Matthew Arnold

Date of Birth: December 24, 1822

Zodiac Sign: Capricorn

Date of Death: April 15, 1888

Biography

Matthew Arnold was an influential English poet and cultural critic who lived during the 19th century. Born into a prominent family, Arnold’s father was Dr. Thomas Arnold, the celebrated headmaster of Rugby School. Arnold attended Rugby School and later Balliol College, Oxford. He initially worked as a private secretary and then as an inspector of schools, a position he held for many years. Arnold’s work is notable for its reflection on the problems of modern society, religion, and the human condition. He is best known for his poems such as “Dover Beach,” “The Scholar-Gipsy,” and “Thyrsis,” as well as his critical works like “Culture and Anarchy.” His literary efforts were an attempt to reconcile the moral and spiritual crises of his time, and he remains a significant figure in the canon of English literature.

5 Interesting Facts about Matthew Arnold

1. Matthew Arnold was the son of Thomas Arnold, a famous headmaster of Rugby School who was immortalized in Thomas Hughes’ novel “Tom Brown’s School Days.”

2. Arnold won the Newdigate Prize for his poem “Cromwell” while studying at Oxford.

3. He was appointed as a professor of poetry at Oxford University in 1857 and was the first in this position to deliver his lectures in English rather than Latin.

4. Arnold’s work as an inspector of schools involved extensive travel, and he used his observations to inform his writings on educational reform.

5. His poem “Dover Beach” is considered one of the most important works of Victorian literature and captures the existential doubts and uncertainties of the era.

5 Most Interesting Quotes from Matthew Arnold

1. “The sea is calm tonight. The tide is full, the moon lies fair upon the straits;—on the French coast, the light gleams and is gone; the cliffs of England stand, glimmering and vast, out in the tranquil bay.”

2. “Wandering between two worlds, one dead, the other powerless to be born.”

3. “Culture, the acquainting ourselves with the best that has been known and said in the world, and thus with the history of the human spirit.”

4. “For poetry the idea is everything; the rest is a world of illusion, of divine illusion.”

5. “The true meaning of religion is thus, not simply morality, but morality touched by emotion.”

Highest Net Worth Achieved

As Matthew Arnold lived in the 19th century, precise financial records of his net worth are not available. However, his contributions to literature and education have made him an intellectual figure of significant historical importance.

Children

Matthew Arnold married Frances Lucy Wightman in 1851, and they had six children together. Their names were Thomas, Trevenen William, Richard Penrose, Lucy Charlotte, Eleanore Mary Caroline, and Basil Francis.