“Dover Beach” Matthew Arnold’s dramatic monologue titled “Dover Beach” (written in 1851/2 but publish In 1867) reveals the repetitive tragedy one can see when observing a natural wonder Like the ocean that Is a representation of all of life Itself as well as the newfound conflict of his time that was religion versus science.
He expresses his observations of life and sadness by using personification and Imagery to depict a tranquil scene of the ocean only to have it disrupted by the loud rocks scraping and colliding with the shoreline, he also uses an allusion to Sophocles to bring forth evidence of this recognition of eternal sadness as not necessarily something new, he uses words like “only” and “naked” to show prove the vulnerability of man during this time of discovery, repetition is used in the next stanza with “nor to further emphasize how lost man has truly become and how the world has turned into something so sinful.
The structure of the poem starts with a beautiful setting leading up slowly to reveal a more discontented emotion hidden behind the beauty, approaching the end diction such as “struggle” ” confused” and “ignorant” give off a sense of hopelessness not only in the world but In humanity and its lack of being bled to change whatever the future may hold.
The speaker can be assumed to be Arnold, likely addressing this to his wife on their honeymoon; although one would think love and hope would be in the air at this moment according to the tone of Arnold there is nothing but misery to see, the negativity in Arnold’s syntax reflects his views on society accurately, however this opinion is hidden under what would seem to be a lovely landscape but even with the tranquil sounds and soft moon the powerful waters are slowly eroding away the shore very similarly to science eroding religion.
Matthew Arnold’s Dover Beach is an undeniably depth-full work that displays imagery that should leave one calm and relaxed but rather leaves them feeling disgusted with the world, which is how Arnold felt with the world he was surrounded In, during this Victorian period everything was changing and little was being held sacred anymore In Arnold’s eyes, while Arnold was not particularly a man of religion his Ideologies and politics were often reflected In his controversial works that would leave a lasting impression and an ideal time capsule to unveil opinions and thoughts contained during that period.
