Realism

The cultural movement, typical of a bourgeois society, which does not like idealistic
romantic fantasies, knows it under the name of Realism.

It is not possible to establish a clear separation between

Romanticism and Realism, at first it can be considered that Realism arises by purification of the
most idealistic romantic elements.

Chronology

Realism develops in Europe from 1830 until the last years of the nineteenth century.

In Spain, the development of this movement is later. In literature begins in the year 1870, with the
publication of the novel La Fontana de Oro, by Benito Pérez Galdós.

Scientific advances

The development of the experimental sciences will serve as a model for writers and will
influence their work. In this sense, we can highlight:

 The foundation of modern medicine, based on the experimentation thanks to the

physiologist Claude Bernard.
 The formulation of the laws of genetic inheritance by Mendel.
 The theory of the evolution of the species enunciated by Darwin.
 The theory of class struggle as the engine of Karl Marx's history.

The new inventions

Scientific development involves the technological; there are numerous inventions in this
period that gradually changed daily life:

 Steam railway for passenger transport (1830)

 Bicycle Pedals (1839)
 Telegraph (1844)
 Dynamite (1866)
 Phone (1876)
 Electric Light (1879)
 Automobile (1886)
 Cinema (1895)
Realistic Literature Traits
 Location near the facts.
 Observation and accurate description of reality.
 Predilection for the novel, although also the brief story is cultivated with very bright
results.
 Purpose of social and political criticism.

Observation and description of reality

Writers are documented on the ground taking notes on characters and environments to
substantiate their descriptions.
To equip their characters with character and describe their moods, they consult books of
psychology and medicine.

Close location of facts

 They place their works in places near and well known by them and in the present moment.
 The glance moves to everyday, eliminating subjectivism and fantasy.

Purpose of social and political criticism

 Conservative authors describe reality to show its degradation and postulate a return to
the old traditional values.
 Progressives also show the social scourges, but for them they are due to the survival of a
conservative mentality that weeds the advance towards the new world.

The Realistic Novel

The novel is considered the most appropriate genre to reflect reality in its entirety. Its features
are:

 Verisimilitude
 Didactics
 Omniscient narrator
 Linear structure
 Detailed descriptions
 Language Approach to colloquial use

Characteristics of the Realistic Novel

 Verisimilitude: The works are based on daily experience and the protagonists and
environments are credible.

Didacticism: Authors often use the novel to give a moral or social lesson (novel of thesis).

Omniscient Narrator: The narrator knows what he is going to happen, know the most hidden
thoughts of his characters and directly intervene in the work judging facts and characters.

Characters

Against the romanticism idealism, characters in the realist novel reflect the everyday
conflicts of their contemporaries: love, jealousy, infidelity, job search, desire for wealth, greed,
generosity, selfishness, solidarity. The readers saw reflected their problems and conflicts in those
of the fictional characters.