Betrayal is the act of breaking the bond of trust.

With close reference to at least 2 short

stories, discuss acts which you consider as forms of betrayal.

To betray, according to the Oxford English Dictionary (2006), is to harm someone or
something by giving information to an enemy or to be disloyal to someone. Betrayal has
ruined many relationships and has never resulted in a happy ending. Two stories in Malaysian
Short Stories have shown various acts of betrayal, those two being Stella Kons A Love of the
Past and Ratnamuni by K.S. Maniam.

A Love of the Past by Stella Kon is an amusing tale of the past meeting the present.
While at home one night, Melinda Siew, a modern-day Singaporean woman, discovers a ghost
living there. Jade Swallow was once a concubine of a wealthy businessman who used to live in a
mansion where Melindas apartment now stands. When they first met, Melinda quickly warmed
up to Jade Swallow because of the striking similarities they share; just as Jade Swallow cheated
on her master with her lover, Melinda is cheating on her protector, Mr. Wong, with her lover,
the studious Jeffrey Chan. Figuring that Jade Swallow would know a lot of Singapore in the past,
she requested that Jade Swallow help Jeffrey with his M.A. thesis. Melinda wanted to leave Mr.
Wong for Jeffrey but Jeffrey has no money and could only apply for a job once he has finished
his studies. Melinda asked Jade Swallow to give Jeffrey some dreams about Singapore as [she]
knew it. In return, Jade Swallow asked for some proper spirit money, paper clothes and
some cosmetics and ornaments. Additionally, she told Melinda that she required Jeffrey to stay
overnight at Melindas flat for her to be able to fulfill her end of the promise. However, Jade
Swallow had some hidden intentions. She used this opportunity to observe Jeffrey and confirm
what Melinda had said about him (Hes certainly handsome, and as you said, hes a wonderful
lover). That was the first sign of some kind of impending danger and Jade Swallow also became
progressively demanding; the dresses Melinda burnt for her were no good and got irritated
when Melinda did not burn her money paper for the week. Upon being questioned, Melinda also
found out that Jade Swallow had made very intimate overtures to Jeffrey in his dream.
Enraged, Melinda confronted Jade Swallow who merely stated that she gets lonely for male
companionship. Melinda decided that Jade Swallow had already given Jeffrey sufficient
material for his thesis and attempted to get rid of Jade Swallow by enlisting the help of an
exorcist. However, Jade Swallow was cunning; she imitated Melinda over the phone to get
Jeffrey to come over. Melinda suspected that something was amiss but brushed it off. Jade
Swallows plan became obvious when Mr. Wong also appeared at Melindas place after getting a
call from Melinda. Jade Swallow, who was imitating Melindas voice over the phone, told Mr.
Wong that she was being blackmailed into going to bed with Jeffrey. Mr. Wong quickly came to
solve the problem- by throwing Jeffrey off Melindas 12
th
floor balcony flat. Jade Swallow had
betrayed Melindas trust to obtain Jeffrey, and Melinda had foolishly fallen for Jade Swallows
trap.

Jade Swallow had not only betrayed Melinda, but also her lordship a long time ago
during her time as a concubine. The man in question was a former business tycoon in Singapore
who once owned a mansion on Koon Sin Hill, where he kept a succession of beautiful
concubines, Jade Swallow being the last and loveliest of the line. However, being a
concubine would mean that one would always have to fight for attention, so it was no surprise
that Jade Swallow sought companionship in a secret lover. Unfortunately, another concubine was
jealous of Jade Swallows lover and betrayed her to the master of the house. He caught them off
guard but while Jade Swallows lover managed to escape, she was flung from an upstairs
window to her death. Jade Swallow was then doomed to haunt the mansion as a ghost, while the
other concubine had her way with Jade Swallows lover. This incident further emphasises how
there are a lot of negative consequences that comes from betrayal.

