In the arts generally, an approach that advocates the factual and realistic representation of the subject of a painting or novel with no stylization.
Specifically, naturalism refers to a movement in literature and drama that developed as a reaction to the mannered, conventional and heavily stylized approach to all the arts favoured in the 18th century.
Naturalism in art
Painters such as Constable and the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood worked outdoors, directly from their subject matter, but also demonstrate the extremes to which naturalism could be taken. The English Pre-Raphaelite painter Holman Hunt stunned sheep (by hurling them to the ground) so they would stay still enough to paint, and burnt a dead horse in his garden to obtain its skeleton.
Naturalism in theatre and film
The search for naturalism in acting was begun by Russian theatre teacher Stanislavsky. This ended in an obsession with finding completely authentic stage scenery and properties (required to assist the actor in sustaining a role). While increased theatre costs put an end to this kind of extravagance, in Europe, in the 1950s, the wealthier US companies under directors like Elia Kazan continued to craft elaborate naturalistic performances, supported by the New York Actors' Studio. The US film industry provided the opportunity to extend this work, leading to actors like increasing their weight to play a part or spending weeks in a wheelchair to understand a character's psychology.
Literary naturalism
While not as extreme as naturalism in art and drama, naturalist novelists became embroiled in social debate. In France in the late 19th century the writings of Emile Zola and the brothers Goncourt, and in England, Charles Dickens, naturalistic writing often held that people's fates were determined by heredity, environment, and social forces beyond their control, leading to campaigns for reform.
Zola, the chief theorist of the movement, demonstrates the characteristic accuracy of reportage in his Rougon-Macquart sequence of novels (1871-93), which shows the working of heredity and environment in one family. Other naturalist writers include Guy de Maupassant and Alphonse Daudet in France, Gerhart Hauptmann in Germany, and Theodore Dreiser in the USA.
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naturalism from Chambers 21st Century Dictionary
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