Background of the Study

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CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background of the Study

Consciously or unconsciously, every single thing that people have experienced can be a factor that may change and shape their personalities. However, during their lives, people can experience the changes in their personalities. Then, it may change for better or for worse. It can be influenced by biological process they face, their experiences, their past life, their surroundings, their circumstances, or even by other’s behavior. We can take a look at reality which often happens in our circumstances. Crimes seem to be a part of life, whereas we never expect those things happen in our lives. In fact, it cannot be destroyed or wiped out easily. Everyday, there are always cases of crimes that we can see or hear from news program on television or radio. For instance, there are some cases where a father has assaulted his own daughter or a brother has assaulted his own sister. Such cases really happen in this life. We can really find a real case which happened to a girl, called Sha, 14 years old Nova, No. 935 XVIII, January 29, 2006. She had experienced a terrible thing in her life. She was sexually abused by her mother and her grandfather for several years. Since she was 8 years old she was wrongly taught about sexual intercourse by her mother. In that time, she was taught and forced to do sexual activity with her. After that, her mother gave her to her grandfather and 2 three of them conducted sexual activity together, so-called threesome. That terrible experience which had happened for several years made her change her personality. She has lost her happy childhood and she has experienced trauma. Thus, she became hopeless. Moreover, she became a lesbian and a hypersexual. Based on this actual case we can conclude that incest itself as one of the sexual deviations can be a factor that influences the changes of one’s personality. Betrayal shares a story about a woman, Nicolette Dazincourt who gets married to a wealthy and charming man named Montgomery Beauregard DeLande, whose family is the finest and oldest in Louisiana; a man whom she loves, respects, and adores so much; a man who has the authority to control the politics, the law, and the money; a man who can afford to fulfill all her and her parents’ financial needs; a man who has given her four sweet children; a man whom she does not know at all. Because she loves Montgomery so much and she is afraid of losing him, she never has the willingness to ask him about the bad rumor of his strange family outside and to learn about his families’ tradition. However, one day, her point of view towards her husband changes when knowing that her daughter who is still six years old has been sexually abused by her husband and her brother-in-law. It is difficult for her to realize the truth that her handsome, kind, possessive, and charming husband can become a devil. Her days become nightmares. She just wants to escape from him without any signs that she has known his evil deeds of sexually assaulting his own daughter. However, her suffering and her willingness to protect her children make her does a crime. She has killed Montgomery whom she really loves, respects, and adores. 3 She is forced to do it in order to save her children from him. She confesses to the police of what she has done, then, she is arrested. However, in the court, finally, the truth of Montgomery’s sexual deviation is uncovered. The court verdicts she is innocent. It is because of her friends, witnesses, and outsiders who have supported her. There are some reasons that underlie my interest of conducting the study. The main reason is because I am interested in Nicolette’s personality development which is influenced by her husband’s sexual deviation. It is a new thing for me to know that sexual deviation can be one of the factors that influences someone’s personality to change. This case is similar to the actual case which happened to Sha Nova, No. 935 XVIII, January 29, 2006. It is amazing to find a story where a woman faces the most terrible and hardest problem in her life, her husband’s betrayal to her, which leads her personality to change for the worse. The second reason is I am interested in the author’s style in telling the story. Gwen Hunter knows well how to present the story well and give it a rhythm. She also knows well how to take and bring the readers into the story so that the readers can feel the same fear, happiness, sacrifice, and sorrow as Nicolette feels in the story. Gwen Hunter successfully presents the reaction of the characters so that the readers find the story flows naturally. The third reason is because this novel challenges me to dig more about human’s conflicts in life which are rich of moral values. Therefore, it can be a reflection for the readers. 4

1.2 Objectives of the Study