84 pages • 2 hours read
Ruta SepetysI Must Betray You
Fiction | Novel | YA | Published in 2022A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more. For select classroom titles, we also provide Teaching Guides with discussion and quiz questions to prompt student engagement.
Symbols & Motifs
Ceauşescu’s Portrait
The portrait is a symbol of Romania’s surveillance system. The displaying of the dictator’s portrait throughout Romanian is evidence of his desire to be worshipped by citizens as if he were a deity. The portrait is ubiquitous, appearing throughout all areas of the city, including numerous rooms in Cristian’s school. Citizens are constantly made to acknowledge Ceauşescu’s leadership and are constantly reminded of their lack of freedom. The portrait, too, is a fitting representation of the regime’s constant surveillance: Cristian notes the way the portrait appears to be looking back at the viewer. Indeed, citizens are constantly being literally watched and cannot escape the metaphorical eye of Ceauşescu.
Cristian’s anger at the portrait of Ceauşescu and his wife that adorns the room at the Jilava prison is palpable. His rash decision to tear them from the wall, rather than to gaze at them in honor, is evidence of his anger over his oppression and his dedication to the revolution. Being forced to kiss the portrait is the Securitate’s attempt to reinforce the dictator’s authority and undermine Cristian’s resistance. Cristian complies, but unwillingly.
Cristian’s Notebook
The notebook is a symbol of the power of words and the importance of free expression—a right desperately sought after by Cristian and his peers. Cristian gets the idea for his notebook after secretly reading parts of Dan’s school notebook. Dan uses his to plan his college admission essay, listing items about Romanian culture. In his, Cristian writes poems about his desire for freedom, bits of philosophy passed on to him by Bunu, and his fears and frustrations—anything and everything that he cannot say out loud. Through the notebook entries, readers are privy to Cristian’s innermost thoughts. The existence of the notebook is known by no one as Cristian never removes it from his closet “bedroom.” He stresses that the repercussions of the notebook’s discovery would be dire, as it is illegal to voice anti-government sentiments. It symbolizes how Romanians must censor and silence themselves, pretending to support the oppressive regime but secretly opposing it.
The notebook proves more than a means for Cristian to release his frustrations when he decides to share it with Mr. Van Dorn. Cristian’s hope that Mr. Van Dorn will make the evidence of Romanian citizens’ sufferings public throughout the West is fraught with risk. Indeed, as Cristian transports the notebook from its hiding place to school and then to the Van Dorns’ home, he refers to it as a “bomb.” He takes great care to wrap it carefully to catch Mr. Van Dorn’s attention and to ensure it cannot be traced back to him. Ultimately, not only does Mr. Van Dorn share the notebook as Cristian hoped, but its contents are later broadcast on the radio upon the ousting of the Ceauşescus.
American Contraband
Contraband is a symbol of freedom and the West. Cristian’s family and others have limited resources, so otherwise ordinary items take on important value, such as the Kent cigarettes. These become a form of currency for necessities such as medical care and are also used as bribes to obtain favors. Such American goods are banned, making possession of them dangerous. This is evident in the can of Coca-Cola that Liliana shares with Cristian. This ordinary item takes on extraordinary significance in communist Romania. It is exotic and otherworldly to the two teenagers, prompting them to dream of the free world which is distant from their reality. In the same way, the magazines Cristian reads in the American Library provide him a window into the free world but also put him at risk. Items like the article on Bruce Springsteen take on great value: the information it provides is valuable enough to serve as a gift for Liliana while having it in his possession proves increasingly dangerous for Cristian. The Amnesty International report is the most dangerous contraband of all: its contents are highly important to Cristian, providing him with information about the world’s knowledge of the suffering in Romania. Yet were Cristian discovered with the document in his possession, his defiance of the government would be proven. Such items would be innocuous in a free nation, but the danger they carry under Romania’s oppressive regime cannot be overstated.
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By Ruta Sepetys
