How does Laurence Sterne use digressions in Tristram Shandy?

In Tristram Shandy, Laurence Sterne employs digressions as a fundamental narrative device, subordinating the central story to the free associations of the narrator. Rather than following a linear progression, the novel is structured through endless interruptions, anecdotes, and stories-within-stories.12

Sterne uses these digressions to explore the Lockean principle of the association of ideas, where one thought inevitably leads to another, often pulling the narrative far from its original point. This technique highlights the narrator's struggle to tell his life story, as he realizes that the time required to recount his experiences exceeds the time it takes to live them.21

By breaking chronological order and leaving anecdotes unfinished, Sterne emphasizes the limitations of language and the isolation of individuals. These narrative detours serve to shift the focus from the hero to the nature of his environment and family, ultimately establishing the work as a significant forerunner of psychological fiction and stream-of-consciousness writing.21