Have you have uttered the words I wish I just had more time or there’s not
enough time in the day? Surely you have, we all have at some point or another.With
this week the clocks changing and being set back an hour, the hope by many is to gain
an extra hour of time, but will it really make any difference? No is the likely
answer because time is constantly shrinking as our days go on and our schedules
fill up. The concept of time varies from person to person, but in all reality are
the viewpoints really all that different?
According to Theory Toolbox, “we experience time in individual, often
idiosyncratic ways, but these experiences are also shaped by larger social
processes” (Bowman and Littlefield 111). I agree that we all do experience time
individually, but our concept of time is constantly being pulled backed and forth
between us and our place in society, whether it be school, work, family, etc. I
have my personal time, or at least what one could consider personal time, but that
is only when I am free of obligations to spend time at school or work. My time is
only a portion of what I have left after the rest of it has been occupied by
school, work, family, friends, and daily chores. I guess sleeping could probably
be considered “my time”, but in all reality the typical five to six hours a night
that I do get really don’t make me feel like free time or personal time, they are
more like intervals necessary for survival to make it through what the times of
tomorrow will bring. We all know what tomorrow will bring and that is waking up in
the morning or late afternoon, depending on age, to begin the rat race that is
called a day.
A day consists of 24 hours, but with a set portion set aside for sleeping, it’s
now down to around 16 hours. Society sets in place where, how, and when your time
should be spent, overall making it something that you, an individual, is not in
control of. For example, are kids at home between 8:00am and 3:00pm watching TV or
playing video games? No because society tells us that kids are supposed to be in
school learning during those times. How about that dreaded 9:00-5:00 time frame?
Well that is of course the typical work day, the time when people sit behind
cubicles or have business meetings or type so many words per minute on their
desktop. As these people all sit in their preset places they watch as the clocks
slowly tick by and wonder if they will have enough time to complete all that is
left in their day.
I think we like to hold on to the idea of having our own time, but aside from
sleep, time is ruled by everything we have to do for everyone else, not by us.
Most people find themselves in the same situations, days occupied by work or
school or family and just trying to get it all done. Our time is occupied and
therefore shaped by our surroundings and the experiences we have with the world
everyday. Basically, time has been neatly organized by the society we live in.
Hi Jacqueline, excellent reflection on the concept of time. It's interesting to consider that time is not something that simply is, but rather a frame of reference that is socially constructed--and usually according to the cliche, time is money. We always talk about saving time, or spending time. Time is not an organic entity but a perception that is mediated by our social and cultural experiences. Good post. dw
ReplyDeleteI love this post of yours. Several times during my week, I think What happened to all the reading and writing and studying I was going to get done? Where did all of my time go? I think it's accurate to say that other people, in a way, took my time from me. I can never really pinpoint a particular time that I just sat down and did nothing. I was always doing something, whether it was particularly relevant to school and work or not. In fact, the idea that I can't necessarily pinpoint a time that I just had to myself honestly scares me a little. It's weird to think that we spend so much time dedicated to doing things for other people but we have so little time to ourselves.
ReplyDeleteWhat I'm trying to say is that I really enjoyed your post and can really relate. :)