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realism

 - 2 dictionary results

re⋅al⋅ism

  [ree-uh-liz-uhm]
Use realism in a Sentence
–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.
a. 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).
b. (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.
a. a manner of treating subject matter that presents a careful description of everyday life, usually of the lower and middle classes.
b. 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.
a. the doctrine that universals have a real objective existence. Compare conceptualism, nominalism.
b. the doctrine that objects of sense perception have an existence independent of the act of perception. Compare idealism (def. 5a).
Origin:
1810–20; real 1 + -ism; cf. F réalisme
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To realism
re·al·ism   (rē'ə-lĭz'əm)   
n.  

  1. An inclination toward literal truth and pragmatism.

  2. The representation in art or literature of objects, actions, or social conditions as they actually are, without idealization or presentation in abstract form.

  3. Philosophy

    1. The scholastic doctrine, opposed to nominalism, that universals exist independently of their being thought.

    2. The modern philosophical doctrine, opposed to idealism, that physical objects exist independently of their being perceived.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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