The Period of Realism and Naturalism--(1870-1910)
Introduction:
The Period of Realism and Naturalism came about as a reaction to the Romanticism movement that dealt with the imaginative, heroic, and creative. Naturalism is a sect in Realism, just like Transcendentalism is a sect in Romanticism. It was a literary movement that developed near the end of the Civil War in the mid 1860's. It came about as people began to realize the harsh reality of frontier life and also because the Civil War shattered the nation's idealism. Realism prevailed, however, as the Industrial Revolution gripped the nation.
Realism has characteristics that define it as a distinct literature group. Works written during the Realism era often portrayed characters in normal, everyday situations. The character is the main focus of Realistic literature and the characters are reasonable related to each other, their social classes, nature, and to their past. Often times the novels written praised the insurgent middle class of America. The subject matter is also usually drawn from actual experiences.
The diction used was a natural vernacular or dialect; it was no longer poetic. The tone in the literature was often satiric and matter-of-fact and the purposes for writing were usually to instruct or entertain. Realists rejected the use of symbolism and the traits of Romanticism. The author's set their story in locations that they were usually familiar with. Ambrose Bierce described Realism as "The art of depicting nature as seen by toads." Famous realist authors were Kate Chopin, Charles Dickens, and Mark Twain.
Naturalism can be referred to as an extension of Realism. Like Realism, it portrayed real people in real scenarios, but it held that forces larger than the individual, such as fate, nature, and heredity, shaped the individual's destiny. Naturalism is more pessimistic than Realism and is inspired by hardships such as war and urbanization. Naturalist works often featured lower-class individuals who had poor education. A force larger than themselves, such as instinct or passion, directed the individuals’ lives that were featured in Naturalist works. Several common themes of Naturalism are survival, shown through man's struggle against nature or man's struggle against himself, determinism, which holds that all events have sufficient causes, and violence, reflecting the nation's struggle with war. Famous Naturalist authors were Stephen Crane, Jack London, and Guy de Maupassant.
Even though Naturalism slightly differs from Realism, they both paint a picture of the life and experiences of an average person. The movement was like a wake up call to America as they quickly realized that their future would not be so optimistic because of the Civil War. The period of Realism and Naturalism was also one where America transformed into a modern and industrial power. The beginning of the era was marked by slavery, which was soon addressed in the Civil War. The Civil War resulted in a new category of literature that reflected the lives of everyday Americans.
Realism has characteristics that define it as a distinct literature group. Works written during the Realism era often portrayed characters in normal, everyday situations. The character is the main focus of Realistic literature and the characters are reasonable related to each other, their social classes, nature, and to their past. Often times the novels written praised the insurgent middle class of America. The subject matter is also usually drawn from actual experiences.
The diction used was a natural vernacular or dialect; it was no longer poetic. The tone in the literature was often satiric and matter-of-fact and the purposes for writing were usually to instruct or entertain. Realists rejected the use of symbolism and the traits of Romanticism. The author's set their story in locations that they were usually familiar with. Ambrose Bierce described Realism as "The art of depicting nature as seen by toads." Famous realist authors were Kate Chopin, Charles Dickens, and Mark Twain.
Naturalism can be referred to as an extension of Realism. Like Realism, it portrayed real people in real scenarios, but it held that forces larger than the individual, such as fate, nature, and heredity, shaped the individual's destiny. Naturalism is more pessimistic than Realism and is inspired by hardships such as war and urbanization. Naturalist works often featured lower-class individuals who had poor education. A force larger than themselves, such as instinct or passion, directed the individuals’ lives that were featured in Naturalist works. Several common themes of Naturalism are survival, shown through man's struggle against nature or man's struggle against himself, determinism, which holds that all events have sufficient causes, and violence, reflecting the nation's struggle with war. Famous Naturalist authors were Stephen Crane, Jack London, and Guy de Maupassant.
