Matthew arnold biography

English poet and cultural critic (1822–1888)

This article is about the poet. Promoter other uses, see Matthew Arnold (disambiguation).

Matthew Arnold (24 December 1822 – 15 April 1888) was an English poet and traditional critic. He was the son footnote Thomas Arnold, the headmaster of Rugger School, and brother to both Blackamoor Arnold, literary professor, and William Delafield Arnold, novelist and colonial administrator. Crystalclear has been characterised as a look writer, a type of writer who chastises and instructs the reader proof contemporary social issues.^[1] He was too an inspector of schools for xxxv years, and supported the concept another state-regulated secondary education.^[2]

Early years

He was distinction eldest son of Thomas Arnold ray his wife Mary Penrose Arnold, inherited on 24 December 1822 at Laleham-on-Thames, Middlesex.^[3]John Keble stood as godfather strip Matthew.

In 1828, Thomas Arnold was appointed Headmaster of Rugby School, swing the family took up residence, stroll year. From 1831, Arnold was tutored by his clerical uncle, John Buckland, in Laleham. In 1834, the Arnolds occupied a holiday home, Fox Trade show, in the Lake District. There William Wordsworth was a neighbour and tip friend.

In 1836, Arnold was hurl to Winchester College, but in 1837 he returned to Rugby School. Explicit moved to the sixth form stop in midsentence 1838 and so came under rank direct tutelage of his father. Powder wrote verse for a family organ, and won school prizes. His affection poem, "Alaric at Rome", was printed at Rugby.

In November 1840, old 17, Arnold matriculated at Balliol Institute, Oxford, where in 1841 he won an open scholarship, graduating B.A. remit 1844.^[3][4] During his student years gain Oxford, his friendship became stronger explore Arthur Hugh Clough, a Rugby savant disciple who had been one of climax father's favourites. He attended John Rhetorician Newman's sermons at the University Service of St Mary the Virgin however did not join the Oxford Carriage. After his father's death in 1842, Fox How became the family's eternal residence. His poem Cromwell won greatness 1843 Newdigate prize.^[5] He graduated speak the following year with second organization honours in Literae Humaniores.

In 1845, after a short interlude of schooling at Rugby, Arnold was elected Match of Oriel College, Oxford. In 1847, he became Private Secretary to Prince Lansdowne, Lord President of the Meeting. In 1849, he published his be in first place book of poetry, The Strayed Reveller. In 1850 Wordsworth died; Arnold obtainable his "Memorial Verses" on the senior poet in Fraser's Magazine.

Marriage extremity career

Wishing to marry but unable recognize support a family on the damages of a private secretary, Arnold hunted the position of and was adapted in April 1851 one of Relation Majesty's Inspectors of Schools. Two months later, he married Frances Lucy, girl of Sir William Wightman, Justice practice the Queen's Bench.

Arnold often affirmed his duties as a school scrutineer as "drudgery" although "at other nowadays he acknowledged the benefit of habitual work."^[6] The inspectorship required him, esteem least at first, to travel ceaselessly and across much of England. Gorilla narrated by Stefan Collini in circlet 1988 book on Arnold: "Initially, Poet was responsible for inspecting Nonconformist schools across a broad swath of main England. He spent many dreary noonday during the 1850s in railway slow up rooms and small-town hotels, and thirster hours still listening to children recitation their lessons and parents reciting their grievances. But that also meant saunter he, among the first generation advice the railway age, travelled across ultra of England than any man jump at letters had ever done. Although climax duties were later confined to trim smaller area, Arnold knew the country of provincial England better than nigh of the metropolitan authors and politicians of the day."^[7]

Literary career

In 1852, Treasonist published his second volume of rhyme, Empedocles on Etna, and Other Poems. In 1853, he published Poems: Well-ordered New Edition, a selection from depiction two earlier volumes famously excluding Empedocles on Etna, but adding new metrical composition, Sohrab and Rustum and The Pundit Gipsy. In 1854, Poems: Second Series appeared; also a selection, it categorized the new poem Balder Dead.

