Life Isn't Binary by Alex Iantaffi

Author:Alex Iantaffi
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781784508647
Publisher: Jessica Kingsley Publishers
Published: 2019-03-30T16:00:00+00:00

Thinking about time

We’ve been talking about how some of our identities and experiences have changed over time, and invited you to reflect on how yours might have also changed. However, what is our notion of time? Can we say that there is a universal definition of time? It will come as no surprise whatsoever that we don’t believe there is one.

The way we conceptualize time is deeply linked to cultural norms. For example, do we think of time as bipartite or tripartite? That is do we think that there is only past and present, given that the future is only potentiality, but does not exist until it does? Or do we think that there is a past, present and future, and that we’re marching inexorably towards that future?

In addition to this, do we think of time as linear or circular, or as a spiral where we do not quite go back to the same place but maybe revisit patterns? And what about natural time, that is the time of the seasons, the stars, the sun and moon, as opposed to human time, which we arbitrarily measure by several units, calendars and clocks?

Where do our ideas of time come from? How have they been impacted by settler colonialism or not? If our idea of time is not the same as the idea of time in dominant culture, how does that impact us? We’re aware that we have just thrown many questions out there, but hopefully you will find them useful, as you keep considering going beyond either/or being. In fact, we’d argue that we live both in natural time and human time. We look at clocks to make appointments and go about several parts of our day. Yet, we also notice what the weather is doing and dress accordingly to this, and not just the calendar. We have a time within our body too. Our heartbeats, our breathing, our aging all have their own pace. We exist within multiple types and constructs of time, without much effort.

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