HERMANN HESSE AND THE DIALECTICS OF TIME Salvatore C. P. ...

In the first place, time is no longer regarded as an absolute in his theory. Time
measurements depend on the frame of reference of the observer of a given event (i.e.
the velocity of this frame of reference with respect to the fixed stars); moreover, if the
frame of reference in question moves at a speed that is comparable to that of light,
measurements from this frame will be shorter than the ones calculated on a frame of
reference moving at a speed much lower than light. 5 A second point refers to the
great emphasis laid on the correlation of time and space in Einstein's theory, which
'exhibits such an intimate interdependence of temporal and spatial relations that
time and space can no longer be treated as essentially independent subjects7 (Van
Fraassen, 140) .6 Thirdly, and this point is of great relevance to the present discussion
(see 5.2), Einstein challenges the concept of simultaneity: '[In his theory,] there is no
physical basis for the relation of simultaneity between events that are spatially
separate' (Van Fraassen, 155). 7
With regard to 'the fleeting', the attention reserved to aspects of life which are
transitory is a sign of the new cultural climate which emerged at the end of the
nineteenth century and during the first decades of the twentieth. 8 This period is
indeed marked by experimentation with themes, techniques, and forms, not to
mention the growing curiosity around photography and the advancement of the new
medium of cinema. 9 With reference to the literary discourse, although its evolution is
complex and multifaceted, authors generally tend to move away from Realism and
towards positions that are grouped under the heading of Modernism. A change in
the narrative perspective, as Midgley argues, captures this transition:
Whereas Realism [...] entails a delicate balance between authorial utterance
(diegesis) and the reflection of observed reality (mimesis), Modernism tends to
pursue mimetic methods 'to their limits'. (7)
5 'Different observers may have different impressions of distance but, according to Einstein, they cannot
calculate different velocities of light; so, in other words, they must have different measurements of time. No
longer can they speak of absolute time' (Holland, 107).
6 Time and space are however interrelated factors in classical mechanics too, as appears in the formula:
D(istance) = V(elocity) * T(ime).
7 The concept of simultaneity plays such a crucial role in Einstein's theory that, for him, any discourse on time
entails a discourse on simultaneous events.
8 To be sure, this climate originated in the political and military unrest sweeping Europe at the time. In this
context, the urgencies of the present concerned the general public more than any long-term preoccupation.
9 We already noted the novelty of jazz and dodecaphony within the musical context (Chapter 3, section 4), and
Cubism in the fine arts (Chapter 4, section 5).
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