Part 1 of Essay
Thousands of people around the world suffer the consequences of not being able to forgive, in some cases it destroys their life. Ordinary People by Judith Guest, is the story of a dysfunctional family who relate to one another in a very odd way. The book opens with seventeen year old Conrad, son of upper middle-class Beth ....

Part 2 of Essay
.... Beth and Conrad. Both are unable to forgive themselves for similar reasons, but Conrad comes to terms with his guilt while Beth cannot. She is furthermore, a perfectionist. "Everything had to be perfect, never mind the impossible hardship it worked on her, on them all." Conrad is not unlike his mother. He is an overachiever, an "A" student, on the swim team and a list-maker. His father tells the psychiatrist, "I see her not being able to forgive him. For surviving, maybe. No, that's not it, for being too much l ....