Andrews, R. G.; (1980) Literature, dogma and education : a study of Matthew Arnold's later criticism and its educational implications for today. Doctoral thesis , Institute of Education, University of London.

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Abstract

The main object of the thesis is to explore the concepts 'literature' and 'dogma' in relation to education. It considers the place of literature in the educational curriculum and examines its relationship with religion, moral education and science. The point of departure for the study is Matthew Arnold's Literature and Dogma (1873) which, in conjunction with related writings, is considered first within the cultural and educational climate of its own age, and then evaluated for its relevance and educational implications for the present day. Matthew Arnold, a distinguished social critic, professor of poetry and Inspector of Education, wrote Literature and Dogma at a time of considerable social and intellectual upheaval; and the pattern of social change bro ught about by accelerating technology over the past century, with its increasing clash of cultures and diverse dogmatic and ideological systems has given new significance to Arnold's thought. In particular, his ideas on moral, scientific and religious education have implications for the modern curriculum and for the place of literature within it, which the research endeavours to bring into focus and develop. In a shrinking and increasingly complex world1where there is evidence of an increasing need for education to provide young people with both a sense of security and a flexible capacity to cope with unexampled change, Arnold's own upbringing is shown to be of some educational interest. The conclusion reached is that, while it is impossible to prove the moral. efficacy of literature, there seems to be some justification for believing that imaginative literature, appropriately taught, has an increasingly significant role to play as a means of ordering emotions, conveying values, enhancing our capacity for empathy and communicating insights, as religious certainties and moral dogmas come under challenge from alternative competing dogmas and agencies for change.

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