Thanking as they are Coming back from the military with good good news
Yes, Old mayor is the one who says the statement man is the only real enemy we have and Remove Man from the scene, and the root cause of hunger and overwork is abolished forever. The novels reveals about real enemy is that whatever goes upon two legs is an enemy. The answer in this question is yes, it is true that the old mayor say the statement.
The answer is personal and spiritual exploration because romantic literature was meant to make the mind wander into romantic stories of love and romance where one found out more about themselves while falling in love. At least, that is my best guess since it's certainly not supposed to be rational and well reasoned ideas, it's not about religion, and I don't think it's supposed to empasise on society.