To Forgive is Not to Forget

Irwin Chan, Philosophy
Coach House, Green College, UBC
Monday, January 25, 8-9 pm

“Forgive and forget”: It sounds like a cliché, but what does it mean? Is forgiving really just forgetting? When we forgive, we are forgiving some wrong done to us. If forgiving really were forgetting, wouldn’t forgiveness amount to not respecting ourselves and morality? In any case, how can we forgive without compromising our self-respect and without condoning the wrong? In this talk, Irwin Chan will explore the nature of forgiveness and the reasons for forgiveness, as well as discuss whether forgiveness should be conditional or unconditional.