Shame and Apology in the Nation-State: Reflections and Remembrance

Dr Ingelbrecht’s book consists of a play, a short story and an exegesis that critically explore shame, apology and forgiveness in the context of national commemoration, the Stolen Generations and Kevin Rudd’s apology speech. Particular emphasis is focused on the views of mixed heritage families of Aboriginal-Afghan-Anglo cultural descent. Her play “Sorry” explores how collective memory of the past, including traumatic memory of being taken from one’s family, affects the present in complex and surprising ways. Her exegesis, “Shame and Apology in the Nation-State: Reflections and Remembrance” explores the importance of national commemoration, such as ANZAC Day, in promoting national collective memory, and concludes that a collective annual commemoration on behalf of the nation’s “stolen” people would be a more compelling reconciliatory act than a single apology by a particular prime minister.