The Birth of Modern Short Story

The short story is one of the oldest genres of literature and has been present in numerous ancient cultures all over the world as legends, mythological stories, folktales, fairy tales, tall tales, fables, and anecdotes. Early in the 19th century, the modern short narrative began to take shape.

The 19th century (1801--1900) saw the emergence of the modern short narrative. Short tales, writers, and the variety of artistic expression all greatly expanded after World War II. The nations of Germany, the United States of America, France, and Russia were the birthplaces of the modern short tale. The stories from the end of the 18th century and those from the earlier Boccaccio (an Italian author and poet) tradition differed very little in Germany.
German poet Goethe submitted a collection of short stories to Friedrich Schiller's newspaper, called Die Horen in 1795 that were unmistakably inspired by the Decameron. Particularly, Goethe did not refer to them as "short stories" (Novellen), despite having access to the phrase. Instead, he considered them "entertainments" for German tourists. Following Goethe's "entertainments," Friedrich Schlegel's early analysis of the short tale form likewise emphasized Boccaccio.

However, a brand-new genre of short fiction that incorporated some of the realism of popular journalism was about to emerge. Goethe made a comment on the contrast between the newly emerging narrative and the older sort in 1827, thirty-two years after he had published his own "entertainments." What exactly is a short narrative but an incident that has actually happened, although it is unheard of? he questioned. Numerous works that are published in Germany within the heading "short story" are actually just tales or other types of works.
Christoph Wieland and Friedrich Schleiermacher, two significant critics, also asserted that a short narrative needs to be concerned with things that have already occurred or would do so in the future. For them, a short narrative needed to be realistic.

Similar to Germany, the short tale developed in two different directions in the United States. On the other hand, there was the realistic narrative that attempted to deal with supposedly actual locations, occasions, or people in an objective manner. These are the kinds of regionalist tales that may be found in the second part of the 19th century, including works by George W. Cable, Bret Harte, and Sarah Orne Jewett.

 On the other hand, the impressionist story emerged, a narrative formed and provided value by the awareness and mental views of the narrator. These stories appear to be less objective and less realistic on the outside because of this aspect of subjectivity. Poe's stories fall into this category since the specifics and facts about the story are provided by the narrator's or main character's delusions.

The narrator in "The Fall of the House of Usher" (1839) blurs and twists what he sees in such a way that the reader cannot possibly look at the scenario objectively, much like the narrators in "The Tell-Tale Heart" (1843) and "The Imp of the Perverse" (1845). Only the narrator's impressions of the situation are visible to the reader.

Several European countries' examples of the first short stories:
1. Gothic tales like Richard Cumberland's "Remarkable Narrative" and "The Poisoner of Montremos" (1791) were the first short stories to be published in the United Kingdom. Short story writers include novelists Sir Walter Scott and Charles Dickens.
2. Heinrich von Kleist published his initial collection of short stories in Germany in 1810 and 1811. In 1812, The Brothers Grimm released the first book of their compilation of fairy tales. After that, E.T.A. Hoffmann produced his own distinct fantasy stories, the most well-known of which are "The Nutcracker and the Mouse King" (1816) and "The Sandman."
3. Prosper Mrime published Mateo Falcone in France in 1829.