The Possibility of Preemptive Forgiving

Philosophical Review 126 (2):241-272 (2017)
  Copy   BIBTEX

Abstract

This essay defends the possibility of preemptive forgiving, that is, forgiving before the offending action has taken place. This essay argues that our moral practices and emotions admit such a possibility, and it attempts to offer examples to illustrate this phenomenon. There are two main reasons why someone might doubt the possibility of preemptive forgiving. First, one might think that preemptive forgiving would amount to granting permission. Second, one might think that forgiving requires emotional content that is not available prior to wrongdoing. If, however, preemptively forgiving is genuinely possible—as this essay hopes to illustrate—then this fact has implications for our understanding of both relational normativity and the nature of forgiveness.

Links

PhilArchive



    Upload a copy of this work     Papers currently archived: 90,616

External links

Setup an account with your affiliations in order to access resources via your University's proxy server

Through your library

Similar books and articles

Hannah Arendt and collective forgiving.Glen Pettigrove - 2006 - Journal of Social Philosophy 37 (4):483–500.
Understanding, excusing, forgiving.Glen Pettigrove - 2007 - Philosophy and Phenomenological Research 74 (1):156–175.
Forgiving and Hoping.David T. Ozar - 2008 - Proceedings of the American Catholic Philosophical Association 82:163-172.
Forgiving and Hoping.David T. Ozar - 2008 - Proceedings of the American Catholic Philosophical Association 82:163-172.
Forgiving While Punishing.Luke Russell - 2016 - Australasian Journal of Philosophy 94 (4):704-718.
Can God forgive our trespasses?N. Verbin - 2013 - International Journal for Philosophy of Religion 74 (2):181-199.
A Feminist Ethic of Forgiveness.Kathryn J. Norlock - 2001 - Dissertation, The University of Wisconsin - Madison
The Limits of Forgiveness.Kathryn J. Norlock & Jean Rumsey - 2009 - Hypatia 24 (1):100 - 122.
Two Cheers for Forgiveness.Paul M. Hughes - 2016 - Philosophia 44 (2):361-380.
The Forgiveness We Speak: The Illocutionary Force of Forgiving.Glen Pettigrove - 2004 - Southern Journal of Philosophy 42 (3):371-392.
Can the Paradox of Forgiveness Be Dissolved?Oliver Hallich - 2013 - Ethical Theory and Moral Practice 16 (5):999-1017.
Seeking Forgiveness: Studies in Moral and Political Philosophy.Glen Allan Pettigrove - 2003 - Dissertation, University of California, Riverside
Forgiveness and Self-Respect.David Novitz - 1998 - Philosophy and Phenomenological Research 58 (2):299-315.
Forgiveness At The Limit: Impossible Or Possible?Richard Kearney - 2010 - Studia Philosophica Wratislaviensia 5 (3):11-24.

Analytics

Added to PP
2017-04-19

Downloads
151 (#115,859)

6 months
9 (#145,127)

Historical graph of downloads
How can I increase my downloads?

Author's Profile

Nicolas Cornell
University of Michigan, Ann Arbor

Citations of this work

Forgiving, Committing, and Un‐forgiving.Monique Wonderly - 2021 - Philosophy and Phenomenological Research 104 (2):474-488.
Against Elective Forgiveness.Per-Erik Milam - 2018 - Ethical Theory and Moral Practice 21 (3):569-584.
Reverse‐engineering blame 1.Paulina Sliwa - 2019 - Philosophical Perspectives 33 (1):200-219.
Fortunately Forgiven.Daniel Telech - forthcoming - Oxford Studies in Normative Ethics.
Oppression, Forgiveness, and Ceasing to Blame.Per-Erik Milam & Luke Brunning - 2018 - Journal of Ethics and Social Philosophy 14 (2).

View all 8 citations / Add more citations

References found in this work

How to do things with words.John Langshaw Austin - 1962 - Oxford [Eng.]: Clarendon Press. Edited by Marina Sbisá & J. O. Urmson.
Freedom and Resentment.Peter Strawson - 1962 - Proceedings of the British Academy 48:187-211.
Practical reason and norms.Joseph Raz - 1975 - London: Hutchinson.
1. Freedom and Resentment.Peter Strawson - 1962 - In John Martin Fischer & Mark Ravizza (eds.), Perspectives on Moral Responsibility. Cornell University Press. pp. 1-25.

View all 47 references / Add more references