Do characters in literature, generally get away with betrayal, or are they punished in the end? What evidence of this can you find the novel? How is betrayal portrayed in the novel?

For the most part, betrayal is generally repaid in some way. Other times, it is forgiven. In context, the theme of justice (or the lack theoreof) conspicuously intersects with the theme of identity in this novel. In spite of Dickie and Tom's many differences, the two have a great many underlying similarities. They are both charming, uncomfortable with open discussions of emotion, and artistically oriented. Yet, perhaps because of their wildly different upbringings, they lead radically different lives. Tom, orphaned and raised in a seemingly loveless middle-class home, makes his living in New York by committing petty crime. Dickie, brought up wealthy by doting parents, enjoys a life of travel, leisure, and art. Highsmith suggests that their differences may come down to the differences in their upbringings, which came about randomly and seemingly without justice or reason but had lasting results. Yet later in the novel, their fortunes shift: Dickie winds up murdered and his friends are left to mourn him, while Tom gains a great deal and pays no price for his death. In this instance, luck swings in Tom's favor, but justice is still absent from the equation—bad behavior is rewarded handsomely, and good behavior is punished.