When We Had Wings

“But as they parted ways, she felt the recurrent burden that never failed to accompany such compliments. For when it came to the devotion and selflessness of her job, in all truth, she remained an imposter.”

Lita’s guilt over the assumption that she has the qualities traditionally associated with nurses mirrors the guilt she feels over her argument with her mother. In addition, Lita’s sense of herself as an imposter represents the extent to which nursing feels like an obligation. It foreshadows her development as a character, in which she comes to realize what she loves about caring for others.

“She’d taken her wedding ring off before leaving Texas, but the truth was there for all the world to see: Lieutenant Penny Franklin had once been married but no longer was. And of the assumptions that always came with that realization.”

Here, Penny refers to the “ghost tan line” on her finger that indicates the absence of her wedding ring. Metaphorically, this represents her feelings of grief over Sam’s death that are invisible to others but remain with her. Socially, it connects to gender expectations, the way people perceive her, and the assumptions they make that she’s divorced, which was still taboo at that time.

“While they waited in the muck for bombs to fall, an unexpected and bizarre calmness began to envelop Eleanor, even as the mud seeped into the bleached-white fabric of her uniform. She could see in her mind’s eye her parents in the dairy barn in the tawny light of daybreak, the barn cats following them from stall to stall as roosters outside crowed to welcome the day.”

The visual imagery of mud staining Eleanor’s clean uniform metaphorically highlights the destructive force of war to undo the orderliness of her daily life, and her lapse into memory introduces a primary way she’ll cope with this. Throughout the war, vivid memories of the most mundane aspects of home comfort Eleanor and enable her to mentally escape the misery of her circumstances.

“For five months she’d worked in paradise, a place so pretty it might as well have been the shine on a soap bubble. Then the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor and all hell had—literally—broken loose.”

The metaphor of the soap bubble conveys not only Manila’s beauty but also the extent to which the belief that peace could last there is an illusion as fleeting as a soap bubble. In addition, it symbolizes the fragility of life’s daily routines during times of war.

“White crosses. A sea of them. Dozens upon dozens, row upon jagged row, the markers of death stretched out beneath the morning sun.”

Until now, the casualties in the Pacific were an abstract concept; Lita simply patched up patients without dwelling on how many might die. As they’re meant to, however, the rows of crosses show the scale of loss, bringing it home for Lita.

“The expectations were drilled into her since nursing school: She was to raise spirits to aid in mending. No looking glum regardless of diagnosis; no look of shock or revulsion at any wound. Moreover, she was to maintain a gay and ladylike composure, hair and face primped—complete with rouge, powder, and lipstick—even, rather ridiculously, here in the jungle.”

Symbolically, Lita’s sense of wearing a cheerful mask deepens her impression of herself as an impostor. Thematically, the rules and regulations of nursing emphasize The Untold Roles of Women in History, highlighting the absurdity of the gender expectations placed on women and the disregard for their important battlefield roles.

“Rituals were important in this place, she’d learned. Do certain things in a certain order, and it gave you a sense of normalcy.”

Penny’s adherence to routine thematically demonstrates The Impact of Extraordinary Circumstances on Ordinary Lives and illustrates the efforts she makes to adapt and take control. This is especially difficult for her in Malinta Tunnel, where the basic rhythms of life are so disrupted that the prisoners rarely know whether it’s day or night.

“We don’t know what they will do, but we know what we will do, don’t we? We will honor our country, our oath to the Navy, and our pledge to minister to the sick and hurting.”

Laura Cobb’s words to the panicked nurses comfort Eleanor by grounding her in a sense of duty and purpose. In acknowledging that they have no control over what Japanese forces might do to the women, she conveys their courage and honor while also implying that by controlling their reactions, they maintain a semblance of power.

“Given how little they knew of each other, some might find it odd that throughout her delirium he’d paid her regular visits, even chatting at her bedside.

Rather, Lita found it comforting to know that while teetering on the verge of death she hadn’t been alone.”

Lita’s response to Lon’s dedication and care during her bout with malaria shows the power of personal connection, revealing how in the surreal and extraordinary circumstances of war, such simple kindnesses instill hope. In addition, Lon’s decision to stay by her side characterizes him as determined and loyal.

“‘Women have no place in war,’ the translator said. ‘It is a man’s domain.’

Maude gave a tight-lipped smile. ‘And yet it comes for us regardless.’”

The Japanese soldiers’ shock at finding the nurses on Corregidor not only conveys cultural differences in attitudes toward gender roles but also echoes the broader presentations of war in history and popular culture. Maude’s dry and dignified response indicates her stoicism and a sense of inevitability regarding their circumstances.

“The thought that a Japanese commandant could so cavalierly encourage the deaths of dozens of sick people, as if they were little more than chattel, was chilling. What other terrible things would the enemy find easy to do?”

The suggestion that surgeons should euthanize the sick and injured alludes to other such historic instances among the Axis powers during World War II. Eleanor’s question functions as rhetorical and foreshadows her discovery of the cruelties that camp commandants are capable of.

“The idea of signing an oath that sided with their enemies, the merciless killers who’d purposely targeted even a hospital marked with a red cross, sickened her. What would it say about her, about all of them, to be so easily bribed to gain personal freedom? As if all the deaths and starvation, the destruction of their homeland, meant nothing.”

