Regionalism and Naturalism

Remember:

Nation is dealing with reunification- not working out so well

Many immigrants are flooding the country.

Wealth is held by a few, and the idea that the most capable will survive or conquer prevails.

People are continually feeling that life is working against them.

RegionalismSo much change leads to a renewed effort to capture the flavor of a region.

-Regionalism: realistic portrayal of a specific region

-Local Color: using characteristics of a place to make it more realistic (geographical references, dialect, etc.)

This exposed Americans to other regions of the country that they otherwise would not experience.

Naturalism

�Nature is against man.

Man is helpless.

�Human destiny is beyond human control.

Heredity and social environment will shape character.

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Tried to determine why humans act certain ways

�Effect of natural and social forces on the individual

�Portrayed rich in a poor light.

�Mythic situations – open sea, deserted island, wilderness, etc.

The Changing Role for Women

Women are seeking more freedom from patriarchal society.

Demand for more education and rights

Literature written by women includes tragic endings, madness, ruin, scandal, and death.

Naturalism connection: Environment shapes their situation; forces are working against women

Popular authors: Kate Chopin, Edith Wharton, Mary Wilkins Freeman, Charlotte Perkins Gilman

Kate Chopin

Kate Chopin (1851-1904)

• Regionalism: Her stories are set in Louisiana (usually around New Orleans) and deal extensively with Creole culture.

•Naturalism: Her characters are often powerless to forces beyond their control.

Grew up surrounded by smart, intelligent, single women.

•Great-grandmother was first woman in St. Louis to legally divorce her husband.

• She becomes cynical regarding the dating customs of the time.

•She doesn’t like the view that women’s opinions are unneeded.

Kate Chopin

•Married Oscar Chopin, moves to New Orleans, exposed to his Creole culture.

•They have a good marriage, and she is "allowed" unheard of freedom.

•Husband died, and she moved back to St. Louis.

•Begins writing to support herself- has respectable success.

•Her first novel published in 1890.

•She maintained an active social life.

•She gained success: Many reviewers found her collection of stories pleasant and charming. They liked its use of local dialects.

•Then she wrote The Awakening.

• Controversial for its then unprecedented treatment of female independence and sexuality.

• Story focuses on a woman who has affairs & asks questions about marriage and woman’s role in society that were unpopular.

• Edna, in naturalist tradition, feels trapped once her affairs become uncontrollable.

• A few critics praised the novel’s artistry, but most were very negative, calling the book “morbid,” “unpleasant,” “unhealthy,” “sordid,” “poison.”

The Awakening

• Published two more stories after The Awakening and died of a brain hemorrhage while attending the St. Louis World Fair. • Like Edna, Chopin paid the price for defying social rules.• It wasn’t until the 1960s when feminists rediscovered her work that Chopin received the credit she deserved. Of course, she was dead by then.• It seems, too, that this realistic depiction of feminism was Chopin’s goal.• A 1894 comment to a literary reviewer explains that Chopin wanted to write about the importance of describing “human existence in its subtle, complex, true meaning, stripped of the veil with which ethical and conventional standards have draped it.”•