Some realist writers focused on capturing the reality of a particular social class or group, some emphasized the internal, psychological reality of individuals, and some other realist writers paid more attention to the external circumstances shaping the individuals.

Some realist writers focused on capturing the reality of a particular social class or group, some emphasized the internal, psychological reality of individuals, and some other realist writers paid more attention to the external circumstances shaping the individuals. On the other hand, many realist writers’ works may show different, mixed, and complex emphases and styles of what we can identify as literary realism. Consulting the introduction to Realism and the video lectures about Realism in this unit, discuss how the works attached reveal characteristics of literary realism.
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Some realist writers focused on capturing the reality of a particular social class or group, some emphasized the internal, psychological reality of individuals, and some other realist writers paid more attention to the external circumstances shaping the individuals. On the other hand, many realist writers’ works may show different, mixed, and complex emphases and styles of what we can identify as literary realism. Consulting the introduction to Realism and the video lectures about Realism in this unit, discuss how two of the works in this unit reveal characteristics of literary realism. Another way that Realism distinguished itself from the previous movement was in its examination of human psychology. Robert Browning looked at the psychology of narcissists, murderers, and psychopaths in many of his dramatic monologues. Fyodor Dostoyevsky’s novels take place as much in the minds of the characters as they do in the interactions among characters. In Notes from Underground (1864), Dostoyevsky uses Realism to explore the allure (and dangers) of Romanticism, including its continuing hold on audiences. Dostoyevsky’s “Underground Man” attempts to explain not only why he does what he does, but claims that the reader is no different—a tactic used by Baudelaire in his poem “To The Reader” at the beginning of The Flowers of Evil.As a general guideline, Realism tended to point out society’s problems (and the problems with the Romantic view), but offered observations, rather than suggested changes. Naturalism, a subset of Realism often treated as a separate movement, was regularly motivated by a desire to improve the world. Naturalism concerned itself with the poorest members of society in particular, and social change was the goal. Naturalism was criticized for being even more focused on the negative aspects of life than regular Realism. Emile Zola’s novel Germinal (1885) is perhaps the most famous example of Naturalism. In it, Zola depicts the lead-up to and aftermath of a coal miners’ strike with a stark realism that shocked readers. His unsentimental portrayal (in almost journalistic fashion) of events angered both conservatives (reluctant to admit the brutal working and living conditions of the poor) and socialists (unhappy that the workers were not Romantic heroes). Eventually, Modernism began in literature as Realism and Naturalism were ending, overlapping for a brief period of time. Perhaps not surprisingly, Modernism would claim to be more real than Realism—or, as the artist Georgia O’Keeffe said, “Nothing is less real than realism” (Haber), preferring abstract art as a way to arrive at a more complete image of (one type of) truth.