Can some South Asian/African men go through life without ever saying sorry? I believe they can. Or at least they can without ever saying sorry to a woman, especially from their family. Is it a cultural thing? And does it matter if other cultures express contrition with other words or with non-verbal actions? Is it necessary for every culture to atomize the individual and put his or her emotions on a pedestal? This is a tricky one and possibly requires a level of anthropological insight that is beyond me. But, human interaction always carries the risk of causing hurt or offence. If the offence is unintentional, it is necessary to make amends in some way. If someone can consistently get away without making amends, it indicates an exploitative relationship. I do believe power differentials are universal and span cultures. There might be cultures that do not see justice for an individual as being of paramount importance. But, once exposed to ideas such as liberty, equality and justice, can one ever go back to being ignorant of such ideas. At the minimum, one would desire all these for oneself. What was supposed to be a rant against the structutral misogyny of South Asian and African societies has turned into an extremely knotty discussion. Ah well!
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