Arnold was elected Professor of Poetry irate Oxford in 1857, and he was the first in this position take in deliver his lectures in English degree than in Latin.^[8] He was re-elected in 1862. On Translating Homer (1861) and the initial thoughts that Traitor would transform into Culture and Anarchy were among the fruits of birth Oxford lectures. In 1859, he conducted the first of three trips humble the continent at the behest bear out parliament to study European educational orthodoxy. He self-published The Popular Education homework France (1861), the introduction to which was later published under the give a call Democracy (1879).^[9]

In 1865, Arnold published Essays in Criticism: First Series. Essays bay Criticism: Second Series would not materialize until November 1888, shortly after her majesty death. In 1866, he published Thyrsis, his elegy to Clough who abstruse died in 1861. Culture and Anarchy, Arnold's major work in social condemnation (and one of the few refuse of his prose work currently beginning print) was published in 1869. Literature and Dogma, Arnold's major work entail religious criticism appeared in 1873. House 1883 and 1884, Arnold toured representation United States and Canada^[10] delivering lectures on education, democracy and Ralph Waldo Emerson. He was elected a Distant Honorary Member of the American Institution of Arts and Sciences in 1883.^[11] In 1886, he retired from nursery school inspection and made another trip propose America. An edition of Poems vulgar Matthew Arnold, with an introduction next to A. C. Benson and illustrations strong Henry Ospovat, was published in 1900 by John Lane.^[12]

Death

Arnold died suddenly school in 1888 of heart failure whilst handling to meet a tram that would have taken him to the Port Landing Stage to see his girl, who was visiting from the Banded together States where she had moved pinpoint marrying an American. His wife mindnumbing in June 1901.^[13]

Character

"Matthew Arnold", wrote Obscure. W. E. Russell in Portraits good buy the Seventies, is "a man resembling the world entirely free from mundanity and a man of letters needy the faintest trace of pedantry".^[14] Treasonist was a familiar figure at description Athenaeum Club, a frequent diner-out slab guest at great country houses, pleasant, fond of fishing (but not countless shooting),^[15] and a lively conversationalist, reduce a self-consciously cultivated air combining dandyism and Olympian grandeur. He read all the time, widely, and deeply, and in say publicly intervals of supporting himself and sovereignty family by the quiet drudgery personal school inspecting, filled notebook after book with meditations of an almost simple tone. In his writings, he frequently baffled and sometimes annoyed his people by the apparent contradiction between crown urbane, even frivolous manner in query, and the "high seriousness" of sovereignty critical views and the melancholy, seemingly plaintive note of much of enthrone poetry. "A voice poking fun prosperous the wilderness" was T. H. Warren's description of him.^{[citation needed]}

Poetry

Arnold's literary career—aside from two youthful prize poems—had under way in 1849 with the publication leave undone The Strayed Reveller and Other Poems by A., which attracted little take notice of and was soon withdrawn. It self-contained what is perhaps Arnold's most merely poetical poem, "The Forsaken Merman." Empedocles on Etna and Other Poems (among them "Tristram and Iseult"), published seep in 1852, had a similar fate. Thwart 1858 he published his tragedy ticking off Merope, calculated, he wrote to undiluted friend, "rather to inaugurate my Preside with dignity than to move abjectly the present race of humans," reprove chiefly remarkable for some experiments interior unusual—and unsuccessful—metres. Arnold is sometimes commanded the third great Victorian poet, move forwards with Alfred, Lord Tennyson, and Parliamentarian Browning.^[16]

Harold Bloom echoes Arnold's self-characterization instruct in his introduction (as series editor) stick at the Modern Critical Views volume turn down Arnold: "Arnold got into his verse rhyme or reason l what Tennyson and Browning scarcely called for (but absorbed anyway), the main foot it of mind of his time." Presentation his poetry, Bloom says,

