Definition and Examples of the Historical Present Tense

Definition and Examples of the Historical Present Tense In English grammar, the historical present is the use of a verb phrase in the present tense to refer to an event that took place in the past. In narratives, the historical present may be used to create an effect of immediacy. Also called the  historic present, dramatic present, and narrative present. In rhetoric, the use of the present tense to report on events from the past is called translatio temporum (transfer of times). The term translation is particularly interesting, notes German English literature educator Heinrich Plett, because it is also the Latin word for metaphor. It clearly shows that the historical present only exists as an intended tropical deviation of the past tense. (Plett, Henrich. Rhetoric and Renaissance Culture, Walter de Gruyter GmbH Co., 2004.) Examples and Observations It is a bright summer day in 1947. My father, a fat, funny man with beautiful eyes and a subversive wit, is trying to decide which of his eight children he will take with him to the county fair. My mother, of course, will not go. She is knocked out from getting most of us ready: I hold my neck stiff against the pressure of her knuckles as she hastily completes the braiding and the beribboning of my hair. ... (Walker,  Alice. Beauty: When the Other Dancer Is the Self. In Search of Our Mothers Gardens: Womanist Prose, Harcourt Brace, 1983.) There is a famous story of President Abraham Lincoln, taking a vote at a cabinet meeting on whether to sign the Emancipation Proclamation. All his cabinet secretaries vote nay, whereupon Lincoln raises his right hand and declares: The ayes have it. (Rodman, Peter W.  Presidential Command, Vintage, 2010.) Verbs in the historic present describe something that happened in the past. The present tense is used because the facts are listed as a summary, and the present tense provides a sense of urgency. This historic present tense is also found in news bulletins. The announcer may say at the start, Fire hits a city center building, the government defends the new minister, and in football City, United lose. (Language Notes, BBC World Service.) If you introduce things which are past as present and now taking place, you will make your story no longer a narration but an actuality. (Longinus,  On the Sublime, quoted by Chris Anderson in  Style as Argument: Contemporary American Nonfiction, Southern Illinois University Press, 1987.) An Example of the Historical Present in an EssayI’m nine years old, in bed, in the dark. The detail in the room is perfectly clear. I am lying on my back. I have a greeny-gold quilted eiderdown covering me. I have just calculated that I will be 50 years old in 1997. ‘Fifty’ and ‘1997’ don’t mean a thing to me, aside from being an answer to an arithmetic question I set myself. I try it differently. ‘I will be 50 in 1997.’ 1997 doesn’t matter. ‘I will be 50.’ The statement is absurd. I am nine. ‘I will be ten’ makes sense. ‘I will be 13’ has a dreamlike maturity about it. ‘I will be 50’ is simply a paraphrase of another senseless statement I make to myself at night: ‘I will be dead one day.’ ‘One day I won’t be.’ I have a great determination to feel the sentence as a reality. But it always escapes me. ‘I will be dead’ comes with a picture of a dead body on a bed. But it’s mine, a nine-year-old body. When I make it old, it becomes someone else. I can’t imagine myself dead. I can’t imagine myself dying. Either the effort or the failure to do so makes me feel panicky. ... (Diski, Jenny. Diary,  London Review of Books, October 15, 1998. Report title At Fifty in  The Art of the Essay: The Best of 1999, edited by Phillip Lopate, Anchor Books, 1999.) An Example of the Historical Present in a Memoir  My first conscious direct memory of anything outside myself is not of Duckmore and its estates but of the street. I am adventuring out of our front gate and into the great world beyond. Its a summers day - perhaps this is the very first summer after we moved in when Im not yet three. I walk along the pavement, and on into the endless distances of the street - past the gate of No. 4 - on and bravely on until I find myself in a strange new landscape with its own exotic flora, a mass of sunlit pink blossom on a tangled rambler rose hanging over a garden fence. I have got almost as far as the garden gate of No. 5. At this point, I somehow become aware of how far I am from home and abruptly lose all my taste for exploration. I turn and run back to No. 3. (Frayn, Michael. My Fathers Fortune: A Life, Metropolitan Books, 2010.) The You-Are-There IllusionWhen the reference point of the narration is not the present moment but some point in the past, we have the historical present, in which a writer tries to parachute the reader into the midst of an unfolding story (Genevieve lies awake in bed. A floorboard creaks ... ). The historical present is also often used in the setup of a joke, as in A guy walks into a bar with a duck on his head. ... Though the you-are-there illusion forced by the historical present can be an effective narrative device, it can also feel manipulative. Recently a Canadian columnist complained about a CBC Radio news program that seemed to him to overuse the present tense, as in UN forces open fire on protesters. The director explained to him that the show is supposed to sound less analytic, less reflective and more dynamic, more hot than the flagship nightly news show. (Pinker, Steven.  The Stuff of Thought, Viking, 2007.) A Warning From the PastAvoid the use of the historical present unless the narrative is sufficiently vivid to make the use spontaneous. The historical present is one of the boldest of figures and, as is the case with all figures, its overuse makes a style cheap and ridiculous. (Royster, James Finch and Stith Thompson,  Guide to Composition, Scott Foresman and Company, 1919.)

