Matthew Arnold

Matthew Arnold 24 December 1822 – 15 April 1888 was an English poet as well as cultural critic who worked as an inspector of schools. He was a son of Thomas Arnold, the celebrated headmaster of Rugby School, and brother to both Tom Arnold, literary professor, and William Delafield Arnold, novelist and colonial administrator. Matthew Arnold has been characterised as a sage writer, a type of writer who chastises and instructs the reader on contemporary social issues. He was also an inspector of schools for thirty-five years, and supported the concept of state-regulated secondary education.

Death

Arnold died suddenly in 1888 of heart failure whilst running to meet a train that would make taken him to the Liverpool Landing Stage to see his daughter, who was visiting from the United States where she had moved after marrying an American. He was survived by his wife, who died in June 1901.