I saw Atonement a couple nights ago. I know, I was the very last person to see it. But still. I want to talk about it for two reasons. One it gives me an excuse to put up a picture of Keira Knightley (Sorry about the cigarette. Kids, smoking will kill you.). But more importantly, it lets me pass on a conversation that I had with my friend who saw the movie with me.
At what point is it too late to say sorry? If you haven’t seen the movie yet, then I’m about to ruin the plot. So stop reading now.The movie ends with a twist. Turns out the little girl whose false testimony sent her older sister’s boyfriend to prison for raping a child, never apologized. The sister and the boyfriend never reunited. He was killed in war. She was killed by a Nazi bombing. The little girl has lived to a ripe old age and written a book about what their life might have been like if they had lived and reunited. The character says that the book is her effort to make up for what she cost them.
My friend was hugely offended by the premise that this woman’s book made up for anything. “They died and they wouldn’t have if it weren’t for this hateful little brat.” I think I’m paraphrasing, but I’ve definitely captured the spirit of her objection. Both of the victims of her deceit were dead. The future they may have enjoyed had not happened, because of her. Was it too late for the character to “atone”? What good could it possibly do?
What about extending this argument? Once the damage is done, can you atone for a conscious act of wrongdoing simply by acknowledging the act? It seems a little too easy. I don’t have an answer here. So I throw the question out to you… and by you, I mean both people who read this blog.
February 20th, 2008 at 6:27 pm
NO… I have already told you, a wrongful act id not always rightable. This should be the core decision process for most people. If you wrong some one expect to end up alone.