Current Events > could you forgive someone who committed atrocities but got amnesia?

(+) Yeah! (+)

The person is like a villain from a comic book or jrpg or anime or something like that. They do a lot of horrible things. Maybe they destroyed the town you live in and killed people you cared about. And they did that all over the world

One day something makes them forget everything. They wake up and have no idea who they are, and wander the world in a daze. But it also apparently put them back to a blank slate. They act innocent and don't seem to want to hurt anyone. Its like they are a child or something. You find them living on a farm helping an old couple harvest crops and they greet you with a smile. How would you react, what would you do?

Like picture if Magneto forgot he is Magneto

Isn't this basically the plot of one of the "Shock" games (BioShock Infinite ) but with significantly less convoluted bullshit?

Yes, if they are genuinely remorseful and commit themselves to serve humanity at max capacity.

If I theoretically was 100% convinced they weren't faking it or something, sure.

I would regard Henry.

Forgive? Yeah. We couldn't be close or anything though. Suppose their memories come back someday?

I'm thinking how Norman Osborn used to get amnesia all the time back in the day. Peter would be civil with him but secretly he'd worry all the time that the Goblin would resurface out of nowhere.

There's a Black Mirror episode like this.

I'm very much of the belief that your mind or consciousness or whatever you wanna call it is what makes you you. A person with no memory isn't the same person that did all that shit.

So, Tinkerer/Eggman early on the IDW Sonic the hedgehog comic.

yea theyre basically a completely different person at that point

There's a pretty good Stargate episode about exactly this

The main character in Amnesia: The Dark Descent gave himself amnesia because he couldn't handle the shame and guilt of his actions.

I can personally forgive them in my heart, but I'm not the only one impacted, the other victims of their atrocities deserve knowledge and closure. Inform the authorities that they are alive and well. Let them stand trial to be found guilty, innocent, or have the charges dismissed by the court system.

The Dark Urge has entered the chat

They are basically a different person if they got amnesia and are behaving completely differently afterwards. The person you wanted to punish doesnt exist anymore

This happens to Darkrai in the Pokemon Mystery Dungeon Explorers games. It's actually the games' excuse as to why you can recruit a villain to your team

TC in PHL1010 for gen ed right now

Fuck no. Lock that ass up. Let them be a different person in jail.

If they truly have zero recollection of their deeds and show that they are living an upright life with no tendencies toward the old ways...then I guess. A that point the person who did those things is effectively dead.

But I'd probably always be worried they would end up reverting, either because the memories returned or because that's just who they are as a person.

kind9 posted...

The main character in Amnesia: The Dark Descent gave himself amnesia because he couldn't handle the shame and guilt of his actions.

supplementary question then to the people answering they'd forgive: does your answer change if it is known that the person intentionally inflicted the amnesia on themselves

I've never really understood what forgiving someone even means.

Do you forgive Revan in KotOR?

I think itd be harder. They cant be that remorseful if they dont even remember it. Theyre same person without the possibility of growth. Feel like Id just be waiting for them to commit the first of the next batch of atrocities. Then what happens when they do remember?

Ar0ge posted...

Do you forgive Revan in KotOR?

Well I did dark side playthroughs in both games.....

But if I was inside the game and met light side revan, I think I'd forgive them if I understood the backstory

the IDW sonic comics did a storyline with this idea

There is a true story out of (Europe?) Where they hired a seasoned detective from afar to solve a murder.

He solved the case himself quickly, but it turned out he was the murderer. He shot a guy on the beach while sleep walking. After tests, they found out he did sleep walk.

So instead of putting him away, they sent him to live in a remote house in the middle of nowhere.

Edit: He was hired for another case but since there had been a fresh murder they asked him to just join that case first.

In fiction, sure.

In real life, I wouldn't believe that they actually had amnesia and were instead faking it to try to avoid the consequences of their actions.

This was a Simpsons episode