presentist
Only now matters
A presentist judges the past by present-day values and standards, often critically.
The term usually carries a negative connotation—suggesting unfairness in condemning historical figures for views that were commonplace in their time: It's presentist to dismiss Jefferson entirely because he owned slaves.
The corresponding noun is presentism.
contemporary
Directed flow of charge
- modernOf recent times
- immediateHappening without delay
- real-timeOccurring without processing delay
- up-to-the-minuteReflecting the latest developments
bias
Ignoring past events
- teleologyStudy of purpose in nature
- judgmentalismTendency to harshly evaluate others
- shortsightednessInability to see distance
historiographical
Belief justification varies situationally
- historicismEra determines truth claims
- revisionismReexamining established doctrine
- periodizationDivision into distinct periods
- diachronicConcerning change over time
philosophical
Attractive or appropriate
- nowThe present moment
- priorExisting before another
- momentarinessBrief duration quality
anachronism
Wrongly placed in time
- misdateAssign incorrect time
- misattributionCrediting the wrong source
- misreadingIncorrect interpretation of text
current
Directed flow of charge
ahistorical
Ignoring past events
- teleologyStudy of purpose in nature
- judgmentalismTendency to harshly evaluate others
- shortsightednessInability to see distance
contextualism
Belief justification varies situationally
- historicismEra determines truth claims
- revisionismReexamining established doctrine
- periodizationDivision into distinct periods
becoming
Attractive or appropriate
- nowThe present moment
- priorExisting before another
- momentarinessBrief duration quality
anachronistic
Wrongly placed in time
- misdateAssign incorrect time
- misattributionCrediting the wrong source
- misreadingIncorrect interpretation of text
temporal interpretive framework
presentisthistoricist
One who interprets through context
contextualist · relativist · antiquarian · originalist · traditionalist