DOVER BEACH:
RESEARCH PROJECTS

• Listen to the 1942 song “White Cliffs of Dover,” by British crooner Vera Lynn, about how pleasant the singer expects the world to be after the Nazis stop dropping megatonnage of bombs on them. Write your own song, in the same sappy style, that conveys Arnold’s view that the end of that war only means the beginning of the next.

• Some literary historians believe that Arnold may have written this poem while he was on his honeymoon at Dover in 1851. Write a poem from the perspective of Arnold’s bride, expressing what she was thinking while he was groaning about war and sadness instead of fulfilling his manly duties.

• The most common explanation for the poem’s last line, about ignorant armies clashing by night, is that Arnold was thinking of Thucydides' account of the night battle of Epipolae. Find some accounts of battles that were actually quite successful at night. Overall, do you think that it is or is not a good idea to throw spears, cannon balls or warheads around without being able to see what you are doing?

• There is no specific historical evidence that Sophocles had any opinion whatsoever about the sound of waves. Choose some sound from your environment, such as lawn mowers or the squeals of a commercial pig farm, and write a short story about what some historical figure like Robert Goulet would think of it.

• Invent a drink called the “Matthew Arnold.” Use any ingredients you want, but be sure to include clam juice. Be prepared to explain your choices.