Deconstructing Forgiveness: Analysis of Callwood's Essay in Walrus

This essay presents a summary and analysis of June Callwood's article 'Forgiveness' published in The Walrus Magazine, focusing on Callwood's use of definition as a rhetorical strategy to explore the multifaceted meaning of forgiveness. The essay begins by referencing the Old English origin of the word, meaning 'to give completely,' and then delves into various personal stories illustrating different perspectives on forgiveness, including a gay man's experience with an abusive father and a woman's struggle to forgive her mother's racism. Callwood explores the challenges and benefits of forgiveness, highlighting its potential to heal and reduce heart disease, while also acknowledging that it is not always a reasonable expectation. The essay concludes with an impactful example of a woman who forgave her daughter's killer, underscoring the strength and transformative power of forgiveness. Students can find more essays and study resources like this on Desklib.

Running head: English Communication
English Communication
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Author Note

1English Communication
A Summary of June Callwood’s ‘Forgivenes’
June Callwood’s article ‘Forgiveness’ in The Walrus Magazine, July 2007 employs the
rhetorical strategy of definition to explore the meaning the forgiveness.
In the essay entitled, ‘Forgiveness’ by June Callwood, the author explains that the word
forgiveness has its origin in Old English , which means to give completely. The story begins with
the story about a group of people who remembers their past encounters and how they feel about
them. For example, the story of the Gay man whose father beat him to prevent him from
becoming gay. Later the gay man says, “How can it ever be all right to abuse a child?” (319) and
how he let it go. In the second example, June Callwood tells the story about a lady and her
mother, but in the end she also says that “the best thing I can do is that I have stopped hating her
(319) The author narrates how in the story, a Caucasian woman married a black man. When she
proudly displayed her baby to her mother, her mother had a face of sheer revulsion. The woman
could never forgive her mother but she, at least, stopped hating her.
June Callwood continues that some people find forgiveness an unreasonable dictate, and
says how it satisfies their need of humanity. Next, June Callwood tells the difference between the
opinions of the people in relation to choose forgiveness. Furthermore, there are institutes and
television shows about forgiveness and how people forget their vengeance or feel awkward and
hence want to move on. Later the writer reveals on how forgiveness can heal the person. Some
studies further shows that people who forgive have lower rates of heart disease than those
bearing grudge against a person.

2English Communication
Later in the narrative, June Callwood states the theory of how understanding the reasons
for their parents’ control will allow children to obtain a measure of sympathy. The author states
how someone with a bad past can have influence on his or her future and the future of others as
well.
June Callwood concludes by explaining how to heal their wounds and how hard it is to
accept that they are being hurt. In the end, there is a beautiful example of a woman who forgave
the killer of her daughter, saying, “Anyone who says forgiveness is for wimps, hasn’t tried it.”
(322)

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WORKS CITED:
Callwood, June. “Forgiveness.” The Walrus Magazine, July 2007. Reprinted in Kim Flachmann,
et al. Reader’s Choice Pearson 20, 3 318-22