A Comparison of
"Love Among the Ruins" and "Dover Beach"
by Sean Lowe
and Matthew Arnold, two poets of the mid-19th century, both express pessimism
about human nature in their respective works, “Love Among the Ruins” and “
.” The poems examine the value of
love among the turmoil of humanity. Although
the two poets’ conclusions about love are slightly different, the poems share
many similarities in theme and style.
”’s theme is that society is losing religious faith, but solace and moral
support can still be found in love.
uses imagery and metaphor to build the mood of calm melancholy, echoing the
poem’s sad theme. Tranquility is
expressed by imagery, as
writes, “The sea is calm tonight / The tide is full, the moon lies fair”
(1, 2) and that “the Cliffs of England [are] /
Glimmering and vast, out in the tranquil bay” (4, 5).
The speaker’s melancholy mood is expressed through an implied metaphor.
“Listen! You hear the grating roar…With tremulous cadence slow, and
bring / The eternal note of sadness in” (10, 13-14).
The sound of the ocean’s waves are likened to a sad song, serving as a
’s sad conclusions about humanity.
uses metaphors to express the speaker’s dismay with society.
He compares faith to a sea, stating that “now I only hear / Its
melancholy, long, withdrawing roar, / Retreating to the breath” (25, 26).
He feels that the sea of faith is descending, and society is losing its
faith in God or religion. He uses
anaphora to emphasize this unfaithfulness, writing, “the world...Hath really
neither joy, nor love, nor light, / Nor certitude, nor peace, nor help for
pain” (30, 34-35). Finally,
uses dramatic monologue to expresses love’s role in these dark times.
“Ah, love, let us be true / To one another!” (29), the speaker says.
The speaker wishes to be faithful to his lover so they may strengthen
each other. Therefore, to
, companionship serves as a strengthening moral bond “on [the] darkling
plain” (35) of society.
expresses a similar theme in “Love Among the Ruins.”
Browning’s poem displays how the value of temporal human accomplishment
pales in comparison to that of transcendent love.
Browning uses an ancient Roman city as symbolic of human accomplishment
and values. The Roman buildings, for
example, represent human accomplishments.
juxtaposes images of these buildings and their inhabitants with the pastoral
scene that marks their former site. “Where
the domed and daring place shot its spires / Up like fires” (19, 20) the
speaker says, “Now…does not even boast a tree” (13).
Browning continues, writing that “Such a carpet [of grass]as, this
summertime, o’erspreads / And embeds / Every vestige of the city” (27-30).
Browning juxtaposes the images of
and the pastoral scene in order to display how the grand valor of
has faded to an unmarked grassy area. Thus,
the juxtaposition reveals the fleeting nature of seemingly grand and mighty
human accomplishment. Browning ends
the poem with further criticism of the Romans, writing,
O heart! O blood
that freezes, blood that burns!
centuries of folly, noise and sin!
triumphs and their glories and the rest!
is best (79-84).
The speaker realizes that while
the temporal achievements of the Romans are impressive, “Lust of glory pricked
their heats up, dread of shame / struck them tame; / And that glory and that
shame alike, the gold bought and sold” (31-36), he seems to have achieved
transcendent happiness with the woman he loves.
Even though he is apparently poor, living in a “single little turret
that remains / On the plains” (37, 38), he is sublimely fulfilled by love. Compared
to the “centuries of folly, noise and sin” (81) that mark “earthly” (80)
efforts, “love is best” (84). The structure of the poem also reinforces
Browning’s theme. In the first
five stanzas, Browning being each line by describing the current day pastoral
scene, and then flashes back to the ancient Roman city.
But in the last two stanzas, he switches the structure, first describing
the Roman city, then moving to the present day.
This new structure facilitates the speaker’s dismissal of the Roman
scene. The Roman city is replaced by
a love scene, one that depicts a passionate kiss between the speaker and his
lover. This structure parallels
Browning’s theme that ultimately love is what prevails as love is what has the
closing note in the last two stanzas.
between both poems are plentiful, but there are key differences as well.
Both authors use imagery in their creation of calm scenes,
painting a gentle ocean and Browning painting a pastoral countryside.
Thematically, the poems are also linked by their criticism of humanity.
, however, specifically criticizes a loss of faith while Browning finds fault
with human nature in general. The
authors’ speakers also appreciate love for different reasons.
need for love is almost desperate, as he needs a companion in the face of the
unfaithful world, while Browning’s love is calm and eternal.
have more in common than they do in conflict.
Both poets criticize the world and its evil nature.
Each poem also sets love against tumultuous images of the world.
And, both poems feel love is a positive force in the face of a pestilent