"Dover Beac" Analysis

"Dover Beach" by Matthew Arnold is a topical poem written during the 19th century. The poem describes the inevitable rise and fall of the tide and the wearing away of the beach, a process that has gone on since the dawn of man and continues forever even as civilizations rise and fall. It then directly relates the sea to Faith, showing the disillusionment in faith that many Victorian era poets were facing, as they lost faith in the church's ability to guide them. "Naked shingles of the world" are revealed as the tide of faith goes out - the truth is uncovered and disappointing.…