Realism

1800S
Where did realism come from?

 Realism is the result of the public being tired of Transcendentalism, Anti-

Transcendentalism, and Romanticism.
 Although these literary periods captured the emotion of the public, they often
depicted un-realistic characters. (I.e. knight in shining armor as portrayed in
romantic texts).
 This also focuses on the drama in the texts(not just romantic aspects)
 The public (new generation) wanted a more real depiction of what life really
was.
 Life was getting harder and harder as the nation started to divide, and the
economy dropped
Realism before the Civil war

 What is Americanism before the civil war?

 Tension in politics/ slavery/ states rights were very high.
 There were some slave narratives at this time
 Conditions were already tough with expansion west and homesteading.
 Most of the literature before the war focused on the harshness of countey
life and it's impacts there.
Realism and the Civil
War 1861-1865
 Although Realism started before the
Civil War, the Civil War solidified it as a
literary period.
 People could no- longer buy into stories
that depicted romantic life styles centered
on love, purity, and justice because they
were seeing death and destruction right in
front of them. (The civil war is the only war
fought on American soil).
 The public could not believe fanciful stories
because of the sobering realities of the war.
 Some scholars estimate that over 300,000
people died as an result from the war.
The Battle of
Antietam
The more the war raged, the more brutal
the battles became. As the south got
more desperate, the more men they sent
into the field and the more reckless they
got.
What is Realism? Definition.

 Time period:
 Realism was often the answer to the question "Who are we really?"
 This concept is not really relative now, but "Who are we" in the 1800s

 Realism often depicts real people in real situations, and how they dealt with it,
good or bad. Authors did not stretch the truth or personify like you see in other
time periods, they simply told stories worth telling, and told stories that the
working public could relate to.
 Because of the war, the only people making money were people actively in
the war or the brains behind, so often times stories would center around
soldiers, farmers, and lower class transients.
 Some stories would originate from the old south and the plantations
Key players

 Non fiction writers/ political influences

 Non-fiction writers: Slave narratives
 Slave Narratives: First hand accounts of slavery in American during the 19th
century. Often written in protest/ to raise awareness about the truth of the
southern plantations and the every day life of a slave.
 These slave Narratives were relatively rare (because of literacy) and even
more scarcely published during the actual time period.
 Political:
 Abraham Lincoln elected in 1860: Emancipation proclamation - "freed"
slaves / started the process of freeing slaves
Louisa May Alcott

 November 29, 1832 – March 6, 1888

 Was an abolitionist and feminist who grew up in the company of many
Transcendentalists.
 Most famous works:
 Little Women
 Little Men
 Hospital Sketches- written on the 6 week time period that she nursed fallen soldiers in
1863
 Her work usually reflected American Life at that time, with a hint of emotion left from
the Transcendentalist movement. She also was not afraid to write about serious and
taboo issues of the time which gave her readers a more correct account than other
writers of the time.
Mark Twain (reconstructionism)

 Born: 1835 Died: 1910

 Real name: Samuel Langhorne Clemens
 Most famous works:
 The Adventures of Tom Sawyer
 The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
 Short stories and periodicals
 HIs work (especially pre- civil war) focused on the American voice of the time.
Often his characters would speak in American dialects and often reflect the
education at the time. His characters would often embark on adventures
within the American wilderness, which added to the American voice even
more.
Jack London

 Born1876 – Died1916
 Most famous works
 Call of the Wild
 White Fang
 The Sea Wolf
 Many short stories

 Although nearing the end of realism, Jack London's stories often portrayed the
brutality of nature and the American Wilderness. Many of his works centered
around major events like the Klondike gold Rush. He also contributed to some
of the first science fiction in the American literary cannon.
Other Authors - Going into
Naturalism/ Regionalism

 Sarah Orne Jewett

 Willa Cather
 Sherwood Anderson
Realism now – a lot has changed
Realism is now, not really a reflection of real life- but of real trauma and phycological scars. It is no-longer about what real- life looks like, but
arguably, how bad real life can be.

War movies Teen movies Execution

Gruesomeness – Realism in Real- life scenarios Realism in application
Scenario/ trauma
Realism in concept
Extended realism

Superhero Hard SYFY TV Shows

Elemental Realism – Realism through scenario Realism through suffering
psychological comparisons to
real life Comparisons to real life scenarios Realism through character
with a syfy twist development