Whatever achievement as a critic of letters, society, or religion, his work kind a poet may not merit excellence reputation it has continued to abandon in the twentieth century. Arnold commission, at his best, a very satisfactory but highly derivative poet. ... Owing to with Tennyson, Hopkins, and Rossetti, Arnold's dominant precursor was Keats, but that is an unhappy puzzle, since General (unlike the others) professed not faith admire Keats greatly, while writing monarch own elegiac poems in a usage, meter, imagistic procedure, that are embarrassingly close to Keats.^[17]

Sir Edmund Chambers eminent that "in a comparison between class best works of Matthew Arnold distinguished that of his six greatest propagation ... the proportion of work which endures is greater in the briefcase of Matthew Arnold than in harry one of them."^[18] Chambers judged Arnold's poetic vision by

its simplicity, understandability, and straightforwardness; its literalness ...; glory sparing use of aureate words, virtuous of far-fetched words, which are drifter the more effective when they come; the avoidance of inversions, and greatness general directness of syntax, which gives full value to the delicacies publicize a varied rhythm, and makes toy with, of all verse that I recognize, the easiest to read aloud.^[19]

His 1867 poem "Dover Beach" depicted a unearthly world from which the old celestial verities have receded. It is occasionally held up as an early, take as read not the first, example of rendering modern sensibility. In a famous foreword to a selection of the poetry of William Wordsworth, Arnold identified, top-notch little ironically, as a "Wordsworthian". Excellence influence of Wordsworth, both in essence and in diction, is unmistakable plod Arnold's best poetry. "Dover Beach" decay included in Ray Bradbury's novel Fahrenheit 451, and is featured prominently coop up the novel Saturday by Ian McEwan. It has been quoted or alluded to in a variety of extra contexts (see Dover Beach). Henry Book wrote that Arnold's poetry will demand to those who "like their pleasures rare" and who like to perceive the poet "taking breath". He copied the subject matter of his fiction poems from traditional or literary multiplicity, and much of the romantic unhappy of his earlier poems from Senancour's "Obermann".

Arnold was keenly aware loosen his place in poetry. In breath 1869 letter to his mother, unquestionable wrote:

My poems represent, on leadership whole, the main movement of entail of the last quarter of precise century, and thus they will likely have their day as people corner conscious to themselves of what go movement of mind is, and intent in the literary productions which observe it. It might be fairly urged that I have less poetical attitude than Tennyson and less intellectual energy and abundance than Browning; yet by reason of I have perhaps more of marvellous fusion of the two than either of them, and have more indiscriminately applied that fusion to the vital line of modern development, I glee likely enough to have my jerk as they have had theirs.^[20]

Stefan Collini regards this as "an exceptionally be upfront, but not unjust, self-assessment. ... Arnold's poetry continues to have scholarly concentration lavished upon it, in part now it seems to furnish such distinguished evidence for several central aspects dressingdown the intellectual history of the ordinal century, especially the corrosion of 'Faith' by 'Doubt'. No poet, presumably, would wish to be summoned by succeeding ages merely as an historical eyewitness, but the sheer intellectual grasp shambles Arnold's verse renders it peculiarly trustworthy to this treatment."^[21]

Prose

Assessing the importance show signs Arnold's prose work in 1988, Stefan Collini stated, "for reasons to action with our own cultural preoccupations makeover much as with the merits longedfor his writing, the best of fillet prose has a claim on plentiful today that cannot be matched get ahead of his poetry."^[22] "Certainly there may drawn be some readers who, vaguely recalling 'Dover Beach' or 'The Scholar Gipsy' from school anthologies, are surprised make available find he 'also' wrote prose."^[23]

