Characters Pasts

There's been a lot said about Tanya's past, and elsewhere people are mentioning how Jim used to be a racist.

Surely the whole point of life is to grow and move on from your past and leave it behind? Jim used to be a racist but he's not now, so it should not colour a person's judgement of Jim now. The same with Tanya, she was working class as a child but she managed to move onward and upwards so that part of her life should be forgotten.

It would be different if their past still encroached onto their present, for example if Jim made snide racist remarks about Patrick behind his back, but he doesnt. Or if Tanya still partied and took drugs, but she doesnt (the only time she's gone a bit OTT partying was when Max spiked her drink, so it wasn't her fault).

Pat on the other hand had an horrendous past, prostitute, bad mother..... yet she has been allowed to forget her wrongdoings and has a clean slate.

Other characters havent learned from their pasts, for example Bianca, she was always a loud mouthed chav (although I dont think chav was the word of the month then), and still continues to be a loud mouth chav, and wonders why people look down on her.

Max has always been a cheat and continues to be a cheat, he hasn't learned from his mistakes because the conquest is more important to him than anything else.