Although the past has been chronologically removed from the present, “the past is never dead and buried. It actually didn't even pass,” William Faulkner said. The theme of time is a common expression in American literature, as seen in The Lacuna, by Barbara Kingsolver, and Middlesex, by Jeffery Eugenides. Both authors demonstrate the importance of the past by showing past historical events and how they changed the characters' lives. Kingsolver and Eugenides use the past tense and express its importance, instead of considering it “dead”. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay In Lacuna, the past was an important part of the present because Leon Trotsky's past spilled over into his present and influenced the main character, Harrison Shepherd's, impression of humanity. When the reader meets Shepherd, he, a young boy, often goes "to the seaside again for much of the day" and has little regard for time, just as when he is older, which contrasts with Trotsky's past - a past full of important previous actions (Kingsolver, 7). “A false telegram on a train” forced Trotsky to live abroad for the rest of his life, proving that the past sets a precedent for the rest of one's life (Kingsolver 244). Since from that moment on Trotsky was constantly monitored and under the pressure of death, every moment of life has more value. Because Shepherd had such a simple life, with so little respect for the past, it is difficult for Shepherd to understand this until Lev is killed. On August 27, 1946, six years after Lev's death, Shepherd says, "Last week, the same day, even the bedroom was too uncertain a place," inadvertently expressing his grief over Lev's death (Kingsolver 326 ). Since Lev was the only father figure in Shepherd's life to actually call him son, his death carries a lot of weight for Shepherd. Suddenly, Shepherd's understanding of the concept of the past increases. Before, for Shepherd, the past was just a period of time that had already happened, but Trotsky's death was caused by Trotsky's actions 13 years before his murder. This awareness of the importance of the past is carried with Shepherd, allowing him to better understand the importance of the past. The importance of the past is also impressed upon Shepherd when he is accused of being a communist, due to his ties to the Mexican communist. Party. The American government, already understanding the danger of past experiences, worries about the prospect of Shepherd's communist background and what he might preach to the American public when his previous jobs enter the public domain: translator at the Trotsky trials and loyal cook to Diego Rivera . The American public, openly fearful of the prospect of the Communist Party growing in the United States as it did in Russia, completely stops reading Shepherd's best-selling books in New York due to a "'Ban Harrison Shepherd' window display", claiming that Shepherd is a communist (Kingsolver 473). The United States has tried to learn from the mistakes made in the past by other countries, but is taking extreme measures, disrupting the livelihoods of innocent people. Never before had his past so drastically affected his present. Ultimately, realizing that he cannot separate himself from his past, he decides that he must "kill himself" to create a new life. In Middlesex, Lefty and Desdemona don't need to kill each other to separate from their past, just move on to a new life. country and obtain new legal documentation. When they decide to get married, they must distance themselves from the sibling relationship they once had.