Linearity

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Greek philosopher Aristotle defines time as “quantity of movement according to the before and the after” (Aristotle, cited in Agamben, 1993, 93). He asserts that time moves infinitely into one direction on a line from past to future. This linear perception of time was adopted by the modern world and is still prominent today. I consider it to be a trait of temporality of productivity.

The notion of temporal linearity is evident in Aristotle’s Poetics where he articulates ideas on the making of drama. Concerning plot, specifically, incidents are arranged in a storyline that advances from past to future (Krijanskaia, 2008, 337-339). The events of the plot need to be linked through an implicit or explicit purpose. Purpose refers to the future:

I expect that my doing will lead to a result later on.

Purpose is, also, related to cause and effect: a past cause influences a future effect. For Aristotelian plot and for Aristotelian thought, temporal linearity and causality are closely linked; and both of them together put weight on the importance of the past and the even greater importance of the future.

I am starting to wonder about

the importance of the

present

in linearity

Through his Poetics, Aristotle influenced the making of theatrical texts and theatre performances for centuries. And, consequently, theatre became a means to perpetuate temporal linearity.

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