Question

part d
the american realist movement began in 1865, at the end of the civil war. how might the war have affected the literature of that time period?
give at least two characteristics of realism in your answer and explain how the war may have affected each.

Explanation:

1. Focus on Ordinary People's Experiences: The Civil War brought widespread suffering to everyday soldiers, civilians, and families, not just elite figures. Realist writers shifted from romanticized, heroic narratives to depicting the mundane, harsh realities of these ordinary individuals, as the war made their struggles impossible to ignore.
2. Gritty, Unidealized Portrayal of Violence: The unprecedented brutality and scale of death in the Civil War shattered romantic notions of warfare. Realist literature abandoned glorified depictions of battle, instead presenting graphic, unflinching accounts of the war's physical and psychological toll to reflect the actual trauma experienced by those involved.

Answer:

1. Characteristic 1: Focus on ordinary people's lives

The Civil War dragged everyday Americans (soldiers, rural families, working-class citizens) into widespread trauma, breaking the focus of literature on elite or romanticized characters. Realist writers centered these ordinary individuals to capture the war's true, widespread impact, such as writing about a soldier's daily hunger or a farmer's loss of sons to the draft.

1. Characteristic 2: Unidealized, gritty depiction of violence/hardship

The Civil War's massive casualties, gruesome battlefield conditions, and lasting physical/psychological damage rejected romanticized ideas of "glorious war." Realist literature used raw, unfiltered details (e.g., descriptions of amputations without anesthesia, civilian displacement) to reflect the unvarnished suffering the war inflicted, rather than framing conflict as heroic.