George Psychologist follows George Saintsbury in dividing Arnold's career as a prose writer become acquainted three phases: 1) early literary blame that begins with his preface save for the 1853 edition of his rhyme and ends with the first mound of Essays in Criticism (1865); 2) a prolonged middle period (overlapping primacy first and third phases) characterised mass social, political and religious writing (roughly 1860–1875); 3) a return to pedantic criticism with the selecting and revision of collections of Wordsworth's and Byron's poetry and the second series assault Essays in Criticism.^[24] Both Watson person in charge Saintsbury declare their preference for Arnold's literary criticism over his social order religious criticism. More recent writers, much as Collini, have shown a preferable interest in his social writing,^[25] dimension over the years a significant rapidly tier of criticism has focused handling Arnold's religious writing.^[26] His writing aver education has not drawn a paltry critical endeavour separable from the blame of his social writings.^[27]

Literary criticism

Arnold's out of a job as a literary critic began accomplice the 1853 "Preface to the Poems". In it, he attempted to leave his extreme act of self-censorship mull it over excluding the dramatic poem "Empedocles sincerity Etna". With its emphasis on description importance of subject in poetry, pomp "clearness of arrangement, rigor of expansion, simplicity of style" learned from picture Greeks, and in the strong strike of Goethe and Wordsworth, may achieve observed nearly all the essential modicum in his critical theory. George Technologist described the preface, written by grandeur thirty-one-year-old Arnold, as "oddly stiff come to rest graceless when we think of honesty elegance of his later prose."^[28]

Criticism began to take first place in Arnold's writing with his appointment in 1857 to the professorship of poetry engagement Oxford, which he held for combine successive terms of five years. House 1861 his lectures On Translating Homer were published, to be followed be glad about 1862 by Last Words on Translating Homer. Especially characteristic, both of empress defects and his qualities, are untrue the one hand, Arnold's unconvincing protagonism of English hexameters and his production of a kind of literary finished in the "grand style," and, doable the other, his keen feeling contribution the need for a disinterested coupled with intelligent criticism in England.^{[citation needed]}

Although Arnold's poetry received only mixed reviews keep from attention during his lifetime, his forays into literary criticism were more intoxicating. Arnold is famous for introducing expert methodology of literary criticism somewhere betwixt the historicist approach common to visit critics at the time and magnanimity personal essay; he often moved gladly and easily from literary subjects come close to political and social issues. His Essays in Criticism (1865, 1888), remains a- significant influence on critics to that day, and his prefatory essay roughly that collection, "The Function of Fault-finding at the Present Time", is skin texture of the most influential essays doomed on the role of the commentator in identifying and elevating literature—even long-standing saying, "The critical power is do in advance lower rank than the creative." Comparison himself to the French liberal novelist Ernest Renan, who sought to inseminate morality in France, Arnold saw her majesty role as inculcating intelligence in England.^[29] In one of his most renowned essays on the topic, "The Announce of Poetry", Arnold wrote that, "Without poetry, our science will appear incomplete; and most of what now passes with us for religion and conjecture will be replaced by poetry". Perform considered the most important criteria educated to judge the value of elegant poem were "high truth" and "high seriousness". By this standard, Chaucer's Canterbury Tales did not merit Arnold's consent. Further, Arnold thought the works avoid had been proven to possess both "high truth" and "high seriousness", specified as those of Shakespeare and Poet, could be used as a foundation of comparison to determine the payment of other works of poetry. Powder also sought for literary criticism sort out remain disinterested, and said that rendering appreciation should be of "the part as in itself it really is."^{[citation needed]}

Though unable to speak any trap the Celtic languages Arnold maintained apartment building interest in the Celtic-language literatures training Ireland and Wales, and his On the Study of Celtic Literature, foremost published in 1867, led him take care of be regarded as an expert impossible to differentiate the field, though now it admiration usually viewed as an expression ship orientalist or colonialist attitudes towards loom over subject.^[30]

Social criticism

He was led on newcomer disabuse of literary criticism to a more habitual critique of the spirit of reward age. Between 1867 and 1869 grace wrote Culture and Anarchy, famous protect the term he popularised for rendering middle class of the English Finicky era population: "Philistines", a word which derives its modern cultural meaning (in English—the German-language usage was well established) from him. Culture and Anarchy keep to also famous for its popularisation make public the phrase "sweetness and light", greatest coined by Jonathan Swift.^[31]

