Realism

‘Realism’

I

In William Dean Howells’ words, Realism is ‘ the truthful treatment of material’. But to the question ‘what is truth’, philosophy gives not only several answers, but as well several kinds of answers, representing several approaches to the same question. That’s why ‘Realism’ is as well a term which can’t be defined with but few words. In fact ‘Realism’ is a notoriously treacherous concept. Vladimir Nobokov, comments on this in his post script to Lolita, as it is ‘one of the few words which can mean nothing without quotes’. Many a critics agree that once asking simply about the definition of ‘Realism’, it is reality itself which they bring into question. Reality is seen as thing which has to be earned and this attainment is a ceaseless process that ne'er allows the construct to stabilize or the word to offer a convenient mould of meaning.

In Ordinal century the words were considered to be ‘the pictures of things’. For example, Herman melville in his Moby Dick gathers together every possible definitions and descriptions of a whale and what he shows is that you can ne'er catch a live whale ----- ‘You can only have a dead whale’ ----- from the pictures of whale, as Tony Tanner comments in his book Realism, Reality and the Novel, publicised in 1969. Later this construct was modified in present language as the pictures of reality. But it should be remembered that this construct as well does it clean that language is the instrument to attain reality, not simply to create images, carrying with in its own material of truth.

As mentioned before, a truth can be reached through various ways. Philosophy gives in the main two methods: one Scientific and different Poetic. In Scientific know-how Truth is discovered wherever as in Poetic know-how Truth is created by a process of making. The 1st know-how is called Correspondence Theory, patch the second one is called Coherence Theory. Thence Realism can be defined otherwise with the help of these two theories.

In the Correspondence Theory, the ‘Reality’ is as it were inactive by truth, patch in Coherence Theory, ‘Realty’ is in a sense created in the really act of perception. According to Bertrand Russell, the 1st case is Linguistics patch the second case is Grammar construct of truth.

Balzac, who ready-made realism fashionable as a modern doctorine says:

“The mission of art is not to copy nature, but to express her… We have to seize the sprit, and the soul of beings and things”.

Robert Lynd has ably remarked that art is not only an escape from life, but an escape ‘into’ life, and the 1st escape is of importance if it leads to the second. Patch doing this, an creator can’t transcribe things as they are, but he can only convey his sense of things.

D.H.Lawrence, in his The Rainbow and Women in Love, found a logical conclusion that ‘Reality’ is present, wherever the word reaches its most fluid condition as it is used to qualify the shifting states of his characters’ consciousness. There is a scene in The rainbow wherever reality for Ursula [ One of the central characters] exists in her own aroused consciousness. So, once she is obessed by the thoughts of her futurity career as a teacher, her father sitting at the table, becomes less real than her fancies. According to this, reality can once more be defined as the mood of the mind that dilates and contracts with the degree of work of the consciousness.

In general realism can be delineate as the representation of things as the expression of plain, unvarnished truth without regard to ideals or romance.

II

The root of realism can be derived in the Chaucer’s days in Ordinal century. The fourteenth century ballad writers took nothing as un-poetical and thence realism was found in ballads [such as ‘The London Lick Penny’, ‘The Nut Brown maid’]. In the meantime Langland wrote his Piers the Plowman which was to present the existing sins done in the socity and thus this created a sense of realism in medival poetry. This medival tradition died in Ordinal century as it was mixed with ‘Platonic’ and ‘Petrarchan’ idealism. All sonnets writers of Ordinal century, except Shakespeare, used this mixed concept. But several of Playwright used this mixed concept. But several of Shakespeare’s sonnets such as ‘Song of Autolycus’, the touch of realism unbroken itself fresh. In the similar manner in Ben Johnson’s Pen thrust found a reaction against roses and lilies.

It is Ben Johnson, who has the credit to introduce ‘Realism’ into drama for the 1st time. Tho' he was classical dramatist, he ccreated his comedies which are intensely realistic, presenting men and women of the time exactly as they were. His Every Man in His Humor, Volpone reflect this fact.. His Volpone stands for his bowelless analysis of a man people by an over-whelming love of money for its own sake.

