past 的词源

14世纪初，past的意思是“完成、结束、不再存在”，它是passed的变体，后者是passen的过去分词，意为“经过”。（具体参见pass (v.)）。到了14世纪中期，past又引申出“已经过去、属于之前的时间”这个意思。1520年代，它开始用于表示“过去的动作或状态”，即语法上的“过去分词”。1775年，past participle这个词汇被记录下来，而past tense则出现在1650年代。作为介词时，past表示“在时间或位置上超越”，大约在1300年左右开始使用，这个用法源自其形容词形式。

大约在公元1500年，past（形容词）开始用来表示“过去的时光，曾经的时间”。到1836年，这个词还被用来指代“过去的生活、事业或历史”。

The past is the only dead thing that smells sweet,

The only sweet thing that is not also fleet.

[Edward Thomas, from "Early one morning"]

过去是唯一闻起来香甜的死物，

唯一不短暂的甜美事物。

——爱德华·托马斯，《清晨时分》

AMERICA does not repel the past, or what it has produced under its forms or amid other politics or the idea of castes or the old religions .... accepts the lesson with calmness ... is not so impatient as has been supposed that the slough still sticks to opinions and manners and literature while the life which served its requirements has passed into the new life of the new forms ... perceives that the corpse is slowly borne from the eating and sleeping rooms of the house ... perceives that it waits a little while in the door ... that it was fittest for its days ... that its action has descended to the stalwart and wellshaped heir who approaches ... and that he shall be fittest for his days. [Whitman, opening of the preface to "Leaves of Grass," 1855]

美国并不拒绝过去，也不排斥在其形式下或在其他政治体系、种姓制度或古老宗教中所产生的一切……它平静地接受这些教训……并不像人们想象的那样急于摆脱那些仍然附着在观念、风俗和文学上的旧习，尽管为这些旧习服务的生命已经融入了新形式的新生活……它意识到，那具尸体正缓缓地从房子的餐厅和卧室被抬走……它看到尸体在门口稍作停留……明白那是最适合它的日子……它的行动已经传承给了那个强壮而英俊的继承者，他正走近……而他也将是最适合他时代的人。——惠特曼，《草叶集》序言开头，1855年

Progress, far from consisting in change, depends on retentiveness. When change is absolute there remains no being to improve and no direction is set for possible improvement: and when experience is not retained, as among savages, infancy is perpetual. Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it. [George Santayana, "The Life of Reason," 1905]

进步并非单纯依赖变化，而是依赖于对过去的保留。当变化是绝对的，就再也没有什么可以改进，也没有方向可言；而当经验无法保留时，就像野蛮人一样，社会将永远处于幼稚状态。那些无法记住过去的人，注定要重蹈覆辙。——乔治·桑塔亚那，《理性的生活》，1905年

[T]he past cannot be presented; we cannot know what we are not. [Thoreau]

[过去]无法被呈现；我们无法了解我们所不是的东西。——亨利·大卫·梭罗

The past is never dead. It's not even past. [Faulkner, "Requiem for a Nun," 1950]

过去从未消逝。它甚至还未真正过去。——威廉·福克纳，《修道院的悼词》，1950年