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9780521878821pre CUNY894/Griswold 978 0 521 87882 1 June 20, 2007 20:31
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P1: JZP
9780521878821pre CUNY894/Griswold 978 0 521 87882 1 June 20, 2007 20:31
Forgiveness
A Philosophical Exploration
Nearly everyone has wronged another. Who among us has not longed to be
forgiven? Nearly everyone has suffered the bitter injustice of wrongdoing.
Who has not struggled to forgive? Charles L. Griswold has written the first
comprehensive philosophical book on forgiveness in both its interpersonal
and political contexts, as well as its relation to reconciliation. Having exam-
ined the place of forgiveness in ancient philosophy and in modern thought,
he discusses what forgiveness is, what conditions the parties to it must meet,
its relation to revenge and hatred, when it is permissible and whether it is
obligatory, and why it is a virtue. He considers “the ivable,” as well as
perplexing notions such as self-forgiveness, forgiving on behalf of others,
and unilateral forgiveness, while also illuminating near-cousins of forgive-
ness – pardon, mercy, amnesty, excuse, compassion, and apology. Griswold
argues that forgiveness (unlike apology) is inappropriate in politics and
analyzes the nature and limits of political apology with reference to his-
torical examples (including Truth and missions). The
book concludes with an examination of the relation between memory, nar-
rative, and truth. The backdrop to the whole discussion is our inextinguish-
able aspiration for reconciliation in the face of an irredeemably imperfect
world.
Charles L. Griswold is Professor of Philosophy at Boston University.
He has been awarded Fellowships from the Stanford Humanities Center,
the National Endowment for the Humanities, the Woodrow Wilson
International Center for Scholars, and the National Humanities Center.
Winner of the American Philosophical Association’s F. J. Match