Temporality

The Oxford English Dictionary defines Temporality as “the quality or condition of being temporal or temporary; temporariness; [or being] in relation to time” (OED). In Smith and Watson’s tool kit they use this term to try and put a time frame on when the narrator wrote, told, or published his or her self narrative. They note that sometimes the narrator acknowledges the act of telling his story and ask “does he situate the moment of its telling?” RA 249). They also ask the reader to consider the importance of significant shifts in the historical moment of the self narration, or if there are more than one periods in which the author retold his or her life story? If so, what changes between the lapsed time, and how do these breaks affect self-life writing?

In the preface of Benjamin Franklin’s Autobiography and Other Writings the editor notes that “Franklin composed his autobiography at three different times in his life” (Seavy 1). The first part was written in 1771 while Franklin was vacationing in England, the second part was written in 1782 after Franklin had become one of the most affluent figures of the founding era. The last part was written when Franklin was in his early eighties. There was a major shift in the historical moment that his autobiography was written; when he wrote his first America was a word—not a nation. This part establishes a pattern of emplotment that promotes the idea of the ‘self-made man,’ which is arguably the most prevalent rhetorical trope throughout the text. The temporality—or temporary aspect—of certain parts of his autobiography are linked by Franklin’s consistent construction of agency and the development of his character is comparable to a garden that has been nurtured, trimmed, and expanded throughout its existence. However, weeds had begun to blur his memory by the time he was writing his autobiography. Even in his first part he wrote “By my rambling digression I perceive my self to be grown old. I us’d to write more methodically” (Franklin 12). Temporality, or being in relation to time, is also clearly demonstrated by the passages in which he talks about the ‘Errata’ or major errors of his life. He discusses these profound mistakes of his life in temporal terms by dismissing his bad judgments as a temporary phase of his youth with lines like “Perhaps I was too saucy & provoking” (Franklin 22).

Personal Take:

I often look at my life through the lenses of temporality. I have attempted to divide various stages of my life by delineating what I was most concerned with at the time. To be honest I don’t remember much from my early childhood. Of course there are various moments that influenced my life in profound ways, but it was not until early adolescence that I can try to stratify my life in temporal layers. My early adolescence was marked by a rebellious spirit, or I should say a spirit of mayhem. My friends and I would constantly push the envelope for how many rules we could break and get away with it. This temporary phase was replaced with an obsession with the newest fad: diamondback bikes with the pegs, Pogs, Pokemon cards and game-boy, yo-yos, and so forth. My early teenage experiences all the way through freshman year were dominated by anything and everything that had to do with skateboarding. High school ushered in a completely new mindset in which I identify my first Errata. Hormones, girls, the popularity conquest, and smoking marijuana became the norm during this time. However, by junior year I began to grow into myself, and focused on school and working. The next phase came when I finally got my first car, and from that point on I have been on the move ever since. It is an interesting exercise to divide your life into temporal layers; however, they often overlap and are built upon by new episodes in the development of one’s life.

- Joe Fleming