Description
Book SynopsisLooking at Japan and Germany Lind demonstrates that denials of past atrocities fuel distrust and limit international reconciliation and argues that a country's acknowledgment of past misdeeds is essential for promoting trust and reconciliation after war.
Trade ReviewAt a time when nations and societies around the world are engaging in remarkable new means to restore comity in the aftermath of violence and brutality, detailed and comparative studies of national successes and failures in reconciliation are sorely needed. Jennifer Lind's work will stand as a valued contribution in this humane project.
* Journal of Japanese Studies *
States victimized by aggression often harbor resentment against the perpetrator, but can apologies by the latter lead to reconciliation and harmonious relations' Jennifer Lind focuses on political rather than cultural factors in her cogent analysis of remembrance and remorse. She finds that the issue is whether apologies by the aggressor can reduce the perception of threat by former victims. She concludes that this is possible, but recognizes that bilateral ties may also be improved in the absence of apologies, and that apologies can produce jingoistic backlashes in their own countries.
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