Thirteen Reasons Why Betrayal
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Betrayal
- Chapter 3
<em>Betrayal. It's one of the worst feelings. </em>(3.63)
Hannah announces this theme early in the novel when she describes how Justin Foley used her first kiss to start the rumor that turned her life into a nightmare.
- Hannah Baker
<em>A rumor based on a kiss ruined a memory that I hoped would be special. A rumor based on a kiss started a reputation that people believed in and reacted to. </em>(3.224)
Hannah takes Justin's betrayal so seriously because it affects her life in real ways. Guys think they can touch her without permission, and girls think she's stealing their boyfriends. This betrayal contributes a great deal to her isolation.
- Chapter 7
- Hannah Baker
It turns out you were just grooming me to be a total mark under People Who Think Courtney Crimson Is a Really Neat Girl. Another guaranteed vote for Most Liked in the senior yearbook. (7.29)
Talk about bitter. Hannah could live with the fact that Courtney doesn't genuinely want to be her friend. She could even live with Courtney using her for a ride to a party and then ditching her. The real betrayal is that Courtney spreads a rumor that Hannah has erotic toys in her bedroom drawer. Once again, it's all about the rumors.
- Chapter 9
- Hannah Baker
<em>No one insisted on knowing those topics. But for some reason, they refused to have a discussion on suicide without specifics. </em>(9.225)
Hannah feels betrayed by her classmates when they ridicule the anonymous note she leaves about feeling suicidal. In "Why Should I Care?" we suggest that this book is effective in doing what wasn't done in Hannah's class, starting a much-needed conversation about suicide and how to prevent it.
<em>It might not seem like a big deal to you, Zach. But now, I hope you understand. I needed those notes. I needed any hope those notes might have offered. </em>(9.155)
Zach steals Hannah's notes in her Peer Communications class because he feels like Hannah has snubbed him. At least, that's what she thinks his motivation was. Even though Zach and Hannah aren't close, she trusts him enough to feel betrayed when she catches him acting so cruelly.
- Chapter 10
- Hannah Baker
<em>It was never a lost poem, Ryan. And you never found it, so it did not belong in your collection. </em>(10.153)
Take that, Ryan. Ryan Shaver betrays Hannah by stealing a very private poem and publishing it in the school paper, presenting it as something he found lying around. This betrayal hurts badly because Hannah has to listen to the whole school analyze and make fun of her poem. She trusted Ryan and thought he was a potential friend, somebody who understood what she was going through – boy was she mistaken.
- Chapter 12
- Hannah Baker
<em>That girl had two chances. And both of us let her down.</em> (12.88)
Hannah is just as guilty of betrayal as anyone else, even in the most serious situations (like Bryce's alleged rape of Jessica).
- Chapter 14
That's why you did it. You wanted your world to collapse around you. You wanted everything to get as dark as possible. And Bryce, you knew, could help you do that. (14.84)
Hannah betrays herself by having sex with Bryce. Hannah knows it and Clay knows it.
- Chapter 15
- Hannah Baker
<em>He's letting me go. </em>(15.204)
Mr. Porter betrays Hannah by not stopping her from leaving the school after she comes to him for help. You can read more about that in his "Character Analysis."
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