THE EMERGENCE AND GROWTH OF NATURALISM IN AMERICAN LITERATURE:
STEPHEN CRANE
1. THE DEVELOPMENT OF NATURALISM IN AMERICAN LITERATURE
In terms of literature, “Webster’s Third New International Dictionary of the English
Language Unabridged” provides the following meaning: “3a: a theory that art or literature should
conform exactly to nature or depict every appearance of the subject that comes to the artist’s
attention; specif: a theory in literature emphasizing the role of heredity and environment upon
human life and character development”1.
Naturalism represents a late nineteenth century literary movement which developed in
France, around 1870, with the first novels written by Émile Zola. It was assumed to be an extreme
type of realism, one that went away from the realists’ middle-class orientation and focused on the
slums of society and its urban environment.
Naturalists adapted modern scientific findings and understanding in order to investigate
individual survival. They felt that humans were not truly independent, they knew that their lives,
beliefs and ethics were all affected by psychological, economic and social factors. The subject of
naturalism in literature deals with harsh and painful situations that degrade characters to
humiliating actions in their attempt to live.
Naturalism was introduced in American Literature during the post-Civil War period, at the
end of the nineteenth century, by a generation of authors who were influenced by the European
naturalists and who were encouraged by their beliefs about the supernatural and society. Stephen
Crane, Frank Norris, Theodore Dreiser, Jack London and Hamlin Garland were among this new
generation’s representative writers. Their original objective was not to portray the overpowering
and crushing reality of the material forces in our life, but to reflect the combination of governing
circumstances and individual significance in life.
1
Noah Webster, “Naturalism” in Webster’s Third New International Dictionary of the English Language
Unabridged, volume II (Merriam-Webster, 1981) p. 1507.
STEPHEN CRANE
1. THE DEVELOPMENT OF NATURALISM IN AMERICAN LITERATURE
In terms of literature, “Webster’s Third New International Dictionary of the English
Language Unabridged” provides the following meaning: “3a: a theory that art or literature should
conform exactly to nature or depict every appearance of the subject that comes to the artist’s
attention; specif: a theory in literature emphasizing the role of heredity and environment upon
human life and character development”1.
Naturalism represents a late nineteenth century literary movement which developed in
France, around 1870, with the first novels written by Émile Zola. It was assumed to be an extreme
type of realism, one that went away from the realists’ middle-class orientation and focused on the
slums of society and its urban environment.
Naturalists adapted modern scientific findings and understanding in order to investigate
individual survival. They felt that humans were not truly independent, they knew that their lives,
beliefs and ethics were all affected by psychological, economic and social factors. The subject of
naturalism in literature deals with harsh and painful situations that degrade characters to
humiliating actions in their attempt to live.
Naturalism was introduced in American Literature during the post-Civil War period, at the
end of the nineteenth century, by a generation of authors who were influenced by the European
naturalists and who were encouraged by their beliefs about the supernatural and society. Stephen
Crane, Frank Norris, Theodore Dreiser, Jack London and Hamlin Garland were among this new
generation’s representative writers. Their original objective was not to portray the overpowering
and crushing reality of the material forces in our life, but to reflect the combination of governing
circumstances and individual significance in life.
1
Noah Webster, “Naturalism” in Webster’s Third New International Dictionary of the English Language
Unabridged, volume II (Merriam-Webster, 1981) p. 1507.
