Realist Fiction Sees Man More as a Social Creature than an Individual
An illustration of the introductory scene to Great Expectations, where Pip the orphan first meets the escaped convict, Abel Magwitch in a churchyard. Realism emerged as a literary movement around the middle of nineteenth century marked by Stendhal’s work in France after the 1848 revolution. It is notably a part of the artistic movement which went by the same name, at times also referred to by Naturalism, especially in case of paintings. The need for realism arose after the creative minds found the need to express reality the way it was, without romanticizing it or adding any implausible, exotic or supernatural elements. While art found the existence of realism over ages, and at times from earlier times as a test of skill, its presence in the literary sphere was marked by the need to present a truer image of the world around us, not to, however, cater to the relatable factor. The prime motive however, was to open our eyes to the way the things were in, contrary to what the roman...