Papers on "Matthew Arnold's "The Forsaken Merman"" and similar term paper topics

Paper #092311 :: Matthew Arnold's "The Forsaken Merman"
Buy and instantly download this paper now

This paper discusses the theme of the superiority of secular love and culture over Christianity in Matthew Arnold's poem "The Forsaken Merman".

Written in 2006; 1,595 words; 3 sources; MLA; $ 52.95

Paper Summary:

This paper explains that, on the surface, the subject matter and rhyme scheme of the poem "The Forsaken Merman" by Matthew Arnold appears very similar to Pre-Raphaelite poets of the past decade, but Arnold's poem illustrates contemporary concerns about shifting moral norms. The author points out that Arnold inverts the conventional, moral storytelling function of many nursery-rhyme poems designed for children into a story about a pagan hero, who is cruelly rebuffed by a mortal Christian woman for a religion, which ultimately affords her an unfulfilling and death-driven way of existence. The paper relates that Arnold emphasizes the superstitious component of religion in the poem's reference to religion in terms of bells and books rather than of Christ and eternal life, which might be considered the higher aspects of religion.

From the Paper:

"This cruelty of the Christian woman, who spurns the truest lover of the poem, should come as little surprise to persons familiar with the poet Matthew Arnold's own system of beliefs. Matthew Arnold was a professed agnostic. But according to the Victorian scholar David DeLaura, Arnold's attitude towards religion was more complex than this word might suggest. It was not simply that Arnold did not believe, in fact he did think there was a strong value to be found in religion and supported many of his religious friends, like John Henry Newman, an Anglican covert to Catholicism."

Tags: nursery-rhyme superstitious water-children morality pagan

More papers on "Matthew Arnold's "The Forsaken Merman""

1. Paper #059929 :: Augustus Toplay and Matthew Arnold ( 828 words; 2 sources; MLA )
2. Paper #027044 :: Matthew Arnold's "Dover Beach" ( 2,522 words; 1 source; MLA )
3. Paper #026776 :: John Keats and Matthew Arnold ( 3,082 words; 8 sources; MLA )
4. Paper #014484 :: "Dover Beach" ( Matthew Arnold ) and "God's Grandeur" ( Gerard Manley Hopkins ) ( 2,250 words; 4 sources; )
5. Paper #007523 :: Matthew Arnold: Late Victorian English Poet and Critic ( 1,205 words; 4 sources; MLA )

About AcaDemon

We have thousands of high-quality term papers, research papers, essays, book reports and dissertations on every topic. At AcaDemon, you can download those term papers to help you write yours! You can be sure that the term paper, essay, book report or research paper, you download are top-quality, competitively priced and high-level work.

Look for more research papers, essays and book reports on Matthew Arnold's "The Forsaken Merman"

This Free Term Paper Abstract is a part of our Term Paper Library. Here you can purchase research papers, examples of essays, academic dissertations, articles, notes, analytical papers, book reports, stories and poems. We have thousands of persuasive, point-of-view, narrative, critical, compare and contrast and other types of essays in our Library. You can also find here Term papers on "Matthew Arnold's "The Forsaken Merman"", Essays on "Matthew Arnold's "The Forsaken Merman"", Research papers on "Matthew Arnold's "The Forsaken Merman"", Student papers on "Matthew Arnold's "The Forsaken Merman"", Book reports on "Matthew Arnold's "The Forsaken Merman"", Dissertation on "Matthew Arnold's "The Forsaken Merman"", Thesis on "Matthew Arnold's "The Forsaken Merman"", Summary of paper on "Matthew Arnold's "The Forsaken Merman"", Articles written on "Matthew Arnold's "The Forsaken Merman"".