temporal orientation in western civilization and in a pre-literate society文档.pdf

TEMPORAL ORIENTATION I N WESTERN CIVILIZATION AND I N A PRE- LITERATE SOCIETY By A. IRVING HALLOWELL I N all human societies we find that certain classes of events have become I extablished as formalized reference points’ to which it is customary to relate past, present, and future occurrences or, in terms of which temporal intervals of greater or less duration may be expressed. Calendars, of course, immediately come to mind. Yet unsystematized, but no less customary points of reference such as “a sleep,”2 are employed by many preliterate peoples as units in estimations of temporal length. Events in the life history of individuals-birth, marriage, or other significant occurrences- are constantly evoked to which other events may be related. Even in western civilization, despite the fact that our cultural heritage provides us with the alternative of employing exact dates for all such events, similar unformalized reference points are in use. Whether formalized or not, the characteristic reference points employed by the individuals of different human societies are relevant to a full under- standing of the functioning of temporal concepts. They are basic cultural phenomena of the utmost importance in the ordering and coordination of human activities. It is impossible to picture any human society without them. In terms of individual experience, they are orientational. The in- dividual’s temporal concepts are built up in terms of them; he gets his temporal bearings by means of them, and his temporal perceptions function under their influence. It is impossible to assume that man is born with any innate “temporal sense.” His temporal concepts are always culturally con- stituted.