Matthew Arnold's famous series of essays, which were first published in book form under the title Culture and Anarchy in 1869, debate important que...
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Apr 12, 2009
Adrian
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Arnold's idea of culture could not be less in vogue these days. As it is always salutary to read the out-of-vogue, I strongly recommend this book to everyone. Today, culture is used to mean what used to be called society or even traditional society. This entire book is Arnold's bid for culture to mean the collection of all that is best and perfect in the world and the agreed-upon commitment to develop that perfection even further, an idea that today we can only weakly express with the word civil
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Mar 12, 2010
Yngvild
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When it comes to pure malicious wit, nobody beats Matthew Arnold, not even Jonathan Swift. The six short essays in Culture and Anarchy would have long passed out of print if they were not such fun. The first three essays take aim at all segments of society: the working, middle and aristocratic classes; leftwing, centrist and rightwing politicians; England, Europe and America; Nonconformists and conformists.
Evidently, even today, some people are sulky about Arnold’s poison-dipped swo More...
Evidently, even today, some people are sulky about Arnold’s poison-dipped swo More...
Jan 07, 2011
Miriam
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Reason -- "Sweetness and Light" -- Culture -- Perfection -- for Arnold these terms are nearly synonymous, and all underlie the same central claim: the cause of disorder is both identifiable and curable. Arnold's goal here is not to propose a specific program of reform but, as he says in Democracy, to "invite impartial reflections." While Arnold does not precisely live up to his own asserted impartiality, his essay does seem constructed to persuade rather than to argue. This r
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Oct 12, 2009
Abailart
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Reading again, after many years in the wilderness of cultural studies bitterness, that home for frustrated and hateful spoilt brats all over the rich world. Undergraduates are taught to sneer at this book (of course, on the basis of a two or three page extract), in the beginning of their indoctrination into despising of the literary. There is, it is true, much to object to, but the light irony of its writing is delight and powerful of itslf: the issues it deals with frighteningly familiar themes
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Jul 02, 2011
Ke
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It surprised me how many religious references this book made. I like how it gave me an idea of the intellectual debates and environment from the time.
Jun 01, 2011
Elsie
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Arnold, you ivory-towerist. (He does create a space for the intellectual, which is good. But we should ALL be the intellectual. The space should be everywhere. We should all be the artist :)-in artistic (non-artsy) and diverse ways.)
Aug 29, 2011
Jude
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I love all this thinking about culture and education. It may be a little old-fashioned but still raises issues worth thinking about. Good old Arnold: solid as a rock and more liberal than a liberal.
May 29, 2007
Emily
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Has its great moments, but full of empty phrases like "sweetness and light," "let truth and the will of God prevail," and, our favorite, "force 'til right is ready"!
Stick to Dover Beach.
Stick to Dover Beach.
Jun 01, 2011
Jason Williams
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A late Romantic gasping for air in the onslaught of the West's new religion: liberalism and *free market* capitalism.
Jun 01, 2011
Laura
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It takes awhile to understand, but it really enlightened me to the depths of literary criticism.
Jan 28, 2008
megan
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are you a barbarian, a philistine, or just part of the populace? read this book and find out.
May 02, 2007
Steve
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High culture saving the world through its dissemination of "sweetness and light"
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