Tesman vs. Lovborg

One thing that has been seen throughout the play is the concept of time and how each character is associated with different time periods. This is probably one of the bigger characteristics of each character as well and you can definitely see it with Lovborg and Tesman. If you look at the two, they are actually very similar; they are both scholars, publish books, have relationships with Hedda, are controlled by Hedda, have very low self-esteem, base their actions off others, and most importantly, have writing their next book as the main focus in their life. This is where the concept of time splits them - Tesman's book is all about the past, while Lovborg's book is all about the future. Tesman is fully concerned about past events, as fully demonstrated in his speech. He loves talking about the past and tries to relate it to his present (as most seen with Aunt Julie). Also, he rarely uses and form of speech with the future, always using past tense, even referring to present actions in the past (like when Hedda killed herself, "Shot herself! Shot herself in the templ! Can you imagine!") This even furthur demonstrates how he doesn't seem to see present situations as present situtations, instead he sees them as past situations that he can look at, research, and comment on. This completely differs from Lovborg. First off, Lovborg is writing a book about the future, something that cannot really be done. Also, Lovborg does not focus on his past, and tries to separate himself from it (as seen with his refusal to drink). Lovborg also often talks in the future tense, talking about things he will do or would like to do.
This difference in time fully separates and differentiates Lovborg and Tesman. Though the two are very similar, this outlook in time shows their different personalities and outlook on life. Lovborg, with his futuristic views, has much more hope and faith, and is more easily broken and let down, as nothing is set in stone. Tesman on the other hand, is less phased by things, and is more oblivious to what is going on around him, as his mind is set in the past and therefore sees his life as he wishes it to be, taking event from the past and viewing them how he wants to.