Panther In The Basement

Panther in the Basement is a book written by Amos Oz. To summarize the book, it involves a young Jewish boy in the time leading up to the creation of the state of Israel. Nicknamed Proffy for his book smarts, he seeks the removal of his British oppressors. Throughout the book he must overcome betrayal and get to the root of how to really define being a traitor. As a traitor Proffy tries to fool himself into believing he is something he is not, until he realizes that a traitor isn't just someone who betrays but someone who cares about something or someone and goes against that which he cares for. In the following paragraphs I will clarify how this is so by showing instances of treachery.

Sergeant Dunlop is a British soldier who often gets put on patrol and one night catches Proffy breaking curfew. Later, Proffy goes undercover for the FOD, or Freedom or Death, to spy on Sergeant Dunlop. As can be seen from the following quotation, Proffy actually cared for Sergeant Dunlop even if he believed that Dunlop was only the enemy. "[...] I had a kind of urge to hold out a hand to [Sergeant Dunlop]. Not to shake hands, but to support him. Like a baby, or a blind man" (79). However, before Proffy realizes that he cares for Sergeant Dunlop, all he believes is that Dunlop was just a source of information and nothing more than the enemy in which he is accused of loving. "'It's because you love the enemy, Proffy. Loving the enemy is worse than betraying secrets'" (69).

Yardena is his best friends', or former best friends' sister who he seems to have feelings for. Yardena indirectly causes Proffy to betray himself by exposing the secrets he has kept, to her. "This inner Proffy hid nothing from Yardena. The Underground. The split. The rocket. Mother's locked drawer and Father's Perfidious Albion slogans. The package. The temptation. The seduction. Not even Sergeant Dunlop" (126). Sometime after that, Yardena and Proffy were talking; Yardena betrayed Proffy's thoughts by saying these things, and causing him to open his eyes a little further. "These British may well pack up and go home soon. I only hope we don't regret