Lita’s ethical debate thematically conveys The Nature of Loyalty, Grief, and Honor. This is a pivotal moment in the way she regards her relationship to her homeland and her understanding of what motivates Reyna. She and Reyna realize that rather than betraying their homeland, they can use the freedom they gain by signing the oath to help restore it.

“His eyes made a lazy trip up and down her body. ‘It’s inevitable. You have no power here.’

Her response, when it came, was filled with every drop of disdain she could muster. ‘I would rather have no power than no honor.’”

Penny’s confrontation with Akibo explicitly characterizes them both. He believes he can use his power to force her into submission, and the way he appraises her shows that he thinks of her as an object to possess; despite his assertion that it’s “inevitable,” however, Penny recognizes that her honor is the only power she has left.

“You tried to make an ordinary routine out of bizarre and ever-changing details. […] Some days you were safe, some days you were not. Some days you rifled through your footlocker at the end of a long day at the hospital and you’d see a party dress you bought on a joy-filled day in Manila and you’d think, I’ll wear that again someday. Some days you’d see that dress and think, I should let it be cut up for bandages.”

Eleanor’s reflection represents the internal struggles the nurses face as they vacillate between hope and despair, never knowing what the next day will bring. Her efforts to hold onto some normalcy in such circumstances thematically demonstrates not only The Impact of Extraordinary Circumstances on Ordinary Lives but also the resilience and determination with which the nurses faced their situations.

“From the despair in her eyes, Lita sensed there had been others; that already she had tried and failed to save the lives of children under her care; that one more loss, on this day, might break her. […] In so many ways, the burden of the war extended far beyond the front lines, forging battles few would ever see.”

As Sister Cecilia implores Lita to come treat a sick child at the convent, the novel emphasizes other untold stories of war and conveys that the number of casualties lost in battles is only a fraction of the lives lost or changed. Sister Cecilia and Father Domingo are archetypes of the civilians who helped protect people and keep society going throughout the occupation. Though Lita doesn’t know it, this is a pivotal moment in her life, showing that she does have the selfless instincts to care for others and resulting in her decision to stay in the Philippines after the war.

“On the street just below were silhouettes of two armed guards with white armbands that shone in the moonlight. Memories of the military police in the square, and in countless nightmares since, flared through her mind. In a flash she saw herself kneeling on that platform. A sword raised above her. A crowd watching the swing of the blade.”

Lita struggles with the imagery of her recurring memory of Dr. Alvarez’s execution and worries that she could easily be next. The fact that she keeps smuggling for the Resistance even though she’s haunted by this trauma emphasizes her courage.

“Hope deferred made the heart sick, and every day, with those incessant sirens, they hoped it would be their day for liberation.”

Penny’s thoughts convey the paradox of hope in impossible circumstances and the irony that the closer US forces get to Manila, the more the nurses fear they won’t be liberated in time.

“The world is filled with strange mercies. Little miracles that save us when we least expect them.”

As Japanese soldiers are about to discover the hidden radio, Newt’s vomiting of cold cream and grass—which she ate only because they starved her—force them to retreat. Like Eleanor’s later realization that the prisoners at Los Banos were rescued mere hours before they were to be executed, this scene connects with deeper questions about fate and what Penny calls “providence.” In addition, the scene poses difficult questions about the “strange mercies” that allow some to survive while others don’t.

“The tide was turning, but still she knew that a boat could be capsized in such waters. […] The 942 days in this place had taught her that longing for salvation would only lead to despair.”

This metaphor emphasizes the changeability of the war and the fragility of the prisoners’ circumstances. Meanwhile, Penny’s noting the exact number of days she has been at Santo Tomas is a reminder of the full context of what the nurses have endured.

“Lita knew firsthand the burden of carrying guilt for an act that couldn’t be changed, the uselessness of it all. She realized then how easily her mother would have forgiven her if given the chance.”

Reyna’s confession that the Kempeitai’s torture broke her and she gave them Lita’s name makes Lita realize she would have done the same. She easily forgives Reyna and in doing so finally gains the perspective to forgive herself.

“You are brave. Every day you walk into that hospital to do what you do with practically nothing, you show how brave you are. Those women were brave for ten minutes. You are brave every minute of every day. Only someone with courage could go into that hospital and care for people the way you do under the circumstances we are in. […] You nurses are like angels from heaven to all of us.”

David’s monologue thematically emphasizes The Untold Roles of Women in History and highlights his admiration for Eleanor. By calling the nurses “angels,” he overtly alludes to the real-life inspiration for the novel (the women known as the Angels of Bataan) as well as the concept that provides the novel’s title.

“She’d seen in this war the very worst one human could do to another. But she’d also seen the very best. Perhaps only the people who see the very worst get to see the very best.”

Eleanor struggles to reconcile the conflicting sides of humanity she witnessed in the aftermath of David’s death, believing she must come to terms with her own inevitable end. However, the juxtaposition of the worst and the best emphasizes how his enduring optimism affected her and a perspective of gratitude for her life.

“Sinking back against the wall, she held the words close to her chest. And through the last of the morning quiet, she watched the sun continue to rise, delivering the promise of a fresh day.”

Saying goodbye to Lon is painful for Lita but necessary. She’ll keep the note he left her close to her heart and know that the sunrise symbolizes the possibilities her future in Manila holds.