In investigating the relationship between accusation and excuse, this study uncovers something about the criminal law's peculiar way of interpreting human action. Identifying that something can move us a little closer to discovery or agreement and just what it is that is staked in criminal law. What is staked in any discussion of criminal law is the meaning and operation of responsibility, which makes human action and its consequences so tragic. The author confronts the idea of responsibility by mapping the work of J. L. Austin onto the criminal law.