4. Naturalism.pptVIP

Naturalism is essentially realism with an addition: Determinism Characters do not have free will; external and internal forces control their behavior. This belief is called determinism. All determinists believe in the existence of the will, but the will is enslaved due to a multitude of reasons. Characters attempting to exercise free will are hamstrung by forces beyond their control. Life is an inescapable trap. Realism : A faithful representation of reality in literature, with no romantic heroes or fantastic situations. The emphasis was on truth, and believable characters. The movement was prominent from 1860-1890, but still also very common today. Naturalism is a form of realism, but more pessimistic. Naturalist writing generally deals with raw and unpleasant experiences which reduce characters to degrading behavior as they struggle to survive. Characters are mostly from the lower-middle or lower classes They are usually poor, uneducated, and unsophisticated. It is, as Frank Norris described it, the “drama of the people working itself out in blood and filth.” From The Open Boat?by Stephen Crane When it occurs to a man that nature does not regard him as important, and that she feels she would not maim the universe by disposing of him, he at first wishes to throw bricks at the temple, and he hates deeply the fact that there are no bricks and no temples.?  Stephen Crane Cranes The Red Badge of Courage explores the effect of an extreme environment on a fairly typical individual. It is a classic of Naturalist writing, as well as being one of the greatest novels ever wrtten about man at war.