The “ISMS”
Realism, Naturalism, Regionalism, Industrialism
A. In the aftermath of Civil War…
1. America’s self-confidence was challenged
2. The optimism and idealism of the Romantic period disappeared
3. In the South, the economy collapsed
4. In the North, industry flourished
B. The Gilded Age
1. This was a time of fabulous display of wealth, industrialism, and class
distinctions—the industrial revolution had made America rich
2. In the 1890’s, there were over 4,000 American millionaires
a. Andrew Carnegie: iron and steel
b. John Rockefeller: oil
C. A massive influx of immigrants changed the face of the nation
1. Population of Philadelphia tripled between 1870 and 1910
2. New York’s population quadrupled
D. Literature: The literature of the time period responded to the new conditions of
American life by turning from Romanticism toward a frank portrayal of
society and human nature. The major literary movements of the time
were Realism, Regionalism, and Naturalism.
1. Realism (Review!)
a. Reaction against Romanticism
b. Emphasis on the ordinary (“a slice of life”)
c. Characters often middle or lower class
d. Author is more objective
e. Realists look for truth in everyday life—which often uncovered the ugly
underbelly of the industrial revolution and the stark realities of the
war as well as the aftermath of war
2. Regionalism
a. Prompted by transportation advances
b. Satisfied American’s curiosity
c. Aim was to capture the “local color” of specific areas and peoples
d. Generally deals with ordinary events
e. Description and dialect important
3. Naturalism
a. Environment plays an important role
b. Responds to theories in science, psychology, human behavior, and
social thought
c. Characters caught within forces of nature or society that are beyond
their understanding or control
d. Facts—detailed observations of human experiences
e. Shows brutal realism and may promote social reform
E. Major Authors
1. Kate Chopin--Regionalist
a. Portrayed women's desire for independence and control of their own
lives; wrote about the racial tensions in Louisiana using local dialect
b. Wrote “domestic fiction” which was considered extremely scandalous
c. Her novel The Awakening was banned because of its “controversial”
content about women’s desire for independence and fulfillment.
2. Mark Twain--Regionalist
a. Coined the phrase “The Gilded Age” about this time period because of
the ridiculous displays of wealth and the poverty it concealed
b. Used the language of the people, ordinary speech—DIALECT
c. According to Hemingway, “All modern American literature comes from
one book by Mark Twain called Huckleberry Finn.”
3. Willa Cather—Realist, Naturalist
a. A realist who captured stark snapshots of life on the prairie
b. Explored the dearth of culture on the prairie and the loneliness this
caused
c. Also wrote about the rich cultural environments of large metropolitan
areas
4. Jack London--Naturalist
a. Left college after one semester to find gold in Alaska
b. The setting for many of his stories is Alaska where the environment is
inhospitable and often deadly to humans
c. Focused on the theme of human endurance
5. Edgar Lee Masters--Regionalist
a. Practiced law during the day, wrote poetry at night
b. Published The Spoon River Anthology which explored the lives of rural
Illinois residents through a series of fictional epitaphs (click here for a
definition) for those buried in the fabricated Spoon River Cemetery.
6. Edwin Arlington Robinson—Regionalist, Realist
a. Worked as a subway inspector until his friends arranged for private
publication of his poems
b. Received three Pulitzer Prizes for his poems about inner turmoil and
longing for meaning in one’s life
7. Paul Laurence Dunbar—Realist, Regionalist
a. Poems like “We Wear the Mask” exposed the grim reality of African-
Americans who smiled to cover the despair of living in a society
where African-Americans were not slaves, and yet not fully
recognized as citizens either.
b. Wrote both formal poems and informal poems; informal poems used local
dialect.