What is the function of the sentence 'It need not claim that present citizens are guilty'?
Governments are increasingly asked to apologise for historical wrongs such as slavery or the mistreatment of indigenous peoples. Sceptics ask what the apology can mean: those who did the wrong are dead, and those who apologise were not responsible. The objection mistakes what a state is. A state persists through time, and inherits obligations and benefits from its predecessors, as when it honours old debts. An apology from the state is a formal acknowledgement that a wrong occurred and that it was a wrong. It need not claim that present citizens are guilty. But a bare apology can sound empty. The test of sincerity is whether it is followed by action: records opened, history taught honestly and, where appropriate, some form of repair.
Answer and explanation
Correct answer: D. It removes a possible misunderstanding of what the apology means
- Step 1: The sentence clarifies the nature of the apology: acknowledgement of wrong, not accusation of present citizens.
- Step 2: It removes the sceptics' worry.
Answer
It removes a possible misunderstanding of what the apology means.
Why not the others: The sentence removes a misunderstanding by denying that present citizens are guilty; it does not say they should feel guilty, deny the wrongs, call apologies unnecessary or identify the author as a citizen.
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