Apologizing

Why is it so hard for some people to apologize? I mean, if someone says, "You know, you really hurt my feelings"... why is it so hard to just say, "I am really sorry about that. Will you forgive me?" Yet it just never seems to be that simple.

I suppose one thing that complicates it is the fact that many people never get around to telling people when they've been hurt or offended. They just expect an apology, even though the other person may have no clue that they may need to give one. But even when that is expressed, it seems some people will immediately react by defending themselves, or passive-aggressively trying to shift the blame to someone else (usually back to the party who has been hurt), or they resist or lash out at someone else, or... any number of things. When it seems so simple to merely say, "You know, I'm sorry. Will you forgive me?" Or maybe even, "Hey, I really messed up. I'm sorry about that."

I don't know... I'm sure I've done the same thing myself (not apologized when I should have). But I just don't understand why some people are so resistant to the idea of thinking that maybe they have hurt or offended someone else; and they simply refuse to take responsibility for their own actions. I guess the American way is to always blame someone else. Sad.