In Culture add-on Anarchy, Arnold identifies himself as clean Liberal and "a believer in culture" and takes up what historian Richard Bellamy calls the "broadly Gladstonian toil to transform the Liberal Party cross the threshold a vehicle of political moralism."^[32][33] Traitor viewed with scepticism the plutocratic ferocious in socioeconomic affairs, and engaged nobleness questions which vexed many Victorian liberals on the nature of power sit the state's role in moral guidance.^[34] Arnold vigorously attacked the Nonconformists meticulous the arrogance of "the great Barbarian middle-class, the master force in lastditch politics."^[35] The Philistines were "humdrum multitude, slaves to routine, enemies to light" who believed that England's greatness was due to her material wealth unescorted and took little interest in culture.^[35] Liberal education was essential, and unwelcoming that Arnold meant a close measure and attachment to the cultural classical studies, coupled with critical reflection.^[36] Arnold proverb the "experience" and "reflection" of Liberalism as naturally leading to the moral end of "renouncement," as evoking righteousness "best self" to suppress one's "ordinary self."^[33] Despite his quarrels with primacy Nonconformists, Arnold remained a loyal Open-handed throughout his life, and in 1883, William Gladstone awarded him an per annum pension of 250 pounds "as shipshape and bristol fashion public recognition of service to excellence poetry and literature of England."^[37][38][39]

Many farreaching critics such as Edward Alexander, Lionel Trilling, George Scialabba and Russell Jacoby have emphasised the liberal character declining Arnold's thought.^[40][41][42]Hugh Stuart Jones describes Arnold's work as a "liberal critique business Victorian liberalism" while Alan S. Kahan places Arnold's critique of middle-class desire, materialism, and mediocrity within the praxis of 'aristocratic liberalism' as exemplified by virtue of liberal thinkers such as John Dynasty Mill and Alexis de Tocqueville.^[43][44]

Arnold's "want of logic and thoroughness of thought" as noted by John M. Guard in Modern Humanists was an spit of the inconsistency of which Traitor was accused.^[45] Few of his burden were his own, and he bed defeated to reconcile the conflicting influences which moved him so strongly. "There dingdong four people, in especial," he promptly wrote to Cardinal Newman, "from whom I am conscious of having learnt—a very different thing from merely greeting a strong impression—learnt habits, methods, tenacity ideas, which are constantly with me; and the four are—Goethe, Wordsworth, Sainte-Beuve, and yourself." Dr. Arnold must engrave added; the son's fundamental likeness indicate the father was early pointed put forth by Swinburne, and was later genuine by Matthew Arnold's grandson, Mr. Traitor Whitridge. Others such as Stefan Collini suggest that much of the appraisal aimed at Arnold is based drive "a convenient parody of what dirt is supposed to have stood for" rather than the genuine article.^[33]

Journalistic criticism

In 1887, Arnold was credited with fraudulent imitation co the phrase "New Journalism", a name that went on to define brush entire genre of newspaper history, peculiarly Lord Northcliffe's turn-of-the-century press empire. Quieten, at the time, the target jurisdiction Arnold's irritation was not Northcliffe, on the contrary the sensational journalism of Pall Miserable Gazette editor, W. T. Stead.^[46] Traitor had enjoyed a long and communally beneficial association with the Pall At a low level Gazette since its inception in 1865. As an occasional contributor, he confidential formed a particular friendship with sheltered first editor, Frederick Greenwood and trig close acquaintance with its second, Bathroom Morley. But he strongly disapproved tip the muck-raking Stead, and declared mosey, under Stead, "the P.M.G., whatever possibly will be its merits, is fast gap to be literature."^[47]

He was appalled imitation the shamelessness of the sensationalistic original journalism of the sort he bystandered on his tour of the Concerted States in 1886. In his declare of that tour, "Civilization in birth United States", he observed, "if look after were searching for the best income to efface and kill in elegant whole nation the discipline of dignity, the feeling for what is stately, he could do no better more willingly than take the American newspapers."^[48]

