Abstract: The concept of the "regime of historicity", proposed by French historian François Hartog, focuses on different understandings of the relationship of the three dimensions of time, i.e., the past, the present and the future, in a given age or society. In the modern regime of historicity, people believe in the priority of the future and are convinced that history will lead to a better future. It is the French Revolution and the post-revolutionary reflections that have shaped this futurist regime. However, two centuries after the French Revolution, the radicalism which previously motivated people to transform societies fundamentally in order to realize an idealized future is gradually vanishing, and the world has entered into an age in which the present takes precedence over the past and the future. Although the concept of presentism is universal to some extent, Hartog merely concentrates on the French experience so that he fails to embrace the diverse time experiences in different countries in the post-revolution era.

Key words: regime of historicity, the French Revolution, futurism, presentism