The word “before” in literature functions in many versatile ways, often marking a position in time or space while sometimes conveying a sense of precedence or introduction. For instance, in descriptions such as “mowing the grass before houses” [1] and “Everything around him was just as before” [2], it provides a spatial or temporal reference, linking events or locations across a narrative. At times, “before” is imbued with solemnity or immediacy—as when characters swear “before” higher powers or reappear in a former state, as seen in “I swear before” [3] and “But as I before have been…” [4]. It can also be used to signal actions that occur prior to major events, for example, “It was waiting for me as before” [5] and “I shall sail far in the two months that I shall give myself before I come back” [6]. Thus, across diverse texts—from Shakespeare to modern novels—the term “before” enriches the narrative by anchoring actions, emotions, and locations in an unfolding continuum.