The Influence of Nineteenth Century Realism and Naturalism in America

After the First World War, American individuals and their authors were inspired by the war result for their society. America needs documentation to prove what happened in society and what happened. Today, American writers look to what is now called modernism. In modernism after the First World War, the effects of realism and naturalism of the 19th century, and the correct explanation of the lives of the Americans and other people are clear. This paper proposes this by proposing a basic concept and literary genre, a sample of each literature and establishing a relationship between the two literary movements.

For many authors and critics in the second half of the 19th century realism is synonymous with French novelist Emil Zola's works, whose work emphasizes sexuality, immorality, and lower class lives. The United States, still under the influence of Puritanism, boycotted a theme not suitable for literature, and continued to adhere to optimism and idealism related to the Romantic movement. The pessimism after European industrialism and the transfer of the population from one country to another probably reached the USA more slowly until the 1880s.

Many critics believe there is no clear distinction between realism and the associated late 19th century movement - naturalism. As Donald Pease mentioned in the book "Cambridge Companion vs. American Realism and Naturalism: Howls to London", it is difficult to define the term "realism". Its usage is different from American literature. Pizer says, "In the 1870s and 1880s, new things in the novel, funny things and similar in many ways can be specified as realism, equally innovative and funny, and roughly similar Such a writing system can be called naturalism at the turn of the century "(5). To put it briefly, the rough distinction between critics is that realism that supports deterministic philosophy and focuses on lower classes is considered naturalistic.

Realism changed to naturalism at the end of the 19th century. Through naturalism, writers use their inheritance and history to define their personality. Naturalism strengthens the disgusting character that people find in realism. That is a fixed character of the character and a thoroughly boring plot. This influence is unique as Charles Darwin's theory of evolution urged other writers to diverge from realism. Realism only tries to describe the theme, but naturalism also manages all the actions of the subject by "scientifically" managing the potential forces such as heredity and history.