English Realism, Naturalism, and Regionalism Unit

1. Depicts reality closely 2. More emphasis is put onto character & his purpose (rather than plot & action) 3. Characters are most often middle class 4. Events in piece are plausible 5. Word choice & diction is everyday vernacular

How can you tell if literature is Realism? (5)

By observing the carpenters in the ship yard

How did Frederick Douglass first learn to write?

Realism shows life as it really was and did not have happy endings. Romanticism focused on supernatural aspects.

How is Realism different from Romanticism?

Mark Twain

Known as the Father of American literature and America's first celebrity; first American author to write using vernacular language

Realism

Realism, Naturalism, or Regionalism? Darwin's Theory of Evolution was a centerpiece in many of these works, as a hot topic circulating through intellectual circles (natural selection)?

Naturalism

Realism, Naturalism, or Regionalism? What is viewed as sort of an extension of realism?

Realism

Realism, Naturalism, or Regionalism? Which challenged readers to look past myths, assumptions, social norms, and other expectations?

Naturalism

Realism, Naturalism, or Regionalism? Which describes a type of literature that tries to apply scientific principles of objectivity and its thinking onto a study of humans? (tries to apply study of nature to humans)

Realism

Realism, Naturalism, or Regionalism? Which focused on lower and middle class, depicting daily life (in gritty/unpleasant detail)?

Realism

Realism, Naturalism, or Regionalism? Which found its roots in invention of photography and newspapers?

Naturalism

Realism, Naturalism, or Regionalism? Which had characters that usually were not very educated, or lower middle class to lower class in general? (their lives would be governed by pure human emotion and a lot of gut instinct)

Regionalism

Realism, Naturalism, or Regionalism? Which had emphasis on nature's limitations, the setting of a movement's piece is usually somewhere remote?

Regionalism

Realism, Naturalism, or Regionalism? Which has a plot that some may call it boring, but this movement's piece of writing focuses on the community and its rituals?

Regionalism

Realism, Naturalism, or Regionalism? Which has characters that usually have a distinct dialect applicable to their region and blend into their setting and time period fairly well?

Regionalism

Realism, Naturalism, or Regionalism? Which has themes of nostalgia, conflict between old fashioned ways versus future? >Rural versus urban >Outside intruders in a traditional community are often portrayed

Realism

Realism, Naturalism, or Regionalism? Which included the authors Mark Twain and William Dean Howells (they adapted the tenants of DRAMAS)?

Realism

Realism, Naturalism, or Regionalism? Which is not only a literary movement, but a hotly debated topic of philosophy as well (issues w/ middle class, Darwinian theory, etc. - all play a part in past & present)?

Naturalism

Realism, Naturalism, or Regionalism? Which literary movement believed that the environment determines and governs human behavior?

Naturalism

Realism, Naturalism, or Regionalism? Which literary movement has idea that everything in life has been predetermined, and nothing you can do will change your destiny? (pessimistic view)

Realism

Realism, Naturalism, or Regionalism? Which literary movement is writing that depicted a realistic everyday life of average middle class person? >characters & plots were often based around factual events and people, and it aims to show a truthful representation of reality

Realism b/c people wanted to read stories that they could relate to, rather than unrealistic stories of romanticism.

Realism, Naturalism, or Regionalism? Which literary movement started around start of Civil War? Why?

Realism

Realism, Naturalism, or Regionalism? Which literary movement's authors were influenced in their youth by the radical reshaping of the world around them through such events as the Civil War?

Regionalism

Realism, Naturalism, or Regionalism? Which literary movement's setting almost always includes nature, so much that it may become its own character?

Realism

Realism, Naturalism, or Regionalism? Which literary movement's works often feature human surviving in harshest conditions (only the strongest survive)?

Naturalism

Realism, Naturalism, or Regionalism? Which literary movement's writers believed that the laws behind what governed humans could be studied and dissected?

Realism

Realism, Naturalism, or Regionalism? Which literature had power to change society?

