Abstract: Looking at the Native Americans and the Europeans, this paper will discuss whether a civilization can develop while living in cyclical time. A civilizations concept of time can greatly affect how they develop together as well as how quickly. Support and sources include The Earth Shall Weep by James Wilson as well as http://www.abia29.hemscott.net/Inner_Dialogues.htm and discussions in class.
~Cyclical Time vs. Linear Time~
Looking at Native Americans and Europeans
by Alex Butler
How if, some day or night, a demon were to steal after you into your loneliest loneliness and say to you:
"This life, as you now live it and have lived it, you will have to live once more and innumerable times more; and there will be nothing new in it but every pain and every joy and every thought and every sigh. And everything unutterably small or great in your life must return to you, all in the same succession and sequence, even this spider and this moonlight between the trees, and even this moment and I myself.
The eternal hourglass of existence is turned over and over and you with it, a mere grain of sand."
From The Joyful Science, by Friedrich Nietzsche
Time is a very important part of a civilizations development and growth. Two different kinds of time, or ways of looking at time, are linear time and cyclical time. Time is one of the most important aspects to a successful civilization, and civilizations ultimately can depend on how they define or view time. If Native American and European civilizations are compared, it can be seen whether a civilization can or cannot develop while living in cyclical time.
When looking at cyclical time, it is observed as a 'timeline' that is actually a big circle. When looking at this, it seems that time has no beginning or end, but the future and the past are joined at one point. It implies that the future has already happened and that it is already determined. This means that nothing can be changed or 'improved' as well as meaning that, in all of time, there is no final place to end up and no ultimate purpose for anything. Linear, on the other hand, is observed as more of a straight line, or as the typical timeline. Linear time has a set or definite beginning as well as a set or definite end. It is also always moving on a certain path towards a certain point or a certain goal. With linear time, it progresses and looks toward the future and possible opportunities.
Different civilizations that use cyclical time cannot actually directly experience time, they can only experience what is with them or what they are doing 'here and now'. This means that their time is only a certain way of interpreting what they perceive, which is also the same with linear time, the straight-traditional model.
The Europeans were a civilization that lived in linear time. Their beliefs were that God created the world and that the world would end after so much an amount of time, there was a creation and eventually would be an end. They wanted to try and advance as much as they possibly could to better themselves for their future as a civilization. They knew that they would have to advance themselves so that they would have the best possible to them in their future. Their linear time was not only a straight timeline, it was also a line of constant progression. However, the Native Americans cyclical view of time created a very different view of their civilizations own future. The Native Americans were a part of the earth and the land that they lived on, and were connected with it for such reasons. Cyclical time can be viewed sometimes in Native American myths or stories. They also did not believe that they were, in any way, deprived of or lacking anything in their lives or in their civilization that they needed to improve upon and so they did not find it necessary to develop into something more. They did not think of their future because they were content with their lives and their cyclical way of thinking did not need them to think about anything such as future betterment for them.
The Europeans were always interested in the future when dealing with their food and crops. They started a mass production of the crops that they could have available to them so that they would be better off in the future. They needed to make sure that they would be set for a progressing future and would never struggle to advance their civilization. Europeans were always working for wealth and progression. The linear timeline follows this developing and progressing path of the Europeans. The Native Americans worked as well, although only just as much as they had to. They would only grow enough food they needed for one year and they knew that to be enough for their civilization. They wold know that they could do the same thing in the next cyclical cycle and they would survive with only what they needed for that certain point in their time. The cyclical timeline follows this as the Native Americans knew only the 'here and now' of their survival.
When the Europeans saw how them Native Americans were living, they wanted to change and advance things. The Native Americans were not using all of their land and resources as the Europeans were. They thought that the Native Americans were insane and some used this as an excuse to say that they were not good enough as people. These Europeans knew only of linear time and of advancing and gaining all that you possibly could by using absolutely all that you had to make it happen. The Native Americans living in cyclical time were obviously not at all focused on their economy and their 'underdevelopment'.
With these civilizations two conflicting religions, the Europeans did not have an easy time trying to move the Indians to maximize the use of their land. The Native Americans religion related them directly to a certain place on their land. This place would have a certain significance to a legend, myth, or story for the Indians. The Europeans did not understand this thinking because their christian religion could be practiced anyplace and did not have any special connection to any particular place for it to have meaning. Problems were caused because of this when Europeans wanted to use their land to its fullest and they wanted the Native Americans to move to a different place.
In looking at the differences between a civilization living in linear time and one in cyclical time, it is right to say that the outcomes are very different. The Europeans could maximize their use of resources in order to develop the best future they could have. The Native Americans only cared to use their resources enough to survive. It can be seen that the Europeans, living in linear time, thought about progression and development and it worked well enough that they could maximize their future as they pleased. It can also be seen that the Native Americans could have cared less about their future and did not care to think about it until it arrived. By looking at these, it can be said that the Native Americans were also very happy and content with the way they lived and felt no need for change. In conclusion, civilizations living in cyclical time cannot advance, although they can produce enough so that they stay alive and do not fall apart, if not for an outside invasion of their way of life.
