"Crimes of which a people is ashamed constitute its real history. The same is true of man"

Genet's observation suggests that to understand a people’s or an individual’s true essence, one must examine not just their public successes and proud moments, but also the acts and tendencies they choose to keep hidden. Shame becomes a kind of watermark for authenticity. The crimes, literal or metaphorical, are not merely aberrations but rather central to the story of who people are. A sanitized version of history, one that emphasizes only achievements and glosses over failings, offers a distorted picture. Real history resides in the collective conscience and its burdens, in the struggles, failings, and the remorse following acts that violate a group’s or individual’s own standards.

Extending this analogy to the individual, Genet insists that a true understanding of any person cannot be derived from their self-presentation, which is curated for the public or for self-approval. Instead, the personal “crimes”, their failings, betrayals, moments of cruelty or cowardice, constitute the core of their inner narrative. These are often the points around which a person’s deepest transformations, conflicts, and regrets revolve. That which is hidden or denied becomes the true focus of inward reflection, identity, and even creativity. In other words, the denied parts, rather than the boasted virtues, carry formative value.

On a societal level, collective shame over past injustices or atrocities, such as colonialism, slavery, or oppression, becomes not just a footnote but the main storyline driving social consciousness. Denying these “crimes” is tantamount to erasing the nation’s actual history, while confronting them opens the possibility for reconciliation, growth, and genuine understanding. Genet seems to urge a radical honesty: only by acknowledging the crimes that provoke shame do individuals and societies learn, evolve, and grapple with their full, complex identity. It is through this unflinching recognition that real history, and real self-knowledge, are formed.