Naturalism

Realism, Naturalism, or Regionalism? Which used this oddly organic "scientific method" to write their novels, in which the story was governed by the environment itself and what it inherited?

Realism

Realism, Naturalism, or Regionalism? Which wanted readers to see world as it really is?

Naturalism

Realism, Naturalism, or Regionalism? Which was a literary movement that suggests that the roles of family, social conditions, and environment play a main role in shaping human character?

1. Civil War (era) 2. Inspired authors to forget the now uprooted social norm 3. Romanticism

Realism: 1. What war (era) did the literary movement of Realism emerge after? 2. What did Realism inspire authors to do? 3. What literary movement did Realism follow or come after?

William Dean Howells

Realism: What Realist author said "Realism is nothing more and nothing less than truthful treatment of material"?

Mark Twain

Realism: Which author could be considered the most well-known realist novelist (realism author)?

vernacular language

The short story "The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County" shows which of the following literary aspects?

Frederick Douglass

United States abolitionist who escaped from slavery and became an influential writer and lecturer

1. Fear of death can affect how we experience time 2. War causes people to act in sinister and desperate ways

What are the themes of "An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge"?

Photography (and newspapers)

What invention did Realism find its roots in?

Vernacular

every day speech of the common people; includes slang

Mark Twain

first American author to use the vernacular in his writing

Mark Twain

known as the Father of American Literature and America's first celebrity

Mark Twain

worked as a steamboat captain on the Mississippi River

Frederick Douglass

wrote "A Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass"

Ambrose Gwinnett Bierce

wrote "An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge"

Mark Twain

wrote 28 books

Walt Whitman

wrote the poem "Song of Myself"

Mark Twain

wrote the story "The Celebrated Frog of Calaveras County"

Helen Phillips

wrote the story "The Knowers"

1. The soldier is a Federal scout posing as a Confederate soldier that tricks Farquhar into attempting to sabotage the bridge and being captured for doing so. 2. "An hour later, after nightfall, he repassed the plantation, going northward in the direction from which he had come. He was a Federal scout." ( Paragraph 16)

"An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge": 1. Part A: How does the interaction between Farquhar and the soldier in Part II contribute to the plot of the story? 2. Part B: Which phrase from the text best supports the answer to Part A?

B. He breaks free from his rope and makes it to the surface to get a breath of air.

"An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge": How does Farquhar avoid dying at the bottom of the river? A. He gets help from a juggler who was performing on the side of the river. B. He breaks free from his rope and makes it to the surface to get a breath of air. C. He kicks to the surface with his arms tied behind his back. D. He uses the cord attached to his neck to pull himself to the surface.

The author's choice of the order of events in the story affects its theme. The story goes from present time to a flashback to the "imagined present time" to the true present time at the very end. Moreover, the author starts with the process of Farquhar's hanging in Section I to a flashback of showing why Farquhar is being hanged in Section II to the hallucinations that make it seem that Farquhar has escaped but ends with stating that Farquhar was actually dead in Section III. The way in which the story is out of order with time shows the theme of how fearing death can influence the way people perceive and experience time. In the text, the author states, "Doubtless, despite his suffering, he had fallen asleep while walking, for now he sees another scene - perhaps he has merely recovered from a delirium. He stands at the gate of his home. All is as he left it, and all bright and beautiful in the morning sunshine. He must have traveled the entire night" (para. 36). This shows that Farquhar has lost his sense of time. It seems like Farquhar is still alive, but he is actually dead. His escape was all part of his imagination.

"An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge": How does the author's choice of the order of events in the story affect its theme?

D. about to be hanged

"An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge": The man on the railroad bridge is... A. being chased by members of the federal army B. trying to avoid being shot by the sentinels C. trying to escape from his captors D. about to be hanged

D. His rope broke and he fell into the water beneath him.

"An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge": What happens to Farquhar? A. He is relaxed in his final stages before death. B. He dies and goes to heaven. C. He is tortured after he hangs by his executioners. D. His rope broke and he fell into the water beneath him.

