Literary Movements: Realism and Naturalism Explained

Realism in 19th Century Literature

Realism emerged in France and developed across Europe and America during the second half of the nineteenth century. It conceives art and literature as mirrors of contemporary reality, allowing for a critical objective.

Key Characteristics of Realism

• Objective Vision of Contemporary Reality: This movement relies on necessary documentation regarding all aspects of reality, including characters, environments, customs, and conflicts. It studies inner reality and the motivations for actions, leading to the development of the psychological novel.
• The Topics: Themes usually involve problems intrinsic to the bourgeoisie (ideological, economic, romantic, or moral) or the relationships and conflicts between the bourgeoisie and other social classes.
• Narrative Objectivism: External events are narrated in the third-person omniscient point of view, utilizing free indirect style or interior monologue to enter the minds of characters. Sometimes, it is used to orient the reader ideologically.
• Critical Intentionality: Realism reflects reality to criticize it, often moving the reader to seek social change. This is frequently seen in the thesis novel.
• Realistic Language: The rhetorical excesses of Romantic language are replaced by a sober, accurate, and simpler style, although the prose can sometimes be prolix. It attempts to reflect the actual, colloquial language of the characters.

Naturalism and the Scientific Method

Naturalism radicalized realistic objectivism. It documented the most sordid aspects of the struggle for life in novels, viewing existence as determined by heredity and social conditioning.

By 1870, Emile Zola designated Naturalism as a new literary movement with the following characteristics:

• The Novel as Scientific Method: The novel is considered a scientific tool to understand the human being, influenced by experimental theories, evolution, and genetics.
• Determinism: Human actions are determined by physiological needs, genetics, evolutionary laws, and the social and natural environment (determinism).
• Social Illustration: It illustrates the evils of the bourgeois world, focusing on miserable environments, impoverished villages, and severe physical or mental illness.
• Radical Objectivism: The narrative is more extreme in its objectivism with greater descriptive detail. It tends to be linguistically accurate and provides a faithful reproduction of speech.