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Introduction to Regionalism

Introduction to Regionalism. ENG 11 Honors. What is Regionalism?. Often called “local color.” Focuses on characters, dialect, customs, topography, and other features specific to a certain region (e.g. the South ). Coincided with Realism and shares many of the same traits.

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Introduction to Regionalism

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  1. Introduction to Regionalism ENG 11 Honors

  2. What is Regionalism? • Often called “local color.” • Focuses on characters, dialect, customs, topography, and other features specific to a certain region (e.g. the South). • Coincided with Realism and shares many of the same traits. • Prominent from 1865-1895. • NOTE: Regionalism is still present today.

  3. Why did Regionalism develop? • Dual influence of Romanticism and Realism • The Civil War and the building of a national identity • An outgrowth of realism with more focus on a particular setting and its influence over characters

  4. Regionalism Techniques • Use of dialect to establish credibility and authenticity of regional characters. • Use of detailed description, especially of small, seemingly insignificant details central to an understanding of the region. • Frequent use of a frame story in which the narrator hears some tale of the region.

  5. Examples of Regionalist Writers • Nathaniel Hawthorne—New England • Kate Chopin—South • Willa Cather—Midwest • Mark Twain—West

  6. United States Regions and Different Scholarly Perspectives

  7. Other Literary Movements that Influence Regionalism Realism and Naturalism

  8. What is Realism? • A faithful representation of reality in literature, also known as “verisimilitude.” • Emphasis on development of believable characters. • Written in natural vernacular, or dialect. • Prominent from 1860-1890.

  9. Why Did Realism Develop? • The Civil War • The urbanization and industrialization of America • As a reaction to Romanticism • Increasing rates of democracy and literacy • The emerging middle class • Upheaval and social change in the latter half of the 19th century

  10. Some Realist Writers • Mark Twain • William Dean Howells • John Steinbeck • Stephen Crane • Upton Sinclair • Jack London • Edith Wharton

  11. What is Naturalism? • Applied scientific principles of objectivity and detachment to the study of human beings. • Influenced by Darwinism (natural selection) and psychology (Freud) • Suggested that men were governed by heredity and environment. • Often depicts man in conflict with nature, society, or himself. • Prominent from 1880-1920(ish)

  12. Why Did Naturalism Develop? • The swell of immigrants in the latter half of the 19th century • Led to a larger lower class and increased poverty in the cities • The prominence of psychology and the theories of Sigmund Freud • Pessimism in the wake of the Civil War and Reconstruction • Publication of Charles Darwin’s Origin of the Species

  13. Some Naturalist Writers • Stephen Crane • Ambrose Bierce • Jack London • Edwin Arlington Robinson • Katherine Anne Porter • Charlotte Perkins Gilman • Edith Wharton

  14. What are some aspects OF your lives that are influenced by Where you Live/Where You Were Born?

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