Even though Naturalism slightly differs from Realism, they both paint a picture of the life and experiences of an average person. The movement was like a wake up call to America as they quickly realized that their future would not be so optimistic because of the Civil War. The period of Realism and Naturalism was also one where America transformed into a modern and industrial power. The beginning of the era was marked by slavery, which was soon addressed in the Civil War. The Civil War resulted in a new category of literature that reflected the lives of everyday Americans.
Mark Twain:
Samuel L. Clemens was born on November 30, 1835 in Florida, Missouri. When he became four years old, he and his large family of nine moved to the small frontier town of Hannibal, Missouri. Hannibal was on the banks of the Mississippi River. Missouri was a slave state at the time and Samuel's uncle owned several of them; Samuel would often spend his summers listening to the tall tales that they would tell. However, in 1847, while Sam was in fifth grade, his father died. Because of this incident, he was forced to leave school and work as a printer's apprentice at a local newspaper. Working at a newspaper, he had access to the world's news at his fingertips.
At age eighteen, he moved to New York and later Pennsylvania finding some success as a newspaper article writer. In 1857, he moved back home to work his dream job as a riverboat pilot on the Mississippi River. When the Civil War started, all traffic on the Mississippi came to a halt, so he had to find a new job. He decided to head west at the invitation of his brother, Orion. Orion was the secretary of the Nevada Territory, which was undergoing a silver rush at the time. Sam failed as a silver prospector, but he began writing for the Territorial Enterprise, where he used his pen name Mark Twain for the first time. His first big break came with the publication of "The Notorious Jumping Frog of Calaveras County" in 1865.
His writings had become increasingly popular and had allowed him to embark on a lecture tour. Twain got the opportunity to travel the world and he took it. It was on this trip that he met his wife, Olivia. After two years of courting, they wed in 1870 and moved to Buffalo, New York. Here, Mark became an editor and writer for the Buffalo Express. It was also in Buffalo that their first child, Langdon Clemens, was born. A year later, the family moved the Hartford, Connecticut. In 1872, Twain published Roughing It, a book of tall tales and recollections from his frontier adventures. The couple's first daughter Susy was born in 1872, but Langdon became ill with Diphtheria and died at the age of only two years old. Sam and Olivia birthed two more daughters, Clara and Jean, in the years following.
For seventeen years, the family of five lived in Hartford. During these years, Mark Twain wrote his most famous works, such as The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court, and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. He was able to enjoy financial success during his years in Hartford because of his publishings. However, he continually made bad investments, which eventually drove him to bankruptcy. The family moved to Europe in effort to economize, but Samuel was forced to set out on another world lecture tour in order to make money. Tragedy struck the family in 1896 when Susy, died at the age of twenty-four due to Meningitis.
Until 1900, Sam and his family traveled the world. He became increasingly angry at Imperialistic countries and with the outbreak of the Spanish-American War over the Philippines, he directed his wrath towards the American government. He moved back to America and served as the vice president of the Anti-Imperialistic League. Life began going downhill for Twain when his wife died in Italy and his youngest daughter died of an epileptic seizure. On April 21, 1910, Mark Twain died at the age of seventy-four. Even though his later life was marred by his anti-government writings, Twain remains to be one of the most brilliant American authors.
At age eighteen, he moved to New York and later Pennsylvania finding some success as a newspaper article writer. In 1857, he moved back home to work his dream job as a riverboat pilot on the Mississippi River. When the Civil War started, all traffic on the Mississippi came to a halt, so he had to find a new job. He decided to head west at the invitation of his brother, Orion. Orion was the secretary of the Nevada Territory, which was undergoing a silver rush at the time. Sam failed as a silver prospector, but he began writing for the Territorial Enterprise, where he used his pen name Mark Twain for the first time. His first big break came with the publication of "The Notorious Jumping Frog of Calaveras County" in 1865.
