False Apology Syndrome | In Character - Fall 2008

False Apology Syndrome - Theodore Dalrymple

British doctor (retired) Anthony Daniels is Theodore Dalrymple.  He uses the pen name for his highly opinionated writings.  He is a conservative for sure, but he has a streak of independent thought that is very fresh. I enjoy reading his material.

The False Apology Syndrome is a short essay on a nation, a people, a civilization apologizing to another for a wrong that was done in the past.  American whites apologizing to blacks for slavery, the Vatican apologizing to the Muslim world for the Crusades, the Japanese apologizing to the Koreans and Chinese for their brutal occupation in the early 20th century.

All of it is false according to Mr. Dalrymple because the sins were not committed by the apologizers.  The apologizer has the benefit of feeling morally superior for apologizing without feeling any real remorse.

But that is the obvious issue here.  Mr. Dalrymple digs a bit deeper.  He asks penetrating questions about the morality involved with all parties.  For example, if whites should apologize to blacks for the slave trade, what about the culpable Africans who sold their continental brethren to the slave traders?  What about white abolitionists who sacrificed their lives and fortunes to free slaves?  What about the affluence that Americans have over nearly all of Africa?  If slaves had not been brought to the New World, then many African-Americans, descended from slaves, would not have the same standard of living.

Mr. Dalrymple discusses the moral impact on the apology receiver.  He contends that it can loosen the moral standing of such people.  They can feel less inhibited about their behavior because of what has happened to their ancestors.  He makes a stronger argument than my simple statement.

I love these essays that help me look at things in ways that go beyond my current thinking.  Most of the arguments about false apologies found here I have made myself, but Mr. Dalrymple does add a few more.  They are compelling.

And, of course, he apologizes in advance if you disagree.