Literary realism
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Literary realism most often refers to the trend, beginning with certain works of nineteenth-century French literature and extending to late-nineteenth- and early-twentieth-century authors in various countries, towards depictions of contemporary life and society 'as they were'. In the spirit of general "realism", Realist authors opted for depictions of everyday and banal activities and experiences, instead of a romanticized or similarly stylized presentation.
[edit] Anglophones
George Eliot's novel Middlemarch stands as a great milestone in the realist tradition. It is a primary example of nineteenth-century realism's role in the naturalization of the burgeoning capitalist marketplace.
William Dean Howells was the first American author to bring a realist aesthetic to the literature of the United States. His stories of 1850s Boston upper-crust life are highly regarded among scholars of American fiction and by anyone who has an appreciation for realist writing. His most popular novel, The Rise of Silas Lapham, depicts a man who, ironically, falls from materialistic fortune by his own mistakes. The novel ends with his return to the farm he once left behind. Howells is known for his wry humor, wit, and well developed characters.
[edit] Zenith
Gustave Flaubert is regarded by many critics as representing the zenith of the realist style with his unadorned prose and attention to the details of everyday life. Later "realist" writers included Guy de Maupassant, Bolesław Prus and, in a sense, Émile Zola, whose naturalism is often regarded as an offshoot of realism.
[edit] See also
- French literature of the 19th century
- American realism
- Chanson réaliste (realist song), a style of music which was directly influenced by realist literary movement in France
[edit] External links
- Article giving historical facts about the school of realism
- Realism in American literature at the Literary Movements site
- "Victorian Realism – how real?" on BBC Radio 4’s In Our Time featuring Philip Davis, A.N. Wilson and Dinah Birch
