Realism in Literature | Movement, Writers, Time Period & Elements – Video & Lesson Transcript | Study.com

Amanda has taught middle and high school social studies subjects for several years. She has a Master of Arts in Teaching degree, with specialization in Secondary Social Studies Education, as well as a Bachelor’s in Psychology.

Realism in Literature

Realism was a literary movement that began in the mid-19th century and can be defined as a move against Romanticism that stressed truthful and relatable, also realistic, subject matter. The era of Romanticism, or romantic literature, was often marked by fantastical stories that were thought by many to be out of touch with real life. Thus, Realism was an after effect or evolution from Romanticism into more commonplace situations and stories in literature. Realism in literature was incredibly popular and was demonstrated through the use of relatable, everyday, characters and situations.

The Realist Movement

The Realist literary movement was thought to have originated in France circa 1850, after the 1848 Revolution, and then spread widely throughout Europe and the United States as the movement gained popularity. As previously mentioned, Realism was a response to the earlier period of Romanticism, which also had its origins in France, but during the early French Revolutionary period. Realist artists and writers grew tired of the fantastical exaggerations of the Romantic style and era, so they strove to create more realistic representations of life; this is how the Realism period began. People were widely more attracted to stories about common experiences and people that they could relate to, which led to the overall popularity of the Realist movement.

Stendhal, a French writer, was famed for helping popularize the Realist literary movement. He, along with other writers, created characters and situations that were relatable to common people. Realism often focused on middle and lower-class people within typical locations and time periods. Industrialism, history, racism, upward mobility, war, and the growing scientific fields of the time all helped inspire subjects and backgrounds of Realism in American literature and beyond. The aforementioned list was representative of real problems and developments that people navigated during the time period, and still in the present, making Realism appealing to a range of readers. Literary Realism as a movement fizzled out a bit by the mid-20th century, but subsequent writers were inspired by the movement and still seek to create relatable characters and situations.

1840 portrait of Stendhal

Realist Writers

Some major Realist writers, along with some of their most famous works, include:

• Gustave Flaubert (1821-1880)-French writer who authored Madame Bovary, written in 1856
• Alexandre Dumas fils (1802-1870)-French writer most known for The Lady of the Camellias, published in 1848
• Henry James (1843-1916)-American writer who authored The Art of the Novel, originally written circa 1909; he also wrote a popular essay called The Art of Fiction, written in 1884
• Stendhal (a.k.a. Marie-Henri Beyle; 1783-1842)-French author whose notable works include: Red and Black (1830), The Charterhouse of Parma (1839), and Armancy (1836)
• Fedor Dostoyevsky (1821-1881)-Russian author who wrote Crime and Punishment (1866) and The Insulted and Humiliated (1861)
• Charles Dickens (1812-1865)-English author who wrote A Tale of Two Cities (1859), Great Expectations (1860), Bleak House (1852), and Oliver Twist (1837)
• Mark Twain (1835-1910)-American writer who authored The Gilded Age (1873), The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1876), Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1884), and The Prince and the Pauper (1881)

Most of the above works highlighted social problems of their time and country, and were often considered revolutionary. In addition, debates were often sparked by many of the works. The texts are considered classics and are still widely read today, as they reflect a commentary on their respective time periods and settings. For instance, Mark Twain highlighted the complexities of social class and race in his stories, using the Deep South as a background. He also used a distinctive style and voice with his characters to reflect the reality and dialects of where they came from, otherwise known as “regionalism.” Regionalism helps create the more realistic characters and stories that are prevalent in Realism literature.

Front pages of Tom Sawyer, 1876