of accountability is without merit because it is not supporting Alfred’s goal of becoming a writer. It only makes Alfred feel guilty, angry, and misunderstood. Alfred and his wife suffer from creating standards independently and setting expectations without mutual consent or consistent frame of reference to measure success. Self-justification is common when evaluating one’s actions. It makes justice simple and accountability is only to one’s self. Sir Murdoch says it well when he states, “Why, Satan himself, the father of lies, adopts the policy of Polonius, and is truest to himself when he is at his most deceitful!” Being true to your self can be far from truth, and when there is no objective measurable standard there is no accountability. Only being true to yourself leads to self-absorption and a disregard for others. Hamlet and Ophelia are in love as evidenced by Ophelia’s statement to her father “And hath given countenance to his speech, my lord, With almost all the holy vows of heaven.” (Act I Scene 3 Line 114). After Hamlet conceives in his heart to murder his Uncle, the King, he sacrifices his relationship to commit murder by telling Ophelia, “I loved you not” (Act III Scene 1 Line 118). Peter J. Leithart states in The Serpent Now Wears the Crown: A Typological Reading of Hamlet, “Hamlet is the most prominent vengeful son, but in the course of working out his vengeance, he inadvertently kills Polonius. As if that were not enough, he rejects Ophelia, sending her into a pitiful emotional spiral that eventually leads to her death.” *http://www.visi.com/~contra_m//cm/features/cm11_hamlet.html*. Hamlet proves his selfishness by sacrificing Ophelia and love for murder. Laertes displays selfishness in death. As the certainty of his death approaches, he begs forgiveness, “Exchange forgiveness with me, noble Hamlet, mine and my father’s death...
