1. Naturalism

2. Review Romanticism Transcendentalism Realism Naturalism 1770-1860
Edgar Allen Poe
Robert Barrette Browning
Transcendentalism
Ralph Waldo Emerson
Henry David Thoreau
Realism
John Steinbeck
Mark Twain
Naturalism
Edith Wharton
Jack London

3. The background of Naturalism
Grew out of Realism
Could be considered the pessimistic brother of the Realist movement
Tries to portray life as close to reality as possible
Chose to write about the everyday man or woman
Focused less on a journey or plot in a story
More about the development of the characters

4. A scientific evaluation
Think of Naturalism as Realism through a Scientific lens
Emile Zola, a philosopher, considered people to be “human beasts”
Believed we ought to be studied just as animals
Studied in relation to the world around us
Therefore, our lives are predetermined and we have no true “free will”
What are our lives predetermined by?
Environment
Heredity
Chance
Fate???

5. What does that mean?
Instead of choosing to act in a specific way because of our free will, we humans simply react to the things happening around us
Our reactions could be based off of instincts or the environment around us
For example, say you’re lost in the woods
Even if you’ve never been camping, your instinct may be to find food and shelter
In Realist writing, your story would include your struggle to decide what to do
You feel cold, and you have to figure out how to get warmer
In Naturalist writing, your story would include how you simply react and wouldn’t focus on any decision-making
You feel cold, so your subconscious tells you to find the sunlight or a fire

6. The Motto of Naturalism
Nature doesn’t care about you

7. Common Subjects Survival Determinism Violence The Taboo
The idea that all of human life is predetermined
Violence
The Taboo
Each person’s “animalistic brute” they have on the inside
Constant struggle between this passionate being and a controlled self
Nature is an indifferent force
This is NOT the same as Nature acting as an antagonist

8. Indifferent vs. antagonistic
Indifferent Nature
NOT NATURALISM
Antagonistic Nature
Nature doesn’t have any feelings about you one way or another
Think about any natural disaster ever
There’s no meaning behind it, just poor time and place
Consider the woods in any horror movie
Tucker and Dale Versus Evil
Nature is trying to mess up your life
Think about a hurricane hitting and destroying a lab where artificial life is being created
Consider the forests in The Hunger Games and The Hunger Games: Catching Fire

9. To summarize
A man said to the universe: “Sir, I exist!” “However,” replied the universe, “The fact has not created in me A sense of obligation.” -Stephen Crane (1899)
The world isn’t looking out for you simply because you’re alive
The world also isn’t trying to destroy
The world simply doesn’t care