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Apology without Forgiveness
- Social Research: An International Quarterly
- Johns Hopkins University Press
- Volume 87, Number 4, Winter 2020
- pp. 835-861
- 10.1353/sor.2020.0066
- Article
- Additional Information
Abstract:
In many circumstances apology and forgiveness are closely intertwined. To apologize often means to seek forgiveness and to accept apology often means to forgive. However, in the aftermath of grave wrongs it is sometimes appropriate for perpetrators to apologize even if it is impossible for survivors to forgive. Brudholm explores the meaning of apologizing without forgiveness after mass atrocities. Does it make sense to apologize without asking or even hoping for forgiveness? What can victims do when they cannot forgive? Grappling with these questions through a case study, Brudholm seeks to extend our concept of apology.