"Dover Beach" is a well-written poem authored by Matthew Arnold. This is a good poem to analyze, because of the complex theme and usage of literary devices. "Dover Beach" is a three stanza poem that contains a different number of lines in each stanza. About half of the lines in the poem are in iambic pentameter, while the rest of the lines contain two to four feet. The rhyme scheme in the poem appears to be abac, dbdc. Matthew Arnold creates the mood of the poem through the usage of imagery. He also uses descriptive adjectives, similes and metaphors to create the mood. Through the use of these literary devices, Arnold portrays a man standing before the window pondering the sounds of pebbles tossed in waves as a representation of human suffering. The man arrives at the vision of humanity being helpless against nature. Arnold creates the mood by giving the reader mental pictures of the actions, sights and sounds the man sees. Arnold's use of imagery and descriptive adjectives are used to create the impressions of the setting and to create the fluctuating mood, which is the eternal struggle of nature over man.In "Dover Beach", Matthew Arnold uses detailed adjectives and sensory imagery to describe the setting and portray the beginning mood, which begins with the illusion of natural beauty and ends with a tragic human experience. The poem begins with two-part stanzas, the first that is promising and hopeful, and the second that replaces optimism with a reality that is grim. Arnold uses contrast when he appeals to the sense of sight in the first section and to hearing in the second. Arnold starts with the descriptions of the "calm sea", "fair tide" and the "vast" cliffs, which create a calming, innocent appearance. This sets the mood of peace and contentment, which the speaker feels when he gazes out upon the sea. "Come to the window, sweet is the night-air", gives the reader the impression of a cool, summer night. The moo...
