Compare and Contrast Essay on Romanticism versus Realism

Introduction

Art has evolved all over the years. Every generation came up with its unique style which was deemed better than the existing ones. This is to show that as the man was evolving, their thinking capacity was evolving and so did the art. Different authors had different styles depending on the times when they existed. One of the techniques in art is romanticism. It is associated with the authors of the late 18th century. Romanticists are known for their subjective form of literature with a lot of emphasis on fiction as a way of inspiring the audience. On the hand of art, there is realism. It is known to have some Russian as well as French history. It was the dominant form of at during the 19th and 20th centuries. On the contrary, it is objective and deals with real-life situations. Guy de Maupassant, the author of "The Necklace," is an example of a realist. He demonstrates all the elements of realist artists. "The tell-tale heart" authored by Edgar Allan Poe is an example of romanticism. Comparing the two stories, a considerable difference is evident. They differ regarding personification, plot, and idealization among many other aspects.

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Narrative vs. Visual Representation: Examining Artistic Techniques

One of the most significant differences between the two genres is that one is told while the other is shown. According to 'Jansons' History of Art' (Janson 820-854), romanticism is characterized by the narration of the story. The narrator narrates the story to the audience. In as much as it is written literature, Edgar makes use of the art of narration to articulate his ideas. He begins by telling the audience how he was ill. On the other hand, Maupassant does not involve narration in his work. He uses the necklace to show real-life scenarios. While the romanticists go for the narration to give out their views, the realists have gone an extra mile to come up with figures to symbolize specific issues in the society.

The Influence of Supernatural vs. Real-Life Scenarios in Art

Similarly, romanticist stories have their origin from the supernatural world while those of the realist originate from the phenomenal world. "The tell hate heart" is an actual manifestation of the romanticism style of writing. The narrator talks of some forces that attack him after he had killed the old man. He is seen shaking in the presence of police after feeling some rings. Most probably, there must be forces behind ringing of the year and the increased heartbeat. On the same note, there must be some forces that forced the narrator to murder the old man in the story. Their source of conflict is still mysterious. To be precise, the story is based on the supernatural forces.

Realists' stories are directly the opposite. While the romanticist relies on spirits and other forces, the realists have a reasonable view. There is more focus on real-life issues than the unknown forces. A woman is brought in the bigger picture, and she wants to live a life that the husband cannot afford. She ends up using money meant for the purchase of a rifle to buy some outfits to look good for a party. She further borrows a necklace from her friend and to makes matters worse, the necklace gets lost. They are forced to acquire loans to pay back the diamond necklace. In short, the realist stories are centered on real situations. In life, some people want to live a life beyond their means. That is very dangerous as evident in the story.

Unveiling Facts: Information Disclosure in Romanticism and Realism

Additionally, the realists and romanticist differ in how they disclose their facts. In most cases, it happens that the romanticists fail to disclose the ideas and events to the maximum. They are known to leave the readers with some forms of questions on what might have happened. It is not suspense but some unclear circumstances in the story. Edgar demonstrates this trait in his piece of work. First, the narrator appears to be suffering from a certain strange disease. That is not the problem though. From the author's tone, it is difficult to establish whether the narrator is male or female. It, therefore, leaves the reader in the dark as far as the gender of the narrator is concerned. Similarly, there is a point where the narrator is pictured killing an old man and chopping him into pieces before burying him with leaves and bushes. Ironically, the author does not tell the reader the relationship between the narrator and the old man. The issue that made the narrator kill the old man is not known either.

On the contrary, the realists have developed a unique way of entirely disclosing their information. As evident in The Necklace (De Maupassant 1-5), there is no point where the reader is left in unreasonable suspense. The story flows from the start to the end with detail being given. For example, we get to understand the reason why Mathilde goes to her friend's house to borrow a necklace. To be precise, the author specifies that she picked the diamond necklace so that she could look good for the party. The source of the family wealth is also brought out clear as the husband is seen going to work now and then. The manner of information disclosure shows that there is a significant difference between the two genres of art.

