Betrayal Theme Analysis

While it is certainly a lesser theme within The Spanish Tragedy, betrayal is nevertheless an important part of Thomas Kyd’s tragic play. Betrayal between the characters is integral in setting the plot in motion, and it remains a crucial part of the play until the dramatic end, when five of the play’s limited cast of characters are killed, each of them a victim of betrayal in a different way. There is also a subplot within The Spanish Tragedy, which takes place in Portugal after the war with Spain (whereas the main plot takes place in Spain). The Portuguese subplot involves the false accusation of Alexandro, a nobleman, for the murder of Balthazar, the son of the Viceroy of Portugal. Balthazar isn’t actually dead—he was captured during the war and is being held prisoner by the Spanish—but Alexandro is betrayed by Villuppo, a fellow nobleman, for a chance at glory and recognition. Indeed, betrayal permeates most of The Spanish Tragedy, and by highlighting it in a variety of contexts, Kyd effectively argues that betrayal is everywhere. 

Betrayal is rampant in the main plot of The Spanish Tragedy, which establishes betrayal as a common occurrence. After the war with Portugal, when Horatio and Lorenzo return to Spain with Balthazar as a prisoner, Lorenzo betrays Horatio and tells the King of Spain that he was the one to apprehend the enemy’s son, even though it was Horatio who really captured Balthazar. Horatio and Lorenzo are brothers in arms, yet Lorenzo easily betrays Horatio. Bel-Imperia’s servant, Pedringano, betrays her as well by agreeing to help Lorenzo kill Horatio, even though Pedringano knows that his mistress is in love with Horatio and will be devastated. Despite being supposedly devoted to Bel-Imperia, Pedringano jumps sides with little thought and easily joins forces with Lorenzo. Lorenzo later betrays Pedringano and Serberine, Balthazar’s servant, even though both men helped Lorenzo kill Horatio. Lorenzo tricks Serberine and orders Pedringano to kill him, and after Lorenzo sets Pedringano up to be arrested, he refuses to help him get a pardon.  At the end of the play, Bel-Imperia betrays both Lorenzo (her brother) and Balthazar (the man she is supposed to marry) when she agrees to act in Hieronimo’s play-within-a-play and lure both men to their deaths. Hieronimo, too, is guilty of betrayal—he betrays his country when he kills the Duke of Castile, an innocent man and the brother of the king. Betrayal, it seems, is connected to nearly every Spanish character, no matter their desires or motivations. 

Betrayal, too, is central in Kyd’s Portuguese subplot, which further suggests the widespread nature of betrayal in 16th-century society. After Alexandro and Villuppo return from war, Villuppo tells the Viceroy of Portugal that Alexandro, “Under the colour of a duteous friend, / Discharged his pistol at the prince’s back,” killing Balthazar, the viceroy’s son. Alexandro has not actually killed Balthazar, but Alexandro is nevertheless arrested, held prisoner, and threatened with unspeakable violence should Balthazar be found dead. As Alexandro is hauled away to prison, Villuppo says in a short aside: “Thus have I with an envious, forged tale / Deceived the king, betrayed mine enemy, / And hope for guerdon of my villainy.” Plainly put, Villuppo betrays Alexandro and the viceroy simply in the hope of being rewarded. Indeed, once Balthazar is found alive in Spain, the viceroy asks Villuppo why he attempted to “falsely betray Lord Alexandro’s life,” and Villuppo responds simply: “But for reward and hope to be preferred.” Villuppo betrays Alexandro, and in doing so risks Alexandro’s life, all for his own selfish glory.

Arguably, the Portuguese subplot exists only to offer another view of betrayal and thus demonstrate how widespread betrayal is. Other than the drama that unfolds between Villuppo and Alexandro, there is little else to remark upon regarding the Portuguese subplot. In fact, save for this betrayal, the entire subplot could easily be removed with little impact on the play as a whole, which suggests that Kyd chose to include it expressly in order to emphasize how common betrayal is in all corners of Elizabethan society.