title: What is a "sense of foreshortened future?" A phenomenological study of trauma, trust, and time.
abstract: One of the symptoms of trauma is said to be a "sense of foreshortened future." Without further qualification, it is not clear how to interpret this. In this paper, we offer a phenomenological account of what the experience consists of. To do so, we focus on the effects of torture. We describe how traumatic events, especially those that are deliberately inflicted by other people, can lead to a loss of "trust" or "confidence" in the world. This undermines the intelligibility of one's projects, cares, and commitments, in a way that amounts to a change in the structure of temporal experience. The paper concludes by briefly addressing the implications of this for how we respond to trauma, as well as offering some remarks on the relationship between trauma and psychosis.
authors.affiliation: Department of Philosophy, Durham University Durham, UK.
authors.forename: Matthew
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ratcliffe
authors.affiliation: Northumberland, Tyne and Wear NHS Foundation Trust Newcastle upon Tyne, UK.
authors.forename: Mark
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ruddell
authors.affiliation: Department of Philosophy, Durham University Durham, UK.
authors.forename: Benedict
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Smith
keywords: Husserl; anticipation; interpersonal relations; temporal experience; torture; trauma; trust