The Victorian Age brought about a new civilization. A civilization based upon industry, time, and money. Its values brought about a change in British life that was hard to cope with. The conflicting ideas of religion and science, work and education, and simply living on impulse without a chance of reflecting upon actions, invoked the state of confusion which is associated with its time. Mathew Arnold observed the plight of the Victorian Age, and sought an answer to the problems which he and his country were faced with. In both, "Dover Beach," and in his essay, "Culture and Anarchy," Arnold expresses the melancholy of a lost civilization, foresees its future, and seeks out a solution.
The Victorian Age was changing British civilization with its progression into science and industry. However, while the Victorian Age made progress in some fields, in other areas they suffered. Religious belief was contradicted by the ideas of evolution and scientific origin theories. The people were questioning their faith and the image of their living world, which was based upon the idea of God's creation. The industrial field of the Victorian Age quickly overtook all forms of the economy. Mass production was in effect, and the changes in working conditions caused changes in the people's way of life. There was no longer any time to reflect upon the days events. People were working long hours in the factories, under the ticking seconds of a clock which ran their lives. The negative impact of a rushed society was Arnold's key point involving the failure of this new society. Terming the failure to reflect as, "insufficient light," Arnold saw the people as automatons, who toiled daily without reflection on their self or the world around them. The people he saw were ruled by, "action with insufficient light, action pursued because we like to be doing something and doing it as we please." (Longman, 1585) Arnold saw this as particularly problematic, because at a time of great change, people need especially to reflect on their surroundings.