Matthew Arnold was a celebrated nineteenth-century English poet and critic whose critical writings, prose, and poetry revolutionized the world of English literature. His literary reputation is built as much on his poetry as it is on his stories and articles. Arnold, after Alfred Tennyson and Robert Browning, is regarded as the third greatest Victorian poet, yet it was in prose that he discovered his genuine expression. While his poetry has been described as gnomic and elegiac, his polished, didactic, and satirically funny prose has gained him a large following. Poetry, according to Arnold, should be the ‘critical of life’ and should express a philosophy. His narratives and descriptions, on the other hand, were pleasant and picturesque, with plenty of remarkable similes to leave a lasting impression on the reader’s mind. Apart from being a poet, he was also a critic who, in his youth, refused to convert to Orthodox Christianity and instead opted to become an agnostic. People who commit their entire lives to religion, on the other hand, he admired.
Childhood and Adolescence
Mathew Arnold was born at Laleham, Surrey, on the 24th of December 1822, just downstream from Staines-upon-Thames. He was the eldest son of Thomas Arnold, a well-known educator and historian, and Mary Penrose Arnold, the daughter of an Anglican priest.
Mathew admired his father’s ethical ideas, educational reform activities, involvement in religious disputes, and devotion to history since he was a toddler. He was, however, closer to his mother than he was to him.
His mother’s encouragement helped him get through those difficult days when he had to wear leg braces as a child. He perceived her as a sympathetic but analytically astute buddy with whom he could speak openly.
Jane, Mathew’s older sister, was likewise very close to him. English literally scholar Thomas Arnold the Younger, well-known author and colonial administrator William Delafield Arnold, and school inspector Edward Penrose Arnold were among his younger siblings.
Mathew was born and raised at Laleham, before moving to Rugby, Warwickshire, in 1828, when his father was appointed headmaster of Rugby School. Mathew began his studies with private instructors at this location.
Mathew had never been a very bright student, and his father was concerned by his slow progress. In 1831, he was returned to Laleham and enrolled in his uncle’s school, Reverend John Buckland’s.
Mathew missed his family and the school was incredibly severe. As a result, when he went home in 1833 to be placed under private tutors once more, he was reported to be more diligent. He had also developed an interest in poetry by that time.
Mathew enrolled at Winchester College in Hampshire in 1836, before returning home in 1837 to enroll in the fifth form at the Rugby School. He came under his father’s direct instruction in 1838, when he entered the sixth form. However, his seeming carelessness with his schoolwork persisted.
Mathew, like most teenagers, was fond of fishing and hunting. He liked to have a good time with casual acquaintances and pull pranks while dressed elegantly. When he was asked to stand behind his father’s desk in his last year, he spent the time making faces at his classmates.
He also composed a lot of poems, gaining a medal in 1840 for his long poem ‘Alaric at Rome.’ It was also at this time
that he met Arthur Hugh Clough, who would go on to become a brilliant scholar, renowned poet, and his closest friend.
Despite his seeming inattention to his academics, Mathew was awarded a scholarship to Balliol College, Oxford, lack 1841, and began his studies on October 15, 1841. He continued to live his old way of life here, having a good time at the expense of his academics.
Thomas Arnold was also appointed a Professor of History at Oxford in 1841. During this time, John Henry Newman’s opinions inspired Mathew just as much as his father’s hostility to them. However, after his father’s death in June 1842, he became a staunch supporter of his father’s legacy.
His bond with Arthur Hugh Clough, who was also at Oxford, grew stronger after his father died. They began to spend more time reading together after being deeply affected by Thomas Carlyle’s social ideas.
For his poem ‘Cromwell,’ Mathew Arnold earned the coveted Newdigate Prize in 1843. After receiving the award, he realized his potential and decided to pursue a career as a poet. Following that, he took up poetry seriously and graduated from Oxford in 1844 with a second-class degree in Literae Humaniores.
As a Poet in the Making
Mathew Arnold began his teaching career at the Rugby School in 1844. He began working for a fellowship at Oriel College, Oxford, after being dissatisfied with his results, and he was awarded one in 1845. His father was a fellow of the same college many years ago.
He studied both Western and Oriental philosophy at Oriel. He also studied a lot of English, French, and German literature, especially George Sand’s works, which he admired. His intellectual horizons were broadened as a result of his education here.
He was appointed Private Secretary to Lord Lansdowne, the Liberal government’s Lord President of the Council, in April 1847. To take up the position, Matthew relocated to London. He kept writing poems throughout, and his first collection, ‘The Strayed Reveller and Other Poems,’ was published two years later.
The poetry in ‘The Strayed Reveller,’ published under the pseudonym “A” in 1847, was primarily depressing. This caught his family and friends off guard since he had always been known as a fun-loving young man. However, the book’s sales were low, and it was eventually pulled.
With Lord Lansdowne’s help, Arnold was appointed Inspector of Schools in April 1851, a position he held until 1886. Despite the fact that he disliked it, he recognized the value of having a steady job and hence continued to work there.
He had to travel a lot as Inspector of Schools, visiting nonconformist schools across a broad area of central England. While this allowed him to see a lot of England, it also meant that he spent a lot of time in trains and waiting rooms.
He had to listen to children recite their lessons and their parents moan about the facilities as part of his job. While such employment was far from joyful, it allowed him to come face to face with provincial England’s society, and he knew them better than many of his contemporaries.
‘Empedocles on Etna, and Other Poems,’ published by Matthew Arnold in 1852, was his second collection of poems. Only fifty copies were sold, making it a non-starter. The book was then taken from the shelves.