A. excited and committed

"An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge": Which of the following best describes Farquhar's attitude towards the war? A. excited and committed B. sad and angry C. confused and upset D. surprised and happy

C. Some members of the military gathered to spectate the execution.

"An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge": Which of the following best describes the scene at the bridge? A. No one is there to bear witness to the execution. B. The captain proudly watches the execution. C. Some members of the military gathered to spectate the execution. D. All gather to pay their last respect to the dying man.

D. his wife and children watching in the distance

"An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge": Which of the following does the man about to be hanged NOT notice? A. his unstable footing on the plank B. a piece of driftwood in the water below C. the sound of his watch D. his wife and children watching in the distance

D. focused and alert

"An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge": Which of the following phrases best describes Farquhar's mindset? A. confused and shaken B. calm and peaceful C. angry and intense D. focused and alert

C. normal and harmless

"An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge": Which of the following phrases best describes the man who is supposed to be hanged? A. strange and unique B. calm and peaceful C. normal and harmless D. dangerous and angry

a federal scout disguised as a member of the Southern army

"An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge": Who comes to visit Farquhar at his home?

1. leaping and jumping 2. "scattering her legs around limber, sometimes in the air, and sometimes out to one side"

"The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County": 1. Part A: What does the term "cavorting" most likely mean as used in paragraph 5? 2. Part B: Which phrase from the paragraph best supports the answer to Part A?

Observing deception can be amusing, but being deceived is not.

"The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County": Which of the following best describes a theme of the story?

It allows the reader to witness multiple characters' views on deception.

"The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County": Which of the following best describes how the author's use of multiple narrators within the text develops the meaning of the story?

1. Douglass witnesses brutal abuses of other slaves and knowing that he will soon enter this life as he grows, he becomes interested in education, escape, and abolition. 2. "It struck me with awful force. It was the blood-stained gate, the entrance to the hell of slavery, through which I was about to pass." ( Paragraph 4)

"The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass: Excerpts from Chapters 1 & 7": 1. Part A: How do the master's treatment of the slaves, as depicted in chapter 1, affect Douglass? 2. Part B: Which of the following quotes best supports the answer to Part A?

by observing ship carpenters write on timber

"The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass: Excerpts from Chapters 1 & 7": How did Douglass begin to learn how to write?

He had white children teach him how to read.

"The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass: Excerpts from Chapters 1 & 7": How did Douglass learn how to read?

The overseer was considered cruel by even the master.

"The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass: Excerpts from Chapters 1 & 7": How does Douglass describe the overseer?

Douglass was forever changed by the violence.

"The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass: Excerpts from Chapters 1 & 7": How was Douglass affected by the violence he witnessed?

He feared that they were trying to trick him.

"The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass: Excerpts from Chapters 1 & 7": What did Douglass think of the Irishmen he met?

Douglass took several methods to learn to read and write. One way that Douglass learned to read was through reading lessons from the poor white boys in the street. In chapter 7, Douglass states, "The plan which I adopted, and the one by which I was most successful, was that of making friends of all the little white boys whom I met in the street. As many of these as I could, I converted into teachers....I finally succeeded in learning to read. ....This bread I used to bestow upon the hungry little urchins, who, in return, would give me that more valuable bread of knowledge" (para. 7). Douglass made friends with the poor white boys in the street and gave the boys bread in exchange to teach Douglass how to read. Douglass learned to write through the ship carpenters, the boys that he challenged to show how well he could write, and the spelling and copy books. In chapter 7, the text says, "The ideas as to how I might learn to write was suggested to me by being in Durgin and Bailey's ship-yard, and frequently seeing the ship carpenters, after hewing, and getting a piece of timber ready for use, write on the timber the name of that part of the ship for which it was intended....I soon learned the names of these letters.... I immediately commenced copying them, and in a short time was able to make the four letters named" (para. 11). To learn to write, Douglass observed how the ship carpenters marked the timber for the ship parts and copied the letters himself. Also, this chapter states, "After that, when I met with any boy who I knew could write, I would tell him I could write as well as he....I would then make the letters which I had been so fortunate as to learn, and ask him to beat that. In this way I got a good many lessons in writing..." (para. 11). By daring the boys that Douglass knew could write, Douglass was able to practice his writing skills with the new letters that he had learned from the ship carpenters. After this step in the writing process, Douglass used a spelling book and Master's copy book. In chapter 7, it says, "I then commenced and continued copying the Italics in the Webster's Spelling Book, until I could make them all without looking on the book....When left thus, I used to spend the time in writing in the spaces left in Master Thomas's copy-book, copying what he had written" (para. 12). By practicing his writing with the spelling book and Master's copy-book, Douglass was able to improve his writing, which would help Douglass write a book later in his life.

