“How does one forgive after suffering oppression?”

This question has been the topic of many stories because it has the potential to be adapted in various ways whether the character was abandoned, manipulated, betrayed, tortured, etc. Though most authors like to push it to a positive outlook, it can be both ways. It depends a lot of the situation like who they are, how they suffered, why they suffered, who hurt them, and who are they forgiving. In lots of the movies, stories, and books I know there is always a character who suffered outside the stories plot so the characters do know they suffered but it’s not the focus of the story.

Case in point, Hercules, the character Meg has suffered oppression due to Hades after she sold her soul to him. So there is basically no story where someone didn’t suffer from oppression making this question go along with a lot of story arches and character subplots.

This question personally, solely depends on the person who suffered. Each person is different, so maybe one person would be more forgiving or one person didn’t suffer that badly, etc. It also depends how understanding and open they are to forgive because there are a lot of characters I know that would forgive anyone if they knew the truth behind the oppression.

Examples include:

Punch like a Girl, Red Queen, Glass Sword, Broken, Matilda, Atalanta, Taming of the Shrew, and Once Upon a Time.

These stories all have characters who suffered some sort of oppression and they all dealt with them differently. So that’s why it depends on the person’s ability to understand and forgive.