This is because stories were traditionally told using the past tense. This made the narrator sound as if they were narrating events from a distance, instead of being 'present' amongst the action.

With a style as daring as his narrative sense, Rob Tregenza dramatizes the moral dilemmas of Norwegians under Nazi occupation ...

Present tense should still be used even if the research you ... In the methods section one would use past tense due to what they have done was in the past. It has been debated whether one should use ...

They say those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it. Tonight on Absolutely Not, CBS News Miami's Jim Berry shares his thoughts on the past and the present.