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Time Frames

Time Frames

Time can be divided into three broad areas:Past, Present and Future

Past Time_________________________________________________

Past time is divided into straight past that fixes an event to a moment in time and previous past events which can occur either prior to another past fixed point in time or float more loosely in the past as an imperfect past - which describes something that used to happen during a period of previous time - perhaps something we did when we were young or simply something that we don't do anymore:
  • I went to the bank yesterday. (straight past)
  • Before that I had stopped at the office to see Jack.  (previous past in relation to the straight past)
  • In the past, I banked at The First National Bank. ( I used to bank at...) Imperfect past - during a period (seen in the abstract)
  • I smoked a cigarette. (straight past - one off event)
  • I smoked Cuban cigars. ( I don't smoke them anymore - either too expensive or stopped the habit)

Previous Past or Narrative Past is used when we tell a story logically as having happened in the past and need a relative past. We use the past perfect to allow the sequential flexibility, so as not to list a chronology of factual sequence; the continuous tenses show longer time sequences and the simple, short action or results: -

  • Bond had loaded the gun with only one bullet and now he handed it to his adversary in this deadly game of Russian roulette. His opponent’s hand was shaking now. The finger squeezed the trigger of the shaking gun, though to be fair the victim hadn’t blinked. Not even once! He died instantly.

Present Time__________________________________________

By nature, present time is unfinished. It may go back to the beginning of time and encompass all time itself but it is a time frame that essentially is in progress, ever extending into the future by the continual beating of the seconds of the “Now” moment  and, as such, never finishes. If it did, it would become a complete past fact.

· Current and Actual Fact  
-   I am an artist.
· Factual Activity in Progress
-   I am typing.
· Accumulating experience 
-   I have been thinking about this very carefully.
· Very recent action close to present moment
-  I have thought carefully about this.
· Change and/or News
- Taxes have been raised.
· Unfinished
- Since the Industrial Revolution started, man has used his inventive creativity to harness energy for the means of production.

Future Time __________________________________________

As there is no real idea of future fact and indeed no real conjugation in the English verb system other than in the verbs BE and DO, there can neither exist a future tense, factual or otherwise. The traditional view of WILL being the future, apart from being erroneous as a tense is, nevertheless, one way of expressing a modal future

Future Expression

Essentially modal but can become complex through compound tenses: -

  • I will go. -   certain; promise; desire; voluntary & spontaneous decision.
  • I might change my job.    - possibility
  • I will have finished by 6.   -   future probability of certainty

If a fact in the future surpasses the certainty of  - it will happen – and becomes perhaps part of a fixed repetitive schedule, such as a train or airport schedule, then both modal and stated fact transcend into the future: -

  • The train leaves (does leave) at 7.
  • Tomorrow I have to see the Japanese delegation then I receive the Russian Premier, and I’m having lunch with the First Lady.

As we see, the future also employs factual activity, if qualified as not being in the “Now” moment: -

  • I’m seeing Jennifer later. (Later i.e.– in the future) 
  • We are going to the Theatre Royal. (Implied future from the first sentence)
  • Then we’re going to have supper. (Sequential implied future)

This last future form -planned intention- expresses an active on-going intention, or view to do something, and uses the progressive form GOING to imply a flowing movement from past thought or decision into a future action. The future is implied and therefore any idea of WHEN is not an essential or qualifying piece of information: -

  • I’m going to change my job.
  • I’m going to make a fortune.
  • I’m going to invite João and Patricia to dinner.

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