Think about...

• How and when did American writers and poets respond to the Civil War?
American writers responded to the war by inventing Realism and Naturalism.
• What are the basic characteristics of realism?
Realism explains why ordinary people behave the way they do. It rejects idealized, larger than life heroes of the Romantic literature; it also provides detailed depictions of ordinary characters and realistic events. Realist writers tend to focus their stories on characters from cities and lower classes, they avoid using exotic, sensational and overly dramatic descriptions of their story. They also use everyday speech patterns to reveal class distinctions, and they focus on the ethical struggles and social issues of real-life situations.
• What did the naturalist writers believe?
The Naturalists writers believe that human behavior is determined by heredity any environment, and that human beings cannot control their own destinies.