culturally conflicted character. Although instilled with patriotic loyalty by his father, his medical training in the US means that he is familiar with Americans and Western culture, as is his wife. These dual influences become apparent when forced to deal with a wounded American prisoner of war. While Sadao and Hana remind themselves that Tom is “the enemy,” they cannot completely dehumanize him, unlike the more traditional Japanese characters represented by the servants.

Sadao’s internal conflict in the narrative develops two of Buck’s central themes: Learned Prejudice Versus Innate Empathy and Patriotic Loyalty and Honor. After discovering the wounded American, both Sadao and Hana express notions of Japanese superiority and antagonism to Western society. Adhering to the patriotic line, they comment on the stranger’s repugnant appearance. Hana has a physical aversion to touching him, while Sadao claims, “I care nothing for him. He is my enemy” (43). Nevertheless, the couple’s decisions frequently contradict their avowed ideologies. Sadao suggests returning the man to the sea and allowing him to drown, but he is unable to take this action. Instead, he and his wife take Tom into their home and care. Similarly, after Yumi refuses to bathe the American, Hana overcomes her repulsion, asking herself, “Is this anything but a man? And a wounded, helpless man!” (46). Thus, innate empathy conflicts with learned prejudice throughout the narrative.

Sadao’s assertion that he “could turn [the American] over to the police without difficulty” if the man were not wounded exemplifies a further conflict between his duty as a Japanese citizen and his duty as a doctor (43). His Hippocratic oath to do no harm means that he feels duty-bound to attempt to save his life. In the description of the surgery he performs on Tom, Sadao’s ethics as a doctor take over as he forgets all prejudice and focuses on the task he was trained to do. His habit of calling patients “[his] friend” ironically emerges during the procedure as he “forget[s] that this [i]s his enemy” (49).

In Sadao’s interactions with Tom after the successful surgery, Sadao attempts to revert to humanizing the American. He dismisses Tom’s gratitude and even tells him not to tell him his name. Tom also unconsciously reveals his own prejudice and racial stereotyping of Japanese people. While thanking Sadao for saving his life, he asserts that “if all the Japs were like [him], there wouldn’t have been a war” (55). The use of a derogatory term to refer to Japanese people and the casual way he uses the word indicates that the prejudice of the American people was just as prominent as that of the Japanese. Both men were taught to view each other as enemies, and the events that have brought them together challenge those beliefs.

Sadao’s decision to care for Tom until he heals creates narrative suspense. Both Sadao and Hana know the dangerous implications of this decision. The couple lives in fear of discovery and arrest, emphasizing the potential price of prioritizing human empathy over prejudice and patriotism. The hostile response of the servants adds to the atmosphere of jeopardy as Sadao and Hana fear that they will report them to the authorities. Sadao and Hana experience a constant fear of the notoriously severe discipline of the Japanese police and military. The tension of the narrative reaches its climax when Sadao decides to aid Tom’s escape. The act of giving Tom a flashlight symbolizes Sadao’s decision to go out of his way to help his “enemy.”

In the falling action, Sadao is shown to question his decisions. Once he knows that Tom is safe and no longer has to confront the American’s shared humanity, the protagonist reverts to ingrained cultural prejudices. The revelation that he experienced racial discrimination in America highlights that cultural prejudice is not just a Japanese phenomenon. Sadao’s reflections are a final reminder of the wider social and political context in which the story is set; the tension and conflict between America and Japan at this time set the tone for the story.