Narrative Time is a phrase that is
sometimes used to describe the
relationship between
Story Time and
Discourse Time. The different
facets of Narrative Time are commonly split into three areas:
Order
Order examines differences in the order of events between
story time and
discourse time. In
story time, the order of events is fixed: 1-2-3-4. However, in
discourse time, the order of events is selective, and may be changed by the narrator: 2-1-3-4 (for example). This changing of the order of events is called
Anachrony.
Duration
Duration examines the differences in time itself between
story time and
discourse time. In
story time, time is fixed, like a clock. However,
discourse time can be flexed and stretched to be faster or slower. The different types of duration are:
(where DT =
discourse time, ST =
story time, x = some length of time):
- Summary - DT < ST
- Ellipsis - DT = 0, ST = x (skip some of the story in its telling)
- Scene - DT = ST
- Stretch - DT > ST
- Pause - DT = x, ST = 0 (pause the story in its telling)
Frequency
Frequency is the position of the Narrating Instance (the point in time narrator is telling the story) relative to
story time. The different types of frequency are:
- Subsequent - the story is over, and being told "after the fact"
- Prior - before the story has happened (prophetic or apocalyptic)
- Present - story is told as events are happening
- Interpolated - a blend of the above, an example is a novel of collected letters