Dictionary.com provides the definition of realism as this: “The tendency to view or represent things as they really are.” This is, of course, the bare-bones definition of the word, but it is a good basis from which to start.
Realism was an era of art and literature that spawned from a backlash to its predecessor, Romanticism. While Romanticism took pains to portray the ideal of life, to show perfection and beauty, Realism wanted to portray what life really was like (Werlock). This often involved writings or art about the middle and lower classes, rather than the rodomontading upper class with its recherché (Diamond). Realists wanted their work to be relatable and pertinent to the problems of average people. They strove more for truth in their work than the idle fantasies of Romanticism.
A big reason as to why this switch probably happened is the Civil War. After such a reality-wrenching war in which everyone was affected in some way, dreams of something better were more often than not shattered for most people. They began to be drawn back into reality so that they could survive the hard times during the war and rebuild after the war was finished, and this reflected in the writing of the post-war period.
The hero of this literary movement, as a result of this outlook on life, was the everyday, average man. He or she was probably a member of the middle or working class and experienced problems that normal people would often experience, such as losing a job or dealing with emotions such as regret or nostalgia. In this way, the hero of Realism would reach out to the common masses of people faced with reunited the country and keeping their sanity in the fast-paced footsteps of industrialism, and often, this hero would help those ordinary people find solutions to their own problems or even excite social change. While Romanticism may have been art for art’s sake, Realism became art for life’s sake (Diamond).
Works Cited
Diamond, Marie Josephine, ed. "realism." Encyclopedia of World Writers, 19th and 20th Centuries. New York: Facts On File, Inc., 2003. Bloom's Literary Reference Online. Facts On File, Inc. 16 Feb. 2011. http://www.fofweb.com/.
Werlock, Abby H. P. "realism." The Facts On File Companion to the American Short Story, Second Edition. New York: Facts On File, Inc., 2009. Bloom's Literary Reference Online. Facts On File, Inc. 16 Feb. 2011. http://www.fofweb.com/.
"Realism." Dictionary.com. Web. 16 Feb. 2011. http://www.dictionary.com/.
Realism was an era of art and literature that spawned from a backlash to its predecessor, Romanticism. While Romanticism took pains to portray the ideal of life, to show perfection and beauty, Realism wanted to portray what life really was like (Werlock). This often involved writings or art about the middle and lower classes, rather than the rodomontading upper class with its recherché (Diamond). Realists wanted their work to be relatable and pertinent to the problems of average people. They strove more for truth in their work than the idle fantasies of Romanticism.
A big reason as to why this switch probably happened is the Civil War. After such a reality-wrenching war in which everyone was affected in some way, dreams of something better were more often than not shattered for most people. They began to be drawn back into reality so that they could survive the hard times during the war and rebuild after the war was finished, and this reflected in the writing of the post-war period.
The hero of this literary movement, as a result of this outlook on life, was the everyday, average man. He or she was probably a member of the middle or working class and experienced problems that normal people would often experience, such as losing a job or dealing with emotions such as regret or nostalgia. In this way, the hero of Realism would reach out to the common masses of people faced with reunited the country and keeping their sanity in the fast-paced footsteps of industrialism, and often, this hero would help those ordinary people find solutions to their own problems or even excite social change. While Romanticism may have been art for art’s sake, Realism became art for life’s sake (Diamond).
Works Cited
Diamond, Marie Josephine, ed. "realism." Encyclopedia of World Writers, 19th and 20th Centuries. New York: Facts On File, Inc., 2003. Bloom's Literary Reference Online. Facts On File, Inc. 16 Feb. 2011. http://www.fofweb.com/
Werlock, Abby H. P. "realism." The Facts On File Companion to the American Short Story, Second Edition. New York: Facts On File, Inc., 2009. Bloom's Literary Reference Online. Facts On File, Inc. 16 Feb. 2011. http://www.fofweb.com/
"Realism." Dictionary.com. Web. 16 Feb. 2011. http://www.dictionary.com/
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