Dover Beach Summary (ISC Class 12) By Matthew Arnold

Short Summary – Dover Beach

The Dover Beach Summary by Matthew Arnold is discussed and summarised. It gives a shorter version of the Dover Beach Summary. The Dover Beach Summary’s timeline covers early 19th-century England. The speaker is seeing the English Channel from inside a house one night while he interacts with a woman while looking out toward the town of Dover. Nearly twenty miles away, on the French coast, both notice the lights. The sea is peaceful and calm.

When the light on the French side has dimmed, the speaker turns his attention to the English side, which is still peaceful. He is balancing the importance of visual and aural imagery. He refers to the pebbles being dragged out by the waves as making a “grating roar,” and he describes the symphony of the universe as having an unending sense of sadness.

In addition, the speaker travels back in time to ancient Greece, where Sophocles experience similar sound on the Aegean Sea. The major metaphor of the poem is then introduced, with the idea that society is losing trust as the tide recedes from the coast. The speaker uses melancholy language to convey the loss of the faith.

In the final stanza, the speaker addresses his nearby loved one directly. He is advising her to always stay true to her partner and the world that is set out in front of them. The speaker, however, clearly cautions that the world’s beauty is merely an illusion. This is because there are many people battling on a battlefield in total darkness.

About The Author

Matthew Arnold’s poem “Dover Beach” appeared in New Poems in 1867. The most well-known of the author’s creations, this poem’s 39 lines discuss the collapse of religious fervour in today’s society and suggest the loyalty of love as its replacement.

Conclusion

The poem’s conclusion offers relief from the speaker’s problems. In order for them to find solace and clarity in the “mixed alarms of struggle and flight” of life, he implores his “love” to be loyal to him.