Realism

Sentimentalism (literally, appealing to the sentiments, also called maudlinism), as a literary and political discourse, has occurred much in the literary traditions of all regions in the world, and is central to the traditions of Indian literature, Chinese literature, and Vietnamese literature (such as Ho Xuan Huong).
The term sentimentalism is used in two senses: (1) An overindulgence in emotion, especially the conscious effort to induce emotion in order to enjoy it. (2) An optimistic overemphasis of the goodness of humanity (sensibility), representing in part a reaction against Calvinism, which regarded human nature as depraved. The novel of sensibility was developed from this 18th century notion, manifested in the Sentimental novel.


REALISM
o Realism is the literary term applied to compositions that aim at a faithful representation of reality, interpretations of the actualities of any aspect of life. As a reaction against romanticism it is free of subjective prejudice, idealism or romance and often deals with representing the middle class. Unlike naturalism, however, it does not focus on the scientific laws that control life, but the specific actions and their consequences.
Renders reality closely and in comprehensive detail. Selective presentation of reality with an emphasis on verisimilitude, even at the expense of a well-made plot.

CHARACTERISTICS of REALISM
1.Describes reality in comprehensive detail
2.Characters are more important than the plot and action
3.Complex ethical choices are often the subject of the literature
4.Characters are related to nature, to each other, to their social class and to their own past. This relation makes up the complexity of their temperament and motive.
*Characters appear in their real complexity of temperament and motive; they are in explicable relation to nature, to each other, to their social class, to their own past.
5. Class is important (usually describes the middle class)
*Class is important; the novel has traditionally served the interests and aspirations of an insurgent middle class. (See Ian Watt, The Rise of the Novel)
Events will usually be plausible. Realistic novels avoid the sensational, dramatic elements of naturalistic novels and romances.

6. Events are usually plausible
7. Diction is natural, not heightened or poetic
*Diction is natural vernacular, not heightened or poetic; tone may be comic, satiric, or matter-of-fact.
Objectivity in presentation becomes increasingly important: overt authorial comments or intrusions diminish as the century progresses.

Interior or psychological realism a variant form.
In Black and White Strangers, Kenneth Warren suggests that a basic difference between realism and sentimentalism is that in realism, "the redemption of the individual lay within the social world," but in sentimental fiction, "the redemption of the social world lay with the individual."
The realism of James and Twain was critically acclaimed in twentieth century; Howellsian realism fell into disfavor as part of early twentieth century rebellion against the "genteel tradition."

o PRACITIONERS of REALISM
1. Mark Twain
2. William Dean Howells
3. Rebecca Harding Davis
4. John W. DeForest
5. Henry James