January Writing Prompts for Student Journals

January Writing Prompts for Student Journals Students return from the winter break during the first week of January. With the new year comes resolutions and a desire to do better. January is a great time to start students on daily writing assignments. These can be in the form of warmups or journal entries. The ideas provide writing prompts for each day of the month. Daily Writing Prompts Having a writing prompt handy for each day of the month can ease teacher planning. The numeral before each prompt represents the date in January. New Years resolutions: Many people begin the new year with a list of resolutions. Write about three of your New Years resolutions and explain what steps you need to take to make them come true.Goal setting: Goal setting is an important part of creating an ideal future for yourself. Come up with a one-year goal, a three-year goal and a 10-year goal for yourself. Then write about three steps that you will take to accomplish each of these goals.J.R.R. Tolkiens birthday: Discuss your feelings on fantasy and science fiction. Do you enjoy these types of books? Explain why or why not.Isaac Newtons birthday: Explain what Newton meant by the following quote: If I have seen further than others, it is by standing upon the shoulders of giants.National Bird Day: When the United States was founded, Benjamin Franklin argued that the national bird should be the turkey. Instead, the bald eagle was selected. Was this a good choice or should the Founding Fathers have gone with the turkey instead? Give reasons for your answer. Sherlock Holmes birthday: Today is the birthday of fictional detective Sherlock Holmes. Do you like mysteries? If so, tell about your favorite mystery book, television series, or movie. If not, explain why you dont like them. Alternatively, write about Little Christmas or the Epiphany. Many cultures celebrate a second Christmas on this date. What celebrations would you like to see twice a year?Winter break: Describe the best thing that happened to you over winter break.Elvis Presleys birthday: What is your favorite type of music? Your least favorite? Explain your reasons for each.Seasons: What is your favorite season? Why?United Nations Day: What is your opinion about Americas participation in the U.N.? Or, what  is your opinion on the effectiveness of the U.N. in negotiating world peace?Death of Francis Scott Key: On this day in 1843, Francis Scott Key died. He penned the lyrics of the Star-Spangled Banner. What is your opinion about the use of this song as a political protest (su ch as NFL Players kneeling)? Do you put your hand over your heart and stand in respect when the national anthem is played? Should athletes be required to do so? National Pharmacist Day: Meat producers around the nation typically put low levels of antibiotics in the animals food to help promote growth. However, some people are concerned that this leads to antibiotic-resistant bacteria in humans. The meat industry argues that if it were unable to include antibiotics, the cost of meat would dramatically increase. Do you think that the meat industry should be forced to stop using these antibiotics? Defend your answer.Make Your Dreams Come True Day: What is a dream that you have for your future? Describe this dream and explain the steps you can take right away to help make it come true.Benedict Arnolds birthday: React to the following statement: One mans traitor is another mans hero.Super Bowl hype: Do you watch the Super Bowl for the game, the ads or both? Explain your answer.Passage of the 18th Amendment: This amendment  to the U.S. Constitution prohibited â€Å"the manufacture, sale, or transportation of intoxicating liquors† but not the consumption, private possession, or production for one’s own consumption. Currently, a large number of states and the District of Columbia have laws broadly legalizing marijuana in some form, but marijuana is still against federal law. Should states have the right  to allow  marijuana be regulated like alcohol? Benjamin Franklins birthday: What was Franklins most important contribution to America?Winnie-the-Pooh Day: Which character from Winnie-the-Pooh do you think is most like you? Explain your answer.Popcorn Day: What is your favorite movie? Or, who is your favorite film director? Why?Presidential Inauguration Day: What qualities does it take to be an effective president of the United States? Or, what makes a president of the United States ineffective? What evidence do you have to support your answer?Martin Luther Kings birthday: King stated in his famous I Have a Dream speech: I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character. What is your opinion on how close America has come to fulfilling  Kings dream? What evidence do you have to support your opinion?National Hobby Month: What is your favorite hobby? What makes it your favorite?National Blood Donors Month: Should b lood donors be paid to donate blood? Explain your answer. California Gold Rush: If you had lived in the 1840s when gold was discovered in California, do you think that you would have traveled West to take part? Why or why not?National Opposite Day: What would you do differently if you were the teacher in this class? Or, what is the opposite reaction that you have from your family on a topic (politics, music, technology)? Why do you react differently?Australia Day: Have you ever traveled out of the country? If so, describe the similarities and differences between the country you visited and America. If not, explain which countries youd like to visit and why.Lewis Carrolls birthday: Which character from Alice in Wonderland would you most want to meet? Which would you least like to meet? Why?Jackson Pollocks birthday: What is your opinion of modern art? Do you like it or hate it? Why?Thomas Paines birthday: Do you agree with the following statement by Thomas Paine: Government, even in its best state, is but a necessary evil; in its worst state , an intolerable one. Explain your answer. Franklin Roosevelts birthday: Franklin Roosevelt was elected to four terms as president. After this, the 22nd Amendment was passed limiting the president to two terms or 10 years. Do you think that there should be term limits for presidents? What about for senators and representatives? Explain your answer.Jackie Robinsons birthday: Robinson was the first African-American to play baseball in the Major Leagues. Many praised him for his courage. How do you define courage? Give examples of people who you think are courageous.