Name : Makwana Ankita m.
Presentation Topic:Matthew Arnold?
Paper No :6.
Roll No :2.
Year :2013-14.
Semester: 2.
Guidance: Dilip Barad and  Heenaba Zala

v Introduction.

Matthew Arnold

Ø Born : 1822

Ø Died : 1888

Ø Education: University of Oxford.

Ø Occupation: poet.

Ø Matthew Arnold was a British poet and Critic who worked as an inspector of schools Matthew Arnold has been characterized as a sage writer.

            Cultural and Anarchy is a series of periodical essay by Matthew Arnold first published in Cornhill Magazine 1867-68.

The preface was added in 1875.to show the importance of culture Arnold has given an example of American culture because…..

“America, without religious establishments”

Matthew Arnold a believer in culture what culture really is , what good it can do, what is our own special need of it.

v Culture: Various meaning of culture.

Ø Culture is symbolic communication.

Ø Culture is the system of knowledge.

Ø By the nineteenth century in Europe it meant the habits and custom.

Ø It also meant ‘ to honour’ and ‘project ’.

Ø According to Arnold….

“ Culture is the great help out of our present difficulties ; Culture being a persuite of our total perfection by means of getting to know, on all the matters which more concern us, the best in the world…”

v According to Raymond Williams.

Ø Culture – ideal

Ø Culture – timeless

Ø Culture – documentary.

v Culture as a study in perfection.

Ø According to Arnold…..

“ Morality and concept of good or bad ‘ culture is a study of perfection ”

Ø On the other side Religion says…

Ø The kingdom of God within you ; and culture , in like manner, places human perfection in an internal condition.

v Culture : Sweetness and Light.

Ø For Arnold culture is also connected with the idea of sweetness and Light. He tries to explain this idea with the help of Greek words aphuia and euphuia. He also speak about intelligence or light as a character of perfection.

Ø For example..

In ‘ Battle of the Book ‘ by Jonathan Swift is one of the best example of Sweetness and light present very well.

Ø Perfection will be both –social and professional.

Ø Culture also asks what Greatness is.

Ø Greatness is a spiritual condition worthy to exite Love, interest and admiration.

Ø Culture says…..

“ Consider these people , them their way of life , their habits, their voice….”

v Its outcome on Middle and working Class.

Ø Again, Arnold gives an example of Middle Class and Working Class and also he prove let see how….

Ø ‘ Doing as one likes may bring chaos and anarchy in society. He write in this essay.Our Middle Class, the great representative of trade and Dissent.The philistines

Ø Are the middle class according to Arnold.

v Three great class of England….

                England

 

v 1.Aristocrats class.

The aristocratic class Arnold calls the Barbarians. They are champion of personal liberty and often anarchical in their tendencies. Aristocratic people normaly follows rich class. Evan the culture,lacking in inward virtue.

v 2.Middle class.

              The philistines are the middle class according to Arnold.In its original German sense is meant the uncultured people like most of the Shakespeare’s. The philistines are wordly wise men, captains of industry busy in trade and commerce.

              Again the puritans Arnold’s complain is that they care more for sweetness and light and also care for fire and strength.

v Malaise of the age.

Arnold also point out to the very malaise of his age when he says…..

“ Instead of our ‘ one thing needful ’, justifying in us vulgarity, hideousness, ingnorance, violence-our hideousness, ingnorance are really so many touchstone which try our one thing needful…”

Ø If Hebraism means only the knowledge of the Bible and word of God.

Ø According to Arnold….

“ No man, who knows nothings else,

Knowns even his Bible ”

Ø On the other hand Hellenism means is the impulse to the development of the whole man.

Ø Plato says…..

“ Forever through all the universe tends towards that which is lovely ”

v Arnold Deplores the Age.

Arnold deplores the confusion of thought and of practice in his age among all classes of people in England. And the rightly boasts of British freedom, British industry and British muscularity.

v According to Arnold….

“ What we want, is a fuller harmonious development of our humanity a free play of thought upon our routine notions, spontaneity of consciousness, sweetness and light….”

Ø The moral issue implies an implicit faith in  the word of God.

v Mental Energy.

Ø The Englishmen usually, prefers doing the thinking Bishop Wilson Says…..

“ First never go against the best light you have ; secondly take care that you light be not darkness ”.

Ø Englishmean’s one of the best and strong point in this character is his physical energy than mental intelligence. Arnold adds another quality to be hardnessed with the mental energy to know ; and the first is Hebraism and the second is Hellenism.

v Aim of Hebraism and Hellenism.

Ø He insist on the balance of the both thought and action the final aim of Hebraism and Hellenism is the same as man’s perfection and salvation so the aim and end of both Hebraism and Hellenism is admirable.

Ø The root idea of the both is the desire for reason and the will of God and the desire of love of God.

Ø So in this analysis Arnold finds that…..

“ The Governing idea of Hellenism is spontaneity of consciousness ; that of Hebraism, Strictness or conscious ”

Ø Hellenism and Hebraism both are directly connected to the life of human beings.Hellenism keeps emphasis on language knowledge knowing the things, where Hebraism doing in Christianity is doing the will of God.

Ø Hebraism again thinks that of the original sin of man.The discipline of the holly scripture teaches how to avoid and stop the sin.

Ø Hebraism is a great movement of Christianity.

Ø Hellenism is a great movement of Renaissance.

Ø Arnold asserts that there is enough of Hellenism is the English notion. He emphasizes on Hebraism become it is based on self – control.

Ø In Reformation, there was the influence of Hebraism than Hellenism.

v Renaissance and Reformation.

Ø England we find both moral and intellectual awareness shared by Reformation and Renaissance. Reformation was a cry to return to the Bible and a movement to do, form the heart, the will of God.

Ø Renaissance and Reformation in England brought in their wake humanism born of the great reawakening of Hellenism.  So Arnold thinks that as Hellenism is of Indo-European growth, Hebraism is of Semitic growth.

v Personal Liberty.

Ø Again, freedom is worshipped in itself. Arnold also finds that it is a most happy and important thing for a man merely to do as he likes. British constitution fosters this idea of personal liberty. Therefore the danger of drifting towards anarchy is inherent in the very British constitution.

v Effect on working class.

Ø The poor working class passed by the hard work daily compulsion of material wants is lured by the political idea of personal liberty.

v The Rioters.

Ø Arnold point out to the Hyde Park Riots What is Rioters.

Ø The Rioters are Englishman and as such they are to be treated differently from the Irishmen. Personal liberty is a birthright of Englishman. But the danger is favoritism.

Ø Freedom of doing as one likes-according to Arnold…

Ø He agrees with the prevalent notion that it is a most happy and important thing for a man merely to be able to do as he likes. But the main problem is…..

“On what he is to do when he is thus free to do as he likes, we do not lay so much stress.”

Ø On the other side Mr. Bright say that…

“British constitution is system which stops and paralyses any power in interestin with the free action of individuals…that the central idea of English life and politics is the assertion of personal liberty...”

v Conclusion.

Ø Culture and Anarchy contains most of terms like…culture, sweetness and light, Barbarism, Philistine, Hebraism, and many others which are now associated with Arnold work and influence.Arnold also talk about industrial development.Culture and Anarchy is major work of criticism.