The Forgiven

For most theorists, paradigm cases of direct blame consist in the feeling and expression of resentment. It has thus seemed natural for these theorists to begin by presenting, and leaning on, an analysis of resentment. But it turns out there are numerous conflicting analyses of it, and these disagreements ramify when theorists use resentment to tell us about the nature of both blame and its resolution in forgiveness. Resentment cannot bear such theoretical weight. So instead of starting at the front end of the blaming exchange with an analysis of resentment, this chapter starts at the back end with an account of what it takes to be successfully forgiven. This approach promises to yield several more determinate conclusions about (a) when the withdrawal of blame and forgiveness are appropriate and why; (b) the nature of the hard feelings that paradigm forgiveness withdraws; (c) why judgment is superfluous to this blaming and forgiving exchange; and (d) why resentment has been the wrong core blaming component to lean on all along.