Did Prideaux kill all those agents?

Did Prideaux kill all those agents? - Top view of slogan Stop Killing Us on surface of square blackboard on black background

In Tinker Tailor Solider Spy it’s clear that once they trap Haydon the only thing left to do is trade him back to Karla in exchange for the sources that are all about to be arrested.

But when Prideaux kills Haydon that means the deal for the networks is off and those sources are going to meet some unpleasant fates.

So in reality, isn’t Prideaux responsible for killing a huge number of Circuses agents?



Best Answer

No.

Obviously, Prideaux does not kill them directly (e.g. by shooting them). That said, we might still consider him responsible for killing them if his actions lead directly to their deaths.

But for that to be true, they actually have to be dead, and I doubt that Karla would kill his prisoners simply because Haydon is dead. It's been a long time since I saw the BBC version, but I don't recall there being any actual evidence that Karla kills them, and there is no such evidence in the 2011 Hollywood version.

Why would he not?

Karla has other agents, some of whom are doubtless already in British custody, and he'll still need collateral to barter for them even if Haydon is no longer available. And, as Roy notes in the second clip, "Moscow Center prides itself on getting its people back." So, bargaining for the return of agents is a longstanding agency policy, not likely to be abandoned simply because one agent was killed.

Killing all his prisoners in retaliation for Haydon's death would literally bankrupt him in terms of hostage-exchange, and even worse, it would likely end the current arrangement under which such exchanges are possible. A spymaster would only pursue a scorched-earth tactic like that if he believed he would never again need to get some of his own captured people back.

No, the likely consequence of Haydon's unsanctioned assassination by Prideaux is that the current negotiations will be disrupted and have to start over, and it's possible Karla will try to drive a harder bargain this time to exact some kind of price for Haydon's death, demanding more agents in return, or higher-value agents, etc. Maybe the Circus will even agree.

Finally, it's worth noting that Haydon is not actually a Russian agent, he's a Brit who defected. This means Moscow Center didn't pay for his training or his salary, etc. So, the loss of Haydon is less costly to them than with a typical agent. (Yes, Witchcraft is bust, but that would have been true even if Prideaux had not killed Haydon.)




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Did Prideaux kill Haydon?

Prideaux does not kill Haydon because he was a traitor to his country, he kills him because he was a traitor to him personally, not just by giving him up to the Russians in Budapest, but because he refused to respond to Prideaux's homosexual feelings towards him and forced Prideaux to suppress his authentic self.

Did Prideaux know Haydon was the mole?

Smiley learns that Prideaux informed Haydon of Testify before departing; Prideaux had independently surmised that Haydon was the mole, and wanted to warn him about the potential his cover might be blown.

Why did Prideaux kill Haydon Reddit?

Prideaux and Haydon were lovers, which was why Prideaux warned him -- it's the intensely personal nature of the betrayal that leads to Prideaux killing him.

Why does he kill him at the end of Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy?

Haydon had been having an affair with Smiley's wife, Ann, and it's hinted that he may have been lovers with Jim Prideaux (Mark Strong), an agent he betrayed. Haydon is arrested, but Prideaux kills him while he's in custody to avenge his betrayal.



Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy (1979) - Alec Guinness - Confession (2)




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