His writings had become increasingly popular and had allowed him to embark on a lecture tour. Twain got the opportunity to travel the world and he took it. It was on this trip that he met his wife, Olivia. After two years of courting, they wed in 1870 and moved to Buffalo, New York. Here, Mark became an editor and writer for the Buffalo Express. It was also in Buffalo that their first child, Langdon Clemens, was born. A year later, the family moved the Hartford, Connecticut. In 1872, Twain published Roughing It, a book of tall tales and recollections from his frontier adventures. The couple's first daughter Susy was born in 1872, but Langdon became ill with Diphtheria and died at the age of only two years old. Sam and Olivia birthed two more daughters, Clara and Jean, in the years following.
For seventeen years, the family of five lived in Hartford. During these years, Mark Twain wrote his most famous works, such as The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court, and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. He was able to enjoy financial success during his years in Hartford because of his publishings. However, he continually made bad investments, which eventually drove him to bankruptcy. The family moved to Europe in effort to economize, but Samuel was forced to set out on another world lecture tour in order to make money. Tragedy struck the family in 1896 when Susy, died at the age of twenty-four due to Meningitis.
Until 1900, Sam and his family traveled the world. He became increasingly angry at Imperialistic countries and with the outbreak of the Spanish-American War over the Philippines, he directed his wrath towards the American government. He moved back to America and served as the vice president of the Anti-Imperialistic League. Life began going downhill for Twain when his wife died in Italy and his youngest daughter died of an epileptic seizure. On April 21, 1910, Mark Twain died at the age of seventy-four. Even though his later life was marred by his anti-government writings, Twain remains to be one of the most brilliant American authors.
Literary Themes:
The Realism and Naturalism Period of literature occurred as a result of the Civil War and the realization of the harsh frontier life. The nation's idealism was shattered and authors turned to writing stories that dealt mainly with real, everyday circumstances and even survival and determinism. Bierce's "An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge" is set in a normal day during the Civil War. He narrates the main character's events as if they were everyday happenings during that time period. London's "To Build a Fire" focuses on the Naturalistic brutality of nature, or a power greater than man, against man. An unnamed man struggles to survive in the Alaskan wilderness and ultimately fails at doing so. The man's companion, a husky, reveals the determinism of nature itself as the dog ends up surviving. This literary movement was one characterized by real people in real situations at the mercy of nature or even fate.
Key Authors:
- Ambrose Bierce: Author of "An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge", Tales of Soldiers and Civilians, Can Such Things Be?, and his "Prattler" column
- Randolph McKim: Author of "A Confederate Account of the Battle of Gettysburg"
- Stephen Crane: Author of "An Episode of War", Maggie: A Girl of the Streets, The Red Badge of Courage: An Episode of the American Civil War, and War is Kind
- Frederick Douglass: Author of My Bondage and My Freedom, and Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave, Written By Himself
- Abraham Lincoln: Author of the Gettysburg Address
- Robert E. Lee: Author of "Letter to His Son"
- Sojourner Truth: Author of " An Account of an Experience with Discrimination", and The Narrative of Sojourner Truth
- Mark Twain: Author of The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, The Innocents Abroad, A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court, and " The Notorious Jumping Frog of Calaveras County"
- Jack London: Author of The Call of the Wild, The Sea-Wolf, White Fang, and "To Build a Fire"
- Miriam Davis Colt: Author of "Went to Kansas; Being a Thrilling Account of an Ill-Fated Expedition to that Fairy Land, and its Sad Results"
- Chief Joseph: Author of " I Will Fight No More Forever"
- Kate Chopin: Author of At Fault, The Awakening, and "The Story of an Hour"
- Paul Laurence Dunbar: Author of "Douglass", "We Wear the Mask", Oak and Ivory, Majors and Minors, and Lyrics of a Lowly Life
- Edwin Arlington Robinson: Author of "Luke Havergal", "Richard Cory", and The Town Down the River
- Edgar Lee Masters: Author of Across Spoon River, and Spoon River Anthology