Matthew Arnold

Birth: 1822-12-24 , Laleham

Death: 1888-04-15 , Liverpool

Matthew Arnold (24 December 1822 – 15 April 1888) was an English poet and cultural critic. He was Professor of Poetry at the University of Oxford from 1857 to 1867. Arnold is remembered today for his poetry and for his critical insights into the social and religious trends of his time. He is also one of the most influential examiners of the 19th century. He was the son of Thomas Arnold, headmaster of Rugby School and historian.

1,955

Views

Poems List

Whispering from her towers the last enchantments of the Middle Age … Home of lost causes, and forsaken beliefs, and unpopular names, and impossible loyalties! of Oxford

When I want to distinguish clearly the aristocratic class from the Philistines proper, or middle class, [I] name the former, in my own mind the Barbarians.

The pursuit of perfection, then, is the pursuit of sweetness and light … He who works for sweetness and light united, works to make reason and the will of God prevail.

And bade betwixt their shores to be

Who saw life steadily, and saw it whole:

Resolve to be thyself: and know, that he Who finds himself, loses his misery.

Wandering between two worlds, one dead,

Cruel, but composed and bland,

Eternal Passion!

Lent it the music of its trees at dawn?

Comments (0)

ShareOn Facebook WhatsApp X

NoComments

Arnold was born in Laleham, Surrey, in 1822. He was educated at Rugby School, where his father was headmaster, and at Balliol College, Oxford. In 1843, he won the Newdigate Prize for poetry. In 1847, he became private secretary to the Viscount of Lansdowne. In 1851, he married Frances Lucy Wightman. He was appointed Professor of Poetry at Oxford in 1857. Arnold published many works, including "The Strayed Reveller" (1849), "Empedocles on Etna" (1852), and "Sohrab and Rustum" (1853). He also wrote critical essays, such as "Essays on Criticism" (1865) and "Culture and Anarchy" (1869). Arnold died in Liverpool in 1888, aged 65.