Another main difference between the two is that the realists rely on the character to develop the story while the romanticists rely on plot. The plot is dominant in the romantic set up. For example, Edgar has made good use of his understanding of plot to come up with a fascinating episode. The story is based on first-person narration. The narrator is said to be a bit nervous, and in the same story, there is an old man whose description is a vulture-like eye. The narrator is distressed by the appearance of the old man and plots a plan of eliminating the man. The fact that the narrator can hatch a plan and execute it perfectly process that he cannot be mad as he purports to be. While implementing his plan, a neighbor hears the screams of the old man and reports to the police. The police cannot find any evidence of the murder, and so the narrator is free. However, things go wrong when some form of ringing occurs, and the narrator concludes it is the heartbeat of the man. He ends up revealing the whole story to the officers. To be precise, the author has made significant use of plot as evident in the flow of the story.

Plot vs. Character: Divergent Approaches in Artistic Storytelling

Realists do their things differently. They tend to depend on characters to bring the best out of their stories. The Necklace is an example of a realist story that has made good use of the characters to form the story. The author has used characters in the likes of Mathilde Loisel, Jeanne Forestier, and the clerk. The clerk promises Mathilde who is the wife, an outing for a party. The wife is adamant that she lacks outfits for the occasion forcing the clerk to offer his saving. Later on, the wife goes ahead to borrow Jeanne's necklace which gets lost after the party. They are forced to pay and live in extreme poverty. Maupassant has used his characters effectively to bring out the best part of the story. Through the characters, one can learn we should live within our means. Additionally, people should learn to be honest with themselves and others. If Mathilde were honest, she would not have gone for loans to pay back the necklace.

Irrationality and Metaphor: Characteristics of Romanticism

Romanticism is known for irrationality. It does not have a clear stand on issues. For example, the narrator says he is mad, yet he can come up with a plan for killing the old man. He finally succeeds. If indeed the narrator was insane, there could be no concise plan of killing the man without being noticed. Additionally, when the police came for inquiry, he manages to cover up the whole story to the extent that there the clearance from the police. However, towards the end of the session with the police, the narrator purports to hear the heartbeat of the dead man. The narrator eventually tells the police all that had happened. This inconsistency and irrationality of the narrator are what characterizes romanticism.

On the same note, rely on metaphors to pass their message. This means that the reader ought to have an open mind to understand the hidden meaning. Edgar (Poe 64-67) uses several metaphoric phrases among them the 'vulture eye.' The phrase may mean that the old man had some ill intentions against the narrator. However, different readers will have different interpretations of the same scenario. The realists on their part are clear and direct. It is on very rare occasions if any that one can find the use of metaphors in the works of realist writers. They believe in putting issues just as they appear. In most cases, this is the most appealing style to the readers.

Conclusion

Realists and romanticists represent different genres of art. Nevertheless, both pieces of art are meant to communicate with their audience which in this case are the readers. The two are likely to differ since their points of origin is different as well. Similarly, the times of discovery are different. There is the probability that the genres that came later had to read and review the existing ones. This fact can be used to the point that realist literature is more apparent than romanticist literature. It is likely that the younger generations discovered loopholes in the existing literature and decided to come up with some new forms. The two forms of literature differ significantly not only in the language used but in the plot as well. While the romanticists base their arguments on beliefs and supernatural powers, realists put across facts the way they appear in real life.

Works Cited

De Maupassant, Guy. "The Necklace." 2014, www.fac.ksu.edu.sa/sites/default/files/the_diamond_necklace.pdf. Accessed 21 Sept. 2018.

Janson, H. W. Janson's History of Art: The Western Tradition, vol. 2. 2007.

Poe, Edgar A. "The Tell-Tale Heart." 2015, www.americanenglish.state.gov/files/ae/resource_files/the_tell-tale_heart_0.pdf. Accessed 21 Sept. 2018.