Chapter 10AmericanNaturalismCrane *Norris *Dreiser*Robinson
Chapter 10 American Naturalism Crane * Norris * Dreiser * Robinson
L.American Naturalism1.Background:Social background: Modern America -industrialismfinancial giants and industrial proletariat - skyscrapersand slumsIdeological background:a cold, indifferent Godlessworld - life as a struggle for survival - Darwinianevolutionary concepts like“the survival of the fittest"and“"the human beast"-Herbert Spencer's socialDarwinism - an attitude of gloom and despair
I. American Naturalism ❖ 1. Background： ❖ Social background: Modern America – industrialism – financial giants and industrial proletariat – skyscrapers and slums ❖ Ideological background: a cold, indifferent Godless world – life as a struggle for survival – Darwinian evolutionary concepts like “the survival of the fittest” and “the human beast” – Herbert Spencer’s social Darwinism – an attitude of gloom and despair
American Naturalism2.Literary background/DefinitionInthe nineties. French naturalism, with its newtechnigues and newways of writing, appealed to the imagination of the youngergeneration like Crane, Norris and Dreiser.They tore the mask of gentility intopieces and wrote abouthelplessness of man,his insignificance in a cold world,and his lack ofdignity in face of the crushing forces of environment and heredityThey reported truthfully and objectively,with a passion for scientificaccuracy and an overwhelming accumulation offactual detail.Theypainted as it was lived in the slums, and were accused of telling justthe hideous side of it and making a god of the dull commonplaceAlso,American naturalism received an impetus from other foreigninfluences like Tolstoy and TurgenevTheir major works reveal a bitter and wretched world where humanbeings such as Maggie,McTeague, and Sister Carrie battle hopelesslyagainst overwhelming odds ina cold,harsh, apatheticenvironment
American Naturalism ❖ 2. Literary background/ Definition ❖ In the nineties, French naturalism, with its new techniques and new ways of writing, appealed to the imagination of the younger generation like Crane, Norris and Dreiser. ❖ They tore the mask of gentility into pieces and wrote about helplessness of man, his insignificance in a cold world, and his lack of dignity in face of the crushing forces of environment and heredity. ❖ They reported truthfully and objectively, with a passion for scientific accuracy and an overwhelming accumulation of factual detail. They painted as it was lived in the slums, and were accused of telling just the hideous side of it and making a god of the dull commonplace. Also, American naturalism received an impetus from other foreign influences like Tolstoy and Turgenev. ❖ Their major works reveal a bitter and wretched world where human beings such as Maggie, McTeague, and Sister Carrie battle hopelessly against overwhelming odds in a cold, harsh, apathetic environment
AmericanNaturalismThe whole picture is somber and dark,the general tone is one ofhopelessness andeven despairIt's a more deliberate kind of realism in novels, stories, and playsusually involving a view of human being as passive victims ofnatural forces and environmentThey wroteaboutthehelplessness of man,his insignificance inacold world and his lack of dignity.They areconcerned withtheless elegant aspects of life.Its typicalsettings are the slum, the sweatshop, the factory and the farm. Theyrepresented the life of thelower class truthfully and broke into suchforbiddenregions as violence,sexand deathPractitioners:Frank Norris,Theodore Dreiser,JackLondonStephenCrane,EdithWhartonTheHouseofMirth,1905),EllenGlasgow(BarrenGround,1925)
American Naturalism ➢ The whole picture is somber and dark; the general tone is one of hopelessness and even despair. ➢ It’s a more deliberate kind of realism in novels, stories, and plays, usually involving a view of human being as passive victims of natural forces and environment. ➢ They wrote about the helplessness of man, his insignificance in a cold world and his lack of dignity. ➢ They are concerned with the less elegant aspects of life. Its typical settings are the slum, the sweatshop, the factory and the farm. They represented the life of the lower class truthfully and broke into such forbidden regions as violence, sex and death. ➢ Practitioners: Frank Norris, Theodore Dreiser, Jack London, Stephen Crane, Edith Wharton (The House of Mirth,1905), Ellen Glasgow( Barren Ground,1925)
The term naturalism describes a type of literature that attempts toapply scientific principles of objectivity and detachment to its study ofhuman beings.Unlike realism which focuses on literary technique,naturalism implies a philosophical position:for naturalistic writers.sincehuman beings are,in Emile Zola's phrase,"human beasts.characters can be studiedthrough their relationships totheirsurroundings..Zola's 1880 description of thismethod inLeromanexperimental (1880)goes that human beings as"products"should bestudied impartially, without moralizing about their natures.Otherinfluences onAmerican naturalists include Herbert SpencerandJosephLeConteThrough this objective study of human beings,naturalistic writersbelieved that the laws behind the forces that govern human lives mightbe studied and understood.Naturalistic writers thus used a version ofthe scientific method to write their novels: they studied human beingsgoverned by their instincts and passions as well as the ways in whichthe characters' lives were governed by forces of heredity andenvironment.Although they used the techniques of accumulatingdetail pioneered by the realists thenaturalists thus had a specificobject in mind when they chose the segment of reality that theywished toconvey
❖ The term naturalism describes a type of literature that attempts to apply scientific principles of objectivity and detachment to its study of human beings. Unlike realism, which focuses on literary technique, naturalism implies a philosophical position: for naturalistic writers, since human beings are, in Emile Zola's phrase, "human beasts," characters can be studied through their relationships to their surroundings. Zola's 1880 description of this method in Le roman experimental (1880) goes that human beings as "products" should be studied impartially, without moralizing about their natures. Other influences on American naturalists include Herbert Spencer and Joseph LeConte. ❖ Through this objective study of human beings, naturalistic writers believed that the laws behind the forces that govern human lives might be studied and understood. Naturalistic writers thus used a version of the scientific method to write their novels; they studied human beings governed by their instincts and passions as well as the ways in which the characters' lives were governed by forces of heredity and environment. Although they used the techniques of accumulating detail pioneered by the realists, the naturalists thus had a specific object in mind when they chose the segment of reality that they wished to convey