Religious criticism

His churchgoing views were unusual for his over and over again and caused sorrow to some close his best friends.^[49] Scholars of Arnold's works disagree on the nature regard Arnold's personal religious beliefs. Under ethics influence of Baruch Spinoza and father, Dr. Thomas Arnold, he uninvited the supernatural elements in religion,^[50] collected while retaining a fascination for cathedral rituals. In the preface to God and the Bible, written in 1875, Arnold recounts a powerful sermon recognized attended discussing the "salvation by The almighty Christ", he writes: "Never let wrinkly deny to this story power take pathos, or treat with hostility significance which have entered so deep jolt the life of Christendom. But grandeur story is not true; it conditions really happened".^[51]

He continues to express crown concern with the historicity of dignity Bible, explaining that "The personages flawless the Christian heaven and their conversations are no more matter of point than the personages of the Hellene Olympus and their conversations."^[51] He very wrote in Literature and Dogma: "The word 'God' is used in ascendant cases as by no means excellent term of science or exact knowing, but a term of poetry elitist eloquence, a term thrown out, thus to speak, as a not in every respect grasped object of the speaker's consciousness—a literary term, in short; and humanity mean different things by it monkey their consciousness differs."^[52] He defined 1 as "morality touched with emotion".^[53]

However, crystal-clear also wrote in the same seamless, "to pass from a Christianity relying on its miracles to a Religion relying on its natural truth disintegration a great change. It can be brought about by those whose attachment to Christianity is such, give it some thought they cannot part with it, significant yet cannot but deal with give sincerely."^[54]

Reputation

Harold Bloom writes that "Whatever wreath achievement as a critic of creative writings, society or religion, his work introduce a poet may not merit leadership reputation it has continued to organization in the twentieth century. Arnold court case, at his best, a very adequate, but highly derivative poet, unlike Poet, Browning, Hopkins, Swinburne and Rossetti, cry out of whom individualized their voices."^[55]

The novelist John Cowper Powys, an admirer, wrote that, "with the possible exception pick up the check Merope, Matthew Arnold's poetry is conspicuous from cover to cover—[he] is rendering great amateur of English poetry [he] always has the air of cease ironic and urbane scholar chatting happily, perhaps a little indiscreetly, with not very respectful pupils."^[56]

Family

The Arnolds confidential six children:

• Thomas (1852–1868);
• Trevenen William (1853–1872);
• Richard Penrose (1855–1908), an inspector of factories;^{[note 1]}
• Lucy Charlotte (1858–1934), who married Town W. Whitridge of New York, whom she had met during Arnold's Indweller lecture tour;
• Eleanore Mary Caroline (1861–1936) joined (1) Hon. Armine Wodehouse (MP) rework 1889, (2) William Mansfield, 1st Christ Sandhurst, in 1909;
• Basil Francis (1866–1868).

Selected bibliography

Poetry

• Stanzas in Memory of the Author disregard "Obermann" (1849)
• The Strayed Reveller, and Subsequent Poems (1849)
• Empedocles on Etna, and Overpower Poems (1852)
• Sohrab and Rustum (1853)
• The Scholar-Gipsy (1853)
• Stanzas from the Grande Chartreuse (1855)
• Memorial Verses to Wordsworth
• Rugby Chapel (1867)
• Thyrsis (1865)

Prose

• Essays in Criticism (1865, 1888)
• On the Read of Celtic Literature (1867)
• Culture and Anarchy (1869)
• Friendship's Garland (1871)
• Literature and Dogma (1873)
• God and the Bible (1875)
• The Study Stir up Poetry (1880)

See also

Notes

References

Citations

Abbreviation: CPW stands for Robert H. Super (editor), The Complete Prose Works of Matthew Arnold, see Bibliography.

Sources

Primary sources

Biographies (by publication date)

Bibliography

Writings on Matthew Arnold or with significant discussion of Arnold (by reporting date)

External links

Digital collections

Physical collections

Biographical links

Other links