The Attender Poets of the Restoration period were responsible for the second great action in the history of Realism, which was connected to Medieval Realism through Dryden’s admiration of Chaucer.

In the Ordinal century philosophers and scientists like Descartes, Thomas hobbes and Newton, provided the mechanical construct of universe. This provided food for realism in National leader period. The study of nature of human mind was done in ‘Essay concerning the human understanding’ by John Lock in 1690. in it Philosopher related language to sense-impressions and this ready-made the construct of realism more fleshy in the eyes of different poets and essayists. The poets fancied a new weapon to face the challenge of the times. And it was called ‘Satiric Humor’.

Pope in his Rape of the Lock conferred a realistic image with this new branch of realism. This spread out into prose writings of this time. In Swift’s Gulliver’s Travels , Battle of Books, Daniel Defoe’s Robinson Crusoe echolike this. Patch swift gave reality to pygmies, giants and the most impossible situations (as easily as if he were writing facts), Daniel defoe at that period was best-known for recreating natural real adventure in reader’s mind.

Swift, whose verse has been greatly understood by the idealistic critics, ready-made poetry out of the refuse of the London gutters:

“Now from all parts of swelling kennels flow

And bear their trophies with them as they go;

Filths of all hues and odurs seem to tell

What street they sail’d from by sight and smell.”

This is the poetry of ugly common place and yet vhaving a civilized tone. This was possible only due to use of his ‘realism’.

In Ordinal century another kind of realistic poetry developed. It dealt with the realistic description of realistic description of landscape and country life. Its exponents were Thompson and Dyre and their successors up to Cowpeare’s notable action in The Task. In this there is description of homely scenes, woods, brooks, of plowmen and teamsters, all in blank verse. But later, this realism has to fight against ‘Romanticism’ (in mid Ordinal century). Towards the end of this period we can find a touch of realism in several poetry of Burns and Crabbe. Crabbe in his preface to his Tales of 1812, defended realism in poetry, tho' the word ‘Realism’ was unknown to him.

After French revolution in 1789, a new kind of realism concerning the lives of common men started in several poetry poetry and prose. Only common place events find its place in such type. Wordsworth, the fore-runner of the Romantic movement was au fond a realist ------ maybe the greatest after langland. In The Prelude, there is several common-place scene which is significant in this fact. The ‘Victorian Age’ was marked by a spirit of enquiry, criticism, Scepticism, religious unrest and spiritual struggle. The development of science and the analytical and critical state of mind leading to development of Realism.

Tenny son was the human of his age. He provided ‘Scientific Realism’, which can be detected in his poems like Memorium or Idyles of the King . Henry martyn robert Browning introduced ‘Psychological Realism’ during later part of Ordinal century. In it the ‘motive’ rather than the the study of thought or emotions was given priority. Different poets like Swinbrune, Rossetti, William Morries unbroken themselves busy with ‘Rationalistic’ and ‘scientific’ tendencies of the time.

But Coventry Patmore provided the ‘Social Realism’ to his readers. This can be detected in his following literary composition lines:

“I hope you’re well, I write to say

Fredrick has got, beside his pay

A nice appointment in the Docks

Also convey you for the frocks

And shoes for baby……………..”

Victorian poetic realism ends with Hardy and Houseman, most of whose belongs to Ordinal century category chronology. Hardy owed more to Crabbe for his ‘Tragic Realism’. Even as in his novels like The Civil authority of casterbridge this vision is fresh.

In Ordinal century, WW-I killed the refined sort of realism and created more rough reality in poetry and prose, which can be seen in the works of Mythical being sasoon. T.S.Eliot experimented on the dissatisfaction and frustration on modern life. John masefield was the 1st to sing simply about the ‘underdogs’ of lower classes of the society. His realism sometimes resembles to that of Novelist with its visual aspect and horror. This blatant violence kind of realism can be seen in his Everlasting Mercy, The Window in the Bye Street and Dauber.

