Henry James and William Dean Howells
Post-Civil War American Literature saw a transition from the prominence of romance to the development of realism. In the late 1800's, the United States was experiencing swift growth and change as a result of a changing economy, society, and culture because of an influx in the number of immigrants into America. (Spiller 35) Whereas authors previously sought to "idealize human beings, fall in love with a dream, and then, reject the real man or woman who had inspired the dream", they now worked to accurately portray life and people as they really were. (Wagenknecht 68) Realists such as Henry James and William Dean Howells, two of the most prolific writers of the nineteenth-century, used typical realistic methods to create an accurate depiction of changing American life Henry James was one of five children of affulent, eccentric parents. While his birth in 1843 was in New York City, his parents were purposly rootless, and by the age of eighteen he had already crossed the Atlantic six times. He avoided participation in the Civil War because of a poor back and began a role which he would maintain throughout his life and writings, one of a detached observer rather than participant in the American social scene. (Matthiessen 14)
Howells began his career by writing for a number of mid-Western newspapers. He first appeared in the January 1860 issue of The Atlantic Monthly, a periodical he would later become editor-in-chief of, with a poem, Andenken". That year, he also published an autobiographical work of Abraham Lincoln for the candidate's campaign, which later won him an appointment as the American consulate at Venice. Howell returned to the United States in 1865 and worked for the Atlantic Monthly until 1881. (Wagenknecht 4) Ultimately, James' genius was recognized by those who share his craft. His works explore psychological subtlies; he is renown for his use of ambiguity and dramatic characterisation. While his works lack the elements of middle-class American life, impeding acceptance by the general public. James' contribtutions to literature are still felt today, as he influenced such authors as Wharton, Joyce, Woolf and Faulkner. (Matthiessen 19) William Dean Howells, born in 1837, was the son of printer, and, because of this, his early life was devoted to the typecast word. He learned to set type before he was able to write, and many of his earliest composition came not from the pen, but rather from the press. Although his father's lack of money prevented Howell from receiving a formal education, as a young boy he read a tremendous amount of material, providing a rich and diverse literary background for his later works. (Wagenknecht 1-2) he first phase of James' writing begins when he is twenty-one, in 1864 and continues until 1881. He was extremely popular during this time, especially during after publication of a short stor
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Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)
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