Realism Project: Realism Itself

"Realism is the attempt to depict life as it actually exists, not as the author wants it to be in the present or the future, or imagines it was in the past" (Werlock). It is a literary period that came after the Romantic literary period, during the mid nineteenth century and focused on the historical aspect of literature. Realism, like the name implies, is literary works that represent something real happening in the world, which is why many of the works used settings and events from the current American history to portray characters or to develop their plot. "It is generally seen as having two distinct strands: social realism (the recording of observable experiences of individual characters within distinct social classes) and psychological realism (the exploration of the hidden and complex workings of the conscious minds of individual characters)" (Giles).

The point of realism was to see what was happening in the world, or with American literature, what was happening in America. Realist writers focused on life events previously considered unimportant by the world of art, adopting human suffering as a topic eschewed by those with delicate tastes" (Brackett). The settings of the stories and the plots were actual places and events that had occurred. For example, in Ambrose Bierce's piece, "The Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge," the story takes place during the Civil War, something that is a major part of American history.

The characters of realist works were quite different from the characters of the romanticist novels. "In place of the noble hero or heroine, exponents of realism tended toward average, middle-class characters; instead of depicting remarkable events and exotic locales, they focused on everyday actions close to home" (Barney). In certain romanticist novels where the hero or heroine does not die, but rather saves the day, realists did not portray their characters that way, because in every day life, not everyone was hero or heroine. The realistic type of writing can be compared to that of historical fiction, "'nothing more and nothing less than the truthful treatment of material'" (Barney).

How did this change come about? The realism literary period was the effect of the development of the American society during the mid and late nineteenth century. The new technology coming in with industrialization and the expansion of the American society gave people a new outlook on what was happening, and their observations were then put into word and paper. Their observations of the historical events put into an interesting story that people could relate to sparked the Realism literary period.

Works Cited

Barney, Brett, and Lisa Paddock, eds. "realism." Encyclopedia of American Literature: The Age of Romanticism and Realism, 1816–1895, vol. 2, Revised Edition. New York: Facts On File, Inc., 2008. Bloom's Literary Reference Online. Facts On File, Inc. http://www.fofweb.com/activelink2.asp?ItemID=WE54&SID=5&iPin= EAmL0738&SingleRecord=True (accessed January 27, 2011).

Brackett, Virginia. "realism." Facts On File Companion to the British Novel: Beginnings through the 19th Century, vol. 1. New York: Facts On File, Inc., 2006. Bloom's Literary Reference Online. Facts On File, Inc. http://www.fofweb.com/activelink2.asp?ItemID=WE54&SID=5&iPin= GCBNI333&SingleRecord=True (accessed January 27, 2011).


Giles, James R. "realism." In Anderson, George P., Judith S. Baughman, Matthew J. Bruccoli, and Carl Rollyson, eds. Encyclopedia of American Literature, Revised Edition: Into the Modern: 1896–1945, Volume 3. New York: Facts On File, Inc., 2008. Bloom's Literary Reference Online. Facts On File, Inc. http://www.fofweb.com/activelink2.asp?ItemID=WE54&SID=5&iPin= EAmL1326&SingleRecord=True (accessed January 27, 2011).


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. http://www.fofweb.com/activelink2.asp?ItemID=WE54&SID=5&iPin= Gamshrtsty0575&SingleRecord=True (accessed January 26, 2011).