Rewriting the Past: How Cancel Culture Impedes Building the Future

Cancel culture is one of the prominent phenomena of our time, a practice of publicly boycotting individuals or organizations for statements or actions that the masses deem unacceptable. However, cancel culture can also pertain to those from our past. In his book, French philosopher and historian Pierre Vesperini illustrates how people seeking to rewrite or erase ambiguous moments of the past hinder our ability to learn from history. Those who want to 'cancel' Shakespeare, Woodrow Wilson, or Churchill, Vesperini argues, raise important questions but do not tolerate nuances and often come to erroneous conclusions. His book will help readers better understand the nature of contemporary social discourse and retain the ability to critically reflect on history, and thus consciously shape the future.