His third work, ‘Poems: A New Edition,’ was published in 1853. Although it largely contained selections from the previous two volumes, it also included two new poems, ‘Sohrab and Rustum’ and ‘The Scholar Gipsy.’
His second collection, ‘Poems: Second Series,’ was released in 1854. It includes ‘Balder Dead,’ a new narrative poem based on Norse mythology, as well as previously published poetry. Arnold was soon well-known enough to be offered a position at Oxford.
Poet and Professor
Arnold was appointed Professor of Poetry at Oxford in 1857 while working as the Inspector of Schools, a part-time position that required the nominee to offer only three lectures per year. While other professors delivered their lectures in Latin, Arnold did them in English, setting a new precedent.
While he continued to publish poems like ‘Merope. A Tragedy’ (1858), he shifted his focus to prose. One such essay was ‘On Translating Homer,’ which was published in January 1861. It was based on a series of lectures he gave from November 3 to December 18, 1860, at Oxford.
Another major publication from this period was ‘The Popular Education of France,’ which was also published in 1861. He had gone to the continent in 1859 at the invitation of the parliament to examine the European educational system, and the work was the result of that trip.
He was re-elected as Professor of Poetry at Oxford for a fifth term in 1862. In the same year, he released ‘Last Words on Translating Homer,’ a sequel to his 1861 work ‘On Translating Homer.’
In 1865, he wrote ‘Essays in Criticism: First Series,’ and in 1866, he released ‘Thyrsis,’ an elegy to his old friend Clough. He also wanted to publish ‘Essays in Criticism: Second Series,’ but that would have to wait until after his death.
His final collection of poems, ‘New Poems,’ was released in 1867. The book included his renowned poem ‘Dover’ Beach,’ which he penned while on his honeymoon, among many other well-known compositions. The book sold 1000 copies in the next year. Following it, he primarily focused on essays.
As a writer of essays
With the publication of ‘Essay on the Study of Celtic Literature’ in 1868, Mathew Arnold entered a new chapter of his life. It was an interesting philosophical and anthropological exercise in the style of Renan and Gobineau.
One of his most major writings, ‘Culture and Anarchy,’ was published in book form in 1869. It was a compilation of pieces published in the Cornhill Magazine between 1867 and 1868. After that, he became interested in religion and wrote four books on the subject.
His first book on religion, ‘St. Paul and Protestantism’ was released in 1870. ‘Literature and Dogma,’ published in 1873, ‘God and the Bible,’ published in 1875, and ‘Last Essays on Church and Religion,’ published in 1877, followed by ‘God and the Bible,’ published in 1875, and ‘Last Essays on Church and Religion,’ published in 1877.
Matthew Arnold was already a well-known instructor at the time. His famous lecture, ‘The Church of England,’ presented at the London Clergy at Sion College, was included in ‘Last Essays on Church and Religion.’ He chastised them for their devotion to the wealthy elite, claiming that such behavior was contrary to Christianity.
Prime Minister William Gladstone of England offered him a £250 monthly pension in 1883. In the same year, he was invited to the United States of America, where he lectured on democracy and education until 1884 in both the United States and Canada.
He left his job as Inspector of Schools in 1886 and returned to the United States. He kept working and producing writings almost up to his unexpected death two years later.
His Major Projects
Arnold’s article ‘Culture and Anarchy’ is his most famous work. He described culture as “a study of perfection” in it, and argued that England could only be preserved if critical intellect capable of challenging authority was allowed to flourish. He also chastised today’s politicians for their lack of direction.
In his other major essay, ‘Literature and Dogma,’ he argued that the Church was a time-honored social institution that needed reforming without jeopardizing its place in English history and culture. It further stated that the Bible’s literal value should not be questioned due to historical inaccuracies.
One of his most famous poems is ‘Dover Beach,’ which he wrote in 1851 and published in his ‘New Poems’ in 1867. It’s also the hardest poetry to evaluate, with different critics coming up with diverse interpretations. It’s also mentioned in a lot of books, plays, poetry, and movies.
Achievements & Awards
Arnold was inducted into the American Academy of Arts and Sciences as a Foreign Honorary Member in 1883.
Personal History and Legacy
Mathew Arnold married Frances Lucy Wightman, daughter of Justice of the Queen’s Bench Sir William Wightman, in June 1851. Thomas, Trevenen William, Richard Penrose, Lucy Charlotte, Eleanore Mary Caroline, and Basil Francis were their six children.
Arnold died of heart failure on April 15, 1888, in Liverpool, where he had gone to see his daughter Lucy Charlotte, who was visiting from the United States. He is presently buried at the All Saints Church churchyard in Laleham.
After Alfred Tennyson and Robert Browning, many consider Mathew Arnold to be the third great Victorian poet, while others see him as a link between Romanticism and Modernism.
Today, he has a comprehensive school named after him in Laleham, a primary school in Liverpool, and secondary schools in Oxford and Staines.
His home at 2 Chester Square in Belgravia, London, is commemorated by a London County Council blue plaque.
Estimated Net worth
As of 14 January 2019, Matthew Bennett Arnold’s net worth is projected to be at least $4.93 million USD. Mr. Arnold owns over 5,000 units of Solid Biosciences Inc stock, valued at over $4,537,633, and has sold SLDB shares worth over $310,400 in the last three years.
In addition, as an Independent Director at Solid Biosciences Inc., he earns $82,465 every year.