Realism and Naturalism 1865-1910

Realism Realism is a nineteenth-century literary movement that depicts life without idealizing or romanticizing it. It usually focuses on middle and lower class people such as: shop girls, merchants, poor factory workers, etc.

Realism attempts to explain why ordinary people behave the way they do. Realists believe that people can choose their own directions in life and make their own moral choices.

Author’s to Remember Ambrose Bierce’s story “An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge” represents the new wave in fictions – realism Kate Chopin depicts Louisiana’s unique mix of cultures Mark Twain and Bret Harte convey to the nation the rough excitement of the West.

Naturalism Naturalism is an extreme kind of realism. Naturalists believe in the “Survival of the Fittest” It stresses that mankind is a victim of fate or circumstance caught in the vicious struggle of life.

Naturalists believe that people have little control over their own lives. Naturalistic writers see mankind as creatures acted upon by nature. They try to write objectively about life. Naturalist writers such as Frank Norris and Stephen Crane focus on the powerful economic, social, and environmental forces that shape the lives of the individuals.

Six things that led to the rise of realism and naturalism Civil War Growth or railroads and telegraphs Influence of foreign literature Science – Darwin’s Origin of the Species Mass immigration – overcrowding in cities, hunger, child labor, etc. Rapid industrialization