Tempus

Time is money. As a profit- oriented society, Americans look at time like a river racing past that they need to keep up with. Wasted time is a wasted opportunity that they will never get back. An emphasis on time is very much a part of American culture, but where did that emphasis come from? Americans inherited a culture focused on time through the English language, and literary inheritances of that language such as Shakespeare.

Shakespeare is regarded as one of the greatest English writers of all time. In particular, Shakespeare’s last play, The Tempest, showcases the British empire’s increasing importance placed on time, which was later spread to America.

image credit to HFFK

At the time The Tempest was written in 1611, people’s perception of time was beginning to change due to new technology. The second hand of clocks was just becoming more prominent and the pendulum was soon to come. For the first time, people could measure time more accurately. The Tempest reflects that change with its emphasis on time.

From Prospero’s constant reminders that they must hurry, to other character’s remembrance of the past, The Tempest is obsessed with time. The language itself is condensed into abbreviations, forcing the audience to keep up with a quickened rhythm that stresses the preciousness of time; Every second must count. Even the name the tempest relates to time. It originates from the Latin word for time- Tempus.

In The Tempest, Prospero uses his language to control those around him. His power comes from his books, and he uses his voice to define others, calling them slave or servant.

Language is more than just how words sound. Language is a lens through which we define the world around us. (For instance, in Korean, there are many words to address people of different ages, reflecting the culture’s emphasis on age. In some languages, there are no past or future tenses, showing that that culture does not put a focus on time. ) When an empire imposes its language on a people, it also imposes a way of thinking. No empire fails to leave its language behind. This is true in The Tempest, when Prospero uses language to control the other characters in the play, and it is true of real empires such as Britain.

Along with English, Americans inherited the language's emphasis on time. Simply look at English and how many words there are for keeping time. Look at how many tenses there are. English is “the language of international business and politics” and business is focused on making a profit (business insider). Therefore, every second counts, as time is money.

Time is understood extremely differently by different cultures around the world; The American view of time is not simply a norm for all countries. Southern Europeans such as the Spanish and Italians tend to view time as event or personality related, so punctuality is not as important in their cultures. Some Eastern cultures view time as cyclical. They do not hurry to make decisions as time is not a rapids racing past but rather a lazy river that will come around again, bringing with it the same opportunities now that they are more prepared. Therefore, the profit-oriented American view of time does seem to stem from English and the cultural values that accompany it.

As the world becomes increasingly global, people must become increasingly aware of different cultures and how the cultures' values are engrained in their languages. By understanding other culture's values, people can avoid misunderstandings due to differences like one's understanding of time.

Lewis, Richard. “How Different Cultures Understand Time.” Business Insider, Business Insider, 1 June 2014, www.businessinsider.com/how-different-cultures-understand-time-2014-5.

Shakespeare, William. The Tempest. Edited by Robert Langbaum and Sylvan Barnet, Signet Classics, 1998.

Shoebottom, Paul. “The English Language.” The Language Learning Theories of Professor J. Cummins, Frankfurt International School, esl.fis.edu/grammar/langdiff/english.htm.