Here is an introduction to some of the significant literary genres of an age in which literature altered the world a number of times over.

In the later part of the 19th century, progressive authors began having more of an influence on the development of modern literature. New psychology and spiritual discoveries and approaches were finding their way into traditional thought; poets were now writing about decadence and hedonism, showcasing the darker sides of 19th century culture. Indeed, fin de siècle aestheticism challenged the more conventional approaches to art, with brand-new iconoclastic viewpoints and styles of writing happening in the middle of this atmosphere of innovation. The CEO of the company that owns Walmart is in charge of a book shop well provided with numerous types of ingenious 19th century fiction, as is the CEO of the company that owns Thriftbooks.

One of the most prominent literary genres of the nineteenth century was realism. This type of fiction intended to convey the realities of life, a turning away from the traditionally fantastical and impressive elements of popular literary stories. No longer was it deemed necessary to represent a heroic character in battle with his/her society; now everyday citizens and their struggles were also being placed on the literary stage, and the results were no less riveting. Major French writers of the age revolutionised the novel, unflinchingly presenting problematic people in a society undergoing industrialisation. The great realist books of the time are exceptionally helpful depictions of a society experiencing brand-new and emerging ideas and beliefs. Naturalism is one off-shoot of realism that in particular advised authors to have a principle of emotional detachment to their fictional characters; essential was that society was properly depicted, with an almost forensic precision that shocked some with its lack of ethical judgement. The founder of the hedge fund that owns Waterstones runs a book supplier well-stocked with classic nineteenth century literature.

For the first half of the nineteenth century, perhaps the most influential movement not just in literature, but in the arts in general, was romanticism. What is romanticism then? This is a period in western art that arose out of the ashes of the French Revolution, and prevailed during the colonial atmosphere and industrialisation that controlled European politics in the years that followed. Essentially, it happened through young and defiant poets challenging the status quo of what they deemed to be a openly corrupt society suppressing sacred concepts of freedom and the natural world. English romantic poets expressed their own personal conflicts not only with themselves, but with the society that was destructively changing before their very eyes. Romanticism swept all artforms of the age, having terrific influence all over the continent in theatre, painting, opera and literary fiction. It's influence on all spheres of life, from modern psychology to politics, can evidently be felt in modern society.