"The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass: Excerpts from Chapters 1 & 7": What methods did Douglass take to learn to read and write?

Douglass is wary of the Irishmen he helps because white men had been known to encourage slaves to run so they may catch them for a reward.

"The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass: Excerpts from Chapters 1 & 7": Which of the following best describes the interaction between Douglass and the two Irishmen?

He learned in the hopes of improving his life as a slave, if not total escape from slavery.

"The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass: Excerpts from Chapters 1 & 7": Which of the following best explains why Douglass likely worked so hard to learn to read and write?

Realism

A literary movement that, in contrast to romanticism, stressed the depiction of life as it actually was; these stories do not have happy endings

Naturalism

A term often used as a synonym for realism; explains mankind through science rather than fantasy

Regionalism

An element in literature that conveys a realistic portrayal of a specific geographical locale, using the locale and its influences as a major part of the plot; focused on small-town America

Ambrose Bierce

Author of "An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge" who disappeared in Mexico

Yes

Does the vernacular include slang?

white; suit; book

Mark Twain: Always wore a __________ (color?) __________ (article of clothing?) on __________ tours

every day; common; slang

Mark Twain: First American author to use the VERNACULAR in his writing >Vernacular = ___________ speech of the __________ people; includes __________

American; vernacular

Mark Twain: First __________ author to use the ___________ in his writing

Father; American; celebrity

Mark Twain: Known as the __________ of _________ Literature and America's first __________

Samuel Clemmons

Mark Twain: What was Mark Twain's real name?

steamboat; Mississippi

Mark Twain: Worked as a ___________ captain on the ___________ River

28

Mark Twain: Wrote ________ books

animals; animal

Naturalism: Humans as Animals- Naturalism believed that humans are just ____________ doing ____________ things

He is a gambling man who is willing to bet on nearly anything.

Which of the following best describes the character of Jim Smiley, as described by Simon Wheeler?

"The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County"

Which story was Mark Twain's first big success and brought him national fame?

Samuel Wheeler

Who is narrating the story of Jim Smiley?

Frederick Douglass

Who wrote "A Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass"?

Ambrose Gwinnett Bierce

Who wrote "An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge"?

Walt Whitman

Who wrote the poem "Song of Myself"?

Mark Twain

Who wrote the story "The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County"?

Helen Phillips

Who wrote the story "The Knowers"?

To show two different perspectives on deception

Why are there two different narrators in the story "The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County"?

To show the audience the importance of the themes and create suspense

Why did Ambrose Bierce write the plot events of "An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge" out of order?

Mrs. Hugh had sparked his curiosity

Why did Frederick Douglass want to learn how to read?

Helps establish a character and helps people understand a particular region's culture

Why did Mark Twain use the vernacular in his stories?

He realizes he has been deceived

Why does the narrator of "The Celebrated Jumping Frog..." get frustrated at the end of the story?

He showed that slaves are capable of learning to read and write, which helped other people to see them as humans rather than animals or property.

Why is Frederick Douglass's narrative important to literature at this time?

To show that everyone was affected by the Civil War

Why is it important for the reader to know that Peyton Farquar was a wealthy landowner?

Mark Twain

always wore a white suit on book tours