Telling The Tales Of Time
TELLING THE TALES OF TIME is a wide-ranging exploration of the history, the science, the philosophical thinking, narrative technique, and all round appeal of the Time Tale and Time Travel Adventures in short stories, novels, television series and the movies.
The Human Experience of Time is an overview of how we, as human beings, understand Time and live it in our day to day waking life, but also its place in our dreams, memory and imagination. This section examines how human beings measure time, how we use it in our language and how it ultimately changes our bodies through the ageing process.
Quotes on the Concepts of Time and Time Travel offers a wide selection of thoughts and observations on the nature of Time. Writers, politicians, philosophers, comedians and scientists have shared their ideas about Time and its mysteries for centuries now, and this section brings together some of the most famous remarks. Quotations range from the quirky and the funny to the sombre and reflective.
The Machines, Portals and Windows of the Time Tale looks at H.G. Wells’ THE TIME MACHINE, Time Machine technology, particularly The Tardis, various means of Time Travel, including Time Portals and Magic, plus the role of Time Windows in Time Tales.
Time Loops and Causal Loops in Time Tales examines the nature of Time Loops and Causal Loops and how they have been used dramatically in Time Tales, plus ways these various ‘Loops’ can be ‘re-set’.
The Paradoxes of Time and Time Travel looks at what exactly a Paradox is, and then examines the nature of the several Time Paradoxes, notably the Grandfather Paradox and the Future Paradox.
The Science of Time looks at important historical figures in the development of our understanding of Time, the many theories around Time Travel, and the potential problems and practicalities of constructing an actual Time Machine, if only theoretically.
The Biology, Shape, Direction and Numerary of Time and Time Worlds looking at Time as a ‘Worm Ouroborous’, the arrow of time, the block universe, multiverses, the Fourth Dimension and the Second Law of Thermodynamics.
Time Beings, Time Villains and Time Guardians offers an insight into the nature and dramatic construction of Time Beings, the role of the Nemesis in a story, the importance of a well designed antagonist or villain, plus the place of Time Guardians in Time Tales.
The Dramatic Devices of the Time Tale looks at those plot requirements unique to Time Tales such as communication across Time, translation devices and de-aging.
The Stories and Plots of Time Tales explores many of the various popular scenarios of the Time Tale, including Time Correction, Endangered Futures, Multiverses and Parallel Worlds.
Time Tale Sub-genres: Utopias/Dystopias, Counterfactuals, Social Commentary, Time Sleep, Time Stopped and the ‘Butterfly Effect’ looks at those stories which may or may not feature time travel as such but do essentially function as Time Tales. These include Utopian/Dystopian narratives, alternate histories, social histories and social commentaries, time sleeper story, the power to stop time and those tales which explore the ‘Butterfly Effect’.
Dreams, Foretellings, Foreshadowing, Prophecy and Memory considers dreams and foretellings, plus the nature of memory and its importance in human identity where Time Past is key to understanding who we are. Tales of amnesia and wiped memory are also explored. This section looks too at the role of Prophecy and Premonition in Time Tales, plus the narrative techique of foreshadowing. This chapter concludes with an insight into the time travelling psychological phenomenon known as Chronesthesia.
The Philosophy of Time and Time Travel, looks at the Philosophy of Time, Predestination and Predeterminism, Aristotle’s First Cause, God and Time, plus Chaos Theory and ‘The Butterfy Effect’. This section also looks at the nature of Time when seen as circular and the Temporal Direction of Time.
The Rules of Time and the Codes of Time explores the Rules of Time, Codes of Time in dramatic stories, especially non-intervention. This section also examines the relationship between Entropy and Time.
Ageing, Immortals and Ghosts looks at the ageing process and the various ways of preventing it that are explored in Time Tales. This section also considers those Time Beings who are Immortal and whether ghosts can be classified as Time Travellers.
Times Tales and National Psyches and the Eternal Family Oedipal Triangle examines the national characteristic of a Time Tale with particular reference to the distinctly British nature of DOCTOR WHO, the American character and style of TIMELESS, and the Germanic tones and themes of DARK. This section also looks at the eternal Oedipal family triangle of Mother-Father-Child as explored in the Korean time adventure ALICE.
The Appeal of the Time Stories asks why Time Tales are so popular and finds answers in areas such as historical curiosity, social commentary, philosphical questioning, personal and spiritual development. This section also looks at the more fun side of Time Tales, plus the use of music and popular soundtracks in Time Tale movies and television series.
Homage, Genre Crossovers and Theatre considers genre crossovers, including comedy and farce, crime investigation, supernatural tales and romantic drama. This section also looks at those rare theatre plays that have explored time travel and asks why the stage does not often venture into this area.
The Pitfalls of the Time Tale looks at some of the issues faced in making a Time Tale work, including the importance of consistency, the problem of getting the future right, the overuse of the deus ex machina, plus the Law of Diminishing Returns when considering the exploration of Time Tales.
The Motifs of Time look at the use of Image Systems or Symbol Webs, where visual metaphors and motifs are woven into the fabiric of a Time Tale narrative
SWIDGERS and Time offers an insight into the background behind the SWIDGERS Fantasy Time Adventure book series and how it has dealt with the many themes and tropes of the classic Time Tale. Without giving too much away, this section also examines the role of Swidgers as Time Guardians of the human timeline, how William becomes a Time Being and Time Traveller, plus there is a look at the Swidger philosophy of Time and its Creation Myth and ‘Back Story’.
Shakespeare and Time is a collection of Shakepsearean quotations on the nature of Time and our human experience of it.
“The role played by time at the beginning of the universe is, I believe, the final key to removing the need for a Grand Designer, and revealing how the universe created itself. … Time itself must come to a stop. You can’t get to a time before the big bang, because there was no time before the big bang. We have finally found something that does not have a cause because there was no time for a cause to exist in. For me this means there is no possibility of a creator because there is no time for a creator to have existed. Since time itself began at the moment of the Big Bang, it was an event that could not have been caused or created by anyone or anything. … So when people ask me if a god created the universe, I tell them the question itself makes no sense. Time didn’t exist before the Big Bang, so there is no time for God to make the universe in. It’s like asking for directions to the edge of the Earth. The Earth is a sphere. It does not have an edge, so looking for it is a futile exercise.”
