realism

[ ree-uh-liz-uhm ]

noun

1. interest in or concern for the actual or real, as distinguished from the abstract, speculative, etc.
2. the tendency to view or represent things as they really are.
3. Fine Arts.
   1. treatment of forms, colors, space, etc., in such a manner as to emphasize their correspondence to actuality or to ordinary visual experience. Compare idealism ( def 4 ), naturalism ( def 2 ).
   2. (usually initial capital letter) a style of painting and sculpture developed about the mid-19th century in which figures and scenes are depicted as they are experienced or might be experienced in everyday life.
4. Literature.
   1. a manner of treating subject matter that presents a careful description of everyday life, usually of the lower and middle classes.
   2. a theory of writing in which the ordinary, familiar, or mundane aspects of life are represented in a straightforward or matter-of-fact manner that is presumed to reflect life as it actually is. Compare naturalism ( def 1b ).
5. Philosophy.
   1. the doctrine that universals have a real objective existence. Compare conceptualism, nominalism.
   2. the doctrine that objects of sense perception have an existence independent of the act of perception. Compare idealism ( def 5a ).

realism

/ ˈrɪəˌlɪzəm /

noun

1. awareness or acceptance of the physical universe, events, etc, as they are, as opposed to the abstract or ideal
2. awareness or acceptance of the facts and necessities of life; a practical rather than a moral or dogmatic view of things
3. a style of painting and sculpture that seeks to represent the familiar or typical in real life, rather than an idealized, formalized, or romantic interpretation of it
4. any similar school or style in other arts, esp literature
5. philosophy the thesis that general terms such as common nouns refer to entities that have a real existence separate from the individuals which fall under them See also universal Compare Platonism nominalism conceptualism naive realism
6. philosophy the theory that physical objects continue to exist whether they are perceived or not Compare idealism phenomenalism
7. logic philosophy the theory that the sense of a statement is given by a specification of its truth conditions, or that there is a reality independent of the speaker's conception of it that determines the truth or falsehood of every statement

realism

¹

1. An approach to philosophy that regards external objects as the most fundamentally real things, with perceptions or ideas as secondary. Realism is thus opposed to idealism . Materialism and naturalism are forms of realism. The term realism is also used to describe a movement in literature that attempts to portray life as it is.

realism

²

1. An attempt to make art and literature resemble life. Realist painters and writers take their subjects from the world around them (instead of from idealized subjects, such as figures in mythology or folklore ) and try to represent them in a lifelike manner.

Other Words From

• anti·real·ism noun
• hyper·real·ism noun
• non·real·ism noun
• over·real·ism noun
• pro·real·ism noun
• ultra·real·ism noun
• un·real·ism noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of realism¹

First recorded in 1810–20; real ¹ + -ism; compare French réalisme

Example Sentences

Daydreaming, after all, is powerful, and as “Great Gold Bird” gets weirder — we’re soon canvassing the trailer looking for hidden rooms, hunting for VHS tapes and trying to decipher maps of Los Angeles — “Great Gold Bird” becomes a tale of magical realism.

From Los Angeles Times

Instead, there was realism, concentration and a hunger to stay in the fight.

From BBC

Married to Stanley, a man of carnal appetites and vulgar manners, Stella has embraced the crude pleasures of realism, while her freeloading sister still clings to tattered aristocratic illusions.

From Los Angeles Times

But Williams, like Blanche, wants magic, not the realism of today’s TV drama.

From Los Angeles Times

Indian art at that time was largely dominated by realism, found in the murals of the Ajanta caves and in Mughal art or miniature paintings.

From BBC

Related Words

• reality
• truth
• verisimilitude