analepsis

Analepsis, from Greek ana- "again" and lepsis "taking," is a narrative technique that interrupts chronological progression to depict events that occurred earlier than the current narrative time. In literary analysis it is often equated with the flashback. By inserting analeptic material, writers can reveal backstory, motives, or hidden information that informs the current situation without waiting for it to unfold linearly.

A distinction is sometimes made between internal analepsis, where a character recalls past events, and external analepsis, where a narrator recounts past events to the reader. Analepses can be brief, a single memory, or extended, constituting a substantial portion of a scene or chapter. They may be signaled by cue phrases like "he remembered" or by a shift in point of view, tense, or narrative voice. In narrative theory, analepsis is contrasted with prolepsis (flashforward), which presents future events. The device serves multiple purposes: it can deepen character development, create suspense or irony, foreshadow outcomes, or recast earlier scenes in light of later events.

The use of analepsis requires careful pacing and clear signals to avoid confusing readers about chronology. In film and drama, flashback techniques—visual or dramatic shifts to past moments—perform a similar function, often leveraging editing, framing, or perspective to distinguish past from present. See also prolepsis and flashback.