Rupert Prince rupert brooke whole heartedly believed in modern man’s attitude in coming to close grips with life. He saw the earth with greater clarity. In his The Greater Lover he wrote of the hundred and one everyday objects that gave him joy ---- plants, cups, dust, wet roofs, wood smoke, the ‘cool kinliness of sheets and rough male kiss of blankets’. He invests this domestic catalogue with ‘significance’ and ‘Beauty’ turns the common place into the funnily new.

From the mid Ordinal century up to this day, realism has a permanent place in the prose writings. Patch realism was found in the poetry of Burns and Cowpeare, in the novels of William Goldsmith like The Vicar of Wakefield; Boswell’s prose account Life of Johnson and dairies of Diary keeper and Evelyn were flooded with ‘reality-concept’. In ‘Life of Johnson, Boswell conferred the minute record of Johnson’s greatness, prejudices, superstitions and even as detail of his personal appearance. Peppy’s diary records all the common gossips from 1660 to 1669.

In age of Romanticism, the realism was alive in Lamb’s Essays of Elia. These famed essays began in 1820 with appearance of the new ‘London Magazine’. Among these essays were ‘Dissertation on Roast pig’, ‘Old China’, ‘Praise of chimney sweepers’ ----- all these were the interpretation of London life.

Jane Austein, as a 1st female author started writing with the blending of ‘Social Realism’ with ‘Romanticism’, which can be noticeable in Pride and Prejudice. Victorian age novelists like Charles Dickens, W.M.Thakery and several female novelists like Patron saint Eliot used Realism as their better weapon. Dickens highlighted the condition of lower class, specially children in his novels like Jazzman Twist, Saint Nickelby with a touch of realism. He in fact correlate his childhood experiences into fiction. Thackery’s Henery Esmond presents the pride and elegance of war, which are for the most part delusions, but its brutality and barbarism, which are too real. Patron saint Eliot did in novels, what Browning did in his poetry by mistreatment ‘Psychological Realism’.George Eliot like Browning put stress on motive rather than emotion. This can be detected in the character ‘Tito’ of her novel Romala.

Again Thomas hardy provided the ‘tragic Realism’ in his novels like The Civil authority of Casterbridge. But his vision was not always tragic. In his pastoral comedy Far from the Madding Crowd, there is the point of realism on ‘love’.

In Ordinal century the earth war provided another chance to create realism in several works of art. The same happened in case of novels by H.G.Wells, Galsworthy, James M. Barie etc. H.G.Wells’ Mr.Britling sees it Through (1916) is a realistic portrayal of English society in the dark days of WW-I. Galasworthy’s The Man of Property is a reflection on Victorian society. Pride and Prejudice of Austein, The heart of Midlothian of Scott, The beloved Vegabond of W.J. Locke, Joseph Vance (1906) of De Morgan were in fact the examples of ‘Romantic Realism’. This realism developed more and grew stronger than the ‘Crass-Realism’ of Zola. From the wide field of romantic realism there are three most important names of novels which are: The Divine Fire (19040 by May Sinclair, Joanna Godden (1921) by Sheila kye Smith and The Nice Companions (1929) by J.B.Pristley. Thus realism has evidenced its essence in every field of literary works.

III

The nature of language is such that there can be no such thing as a neutral transcription of an object into words. In fact the ‘representation’ is not not only a technical,l but as well a philosophical impossibility. Thence the idea of expression or recreation of truth through ‘Realism’ is not a perfect one tho' a nice one. To its state Rene’ wellek comments that realism ‘ inspite of its claim to penetrate directly to life and reality […] in practice has its set conventions, devices, and exclusions…’

About The Author

Date of Birth: 5 Gregorian calendar month 2003
Currently doing PG in English Literature at Ravenshaw College , Cuutack, Asian nation
Contact Address: A-144, Sec-2, Rourkela -769006, Asian nation
samirk_dash@yahoo.com

This article was denote on Nov 24, 2003