"'You understand,' says Jeremiah Donovan, 'it's not so much our doing. It's our duty, so to speak.' Belcher's head is raised like a real blind man's, so that you can only see his nose and chin in the lamp-light. 'I never could make out what duty was myself,' he said, 'but I think you're all good lads, if that's what you mean." (O'Conner, pg. 299)
This sentence effectively summarizes the entire dilemma in the story Guests of a Nation, which takes place during the Irish war for independence. These sentences, which were spoken right before the execution of Belcher, verbalizes the theme developed throughout the story: The right thing to do isn't always ethical. The Irishmen Bonaparte and Noble are assigned to harbor the 2 English hostages, Belcher and Awkins, but are led to believe that the Englishmen are just prisoners. The 4 become close friends over time, so when they later find out that the 2 Englishmen are to be executed, we see their line of duty conflict with their own personal feelings.
Donovan, a third Irishman who isn't even nearly as close to the Englishmen as Bonaparte and Noble, said during the execution, "it's not so much our doing. It's our duty, so to speak'". Which shows that the Irish have no ill wishes towards the English. By saying "It's not so much our doing", he's deflecting the responsibility of the execution away from him and his compatriots, and instead towards the nature of war.
In response to Donovan, Belcher says, "I never could make out what duty was myself... but I think you're all good lads, if that's what you mean".This quote alludes to the idea that often people don't even truly understand their 'Duty', only that they are supposed to carry out a said task. Often it wars, when armies lose their morale to fight, it's because they no longer see the purpose of fighting. Yet they still do, though not as effectively, just because its their duty to fight for the country.
This story hinges on the idea that what you are supposed to do is not always what you personally feel is right. Once the story adequately develops the friendship between the English hostages and their Irish captives, they are forced into a situation where they have to kill the hostages. This is where the quote takes place and rings the strongest. Of course the Irishmen don't want to kill their new friends, but as stated, it is still their duty to kill them, even if its against their own moral compasses Throughout the scene Noble is trying to get it over with as quick as possible since it's hurting him so much, and Bonaparte cant bring himself to shoot the Englishmen, leaving Donovan the one to kill them. Belcher's quote even shows that he understands the nature of the execution. He may not understand what duty itself is, as quoted, but he understands that his execution is the duty of his friends, and not out of ill will. He thinks it well, referring to them as "Good lads". Awkins is the complete opposite to Belcher, going hysterical before dying.
These situations often do erupt in wartime, as the quote goes "All is fair in love and war", and indeed this story takes place during a war. The rationality of human gets thrown out the window, as the need to win the war (or love in other cases) surpasses all ethics. By interpreting our quote in this context, we can see how the wartime rules override any personal feelings between the 2 opposing sides, and acts against what people might consider right under normal circumstances.