Other than that, we can also observe a form of betrayal from Melindas affair with
Jeffrey. Melindas protector, Mr. Wong, is the one who pays for her apartment rent but she
feels lonely as he only comes once or twice a week. This leads her to cheat on him with
Jeffrey, whom she considers very handsome, and a splendid lover. However, at the end of the
story, we can observe the disastrous results of this betrayal. After Jade Swallow had made the
fake phone calls to both Jeffrey and Mr. Wong, Mr. Wong caught Jeffrey at Melindas flat and
threw him off the balcony, thinking Jeffrey was blackmailing Melinda to sleep with him.
Jeffreys tragic end is a grim reminder that nothing good can ever come out of betraying
someones trust.

In K.S. Maniams Ratnamuni, Muniandys neighbour, Muthiah, is the source of the
betrayal that can be found in this story. Initially, Muthiah seemed like a decent neighbour;
Muniandy described him as a quiet man reading books all the time. In fact, Muniandy even felt
slightly ashamed because he was illiterate, and there was Muthiah, who was reading for
reading. Muniandy would observe all the experiments Muthiah would do while he collects
recyclables from the office (I see him every time I go to take away the empty boxes, bottles,
spoiled paper from the office). It was certainly hard to predict that such a hardworking and
smart man would be capable of the harm he would bring upon Muniandys family. Muniandy
even mentioned that, We get a real man from him. He wont only take. But must give.
Muniandy assumed that Muthiah was a chivalrous and honourable man as he would ensure that
there is always water in [Muniandys] wifes pail. Since Malini would sometimes give
Muthiah a plate of rice, Muniandy thought that this was Muthiahs way of returning the favour.
Also, it was a practice of the old days for a man to make sure that the women does not do outside
work. Soon enough, Malini got pregnant and gave birth to a son named Ratnam. Muthiah casted
her childs horoscope since Muthiah knew how to cast the horoscope from all his reading.
Muniandy simply thought that Muthiah helped with his sons horoscope because he was a good
man; little did he know of the actual truth. Ratnam was, in fact, Muthiahs biological son.
Muthiah had betrayed Muniandys trust and got intimate with Malini, impregnating her in the
process. Muthiah obviously knew that Ratnam was his son and so he tried to impart some
knowledge to him before he left to be a clerk in the big peoples house. Poor Muniandy trusted
Muthiah so much that he even considered him a part of his family (He has become of our
family). Muniandy failed to see the red flags: Malini was constantly in a state of distress since
the birth of Ratnam, and Ratnams skin was fair, just like Muthiahs. Muthiahs betrayal caused
Muniandys life to go downhill as Malini soon commits suicide, unable to bear the guilt of
giving birth to a son that does not belong to her husband.

This betrayal made Muniandys life increasingly difficult. Soon after his wife took her
own life, Muniandy became a drunkard and neglected to care for Ratnams need. Ratnam grew
up rude and ruthless after not receiving the proper love and care that is so crucial in a childs
upbringing. After ignoring the rumours for years, Muniandy finally wake[s] up from [his] first
blindness and realises that Ratnam was not his son. Malini then appeared in a trance Muniandy
entered when he played the uduku to cure the dhobis illness. She revealed the true cause for her
dying and Muniandy plans to take revenge on her behalf. He confronted Muthiah one day after
Muthiah was done giving out the workers wages, but was interrupted by Ratnam, who was sick
and tired of being mocked by Muthiah for being illiterate. Ratnam attacked Muthiah, but stopped
once Muniandy managed to tie Muthiah to a tree. He left, but Muniandy decided to finish off the
job; Ratnam may have only gave a little of his hand, but Muniandy was so filled with rage that
he killed Muthiah. The betrayal done unto Muniandy was so great that it resulted in the
destruction of Muniandys family, and two deaths.

To conclude, there can be a lot of emotional fallout and baggage that goes with betrayal.
We see this most accurately in Stella Kons A Love of the Past and K.S. Maniams
Ratnamuni. Both stories resulted in tragic deaths and showed how betrayal can completely ruin
ones life. Jade Swallows betrayal ultimately caused Melinda to lose her lover, Jeffrey, and
Muthiahs betrayal not only wreaked havoc in Muniandys life, but ultimately resulted in his
own downfall.