The simile "a dazzling girdle" employed in this text ALLUES TO THE GREATNESS OF AN ERA WHEN ENGLAND WAS A WORLD POWER AND COMMERCIAL SUCCESS. Mathew Arnold's most well-known poem is "Dover Beach." During a journey to the south coast of England, where the cliffs of Dover are located, he penned the poem in 1851. The poem is about the sadness many people feel at the prospect of losing their home and community when they move away to find work or go to school. Arnold, who was an English poet and teacher, used his own experience as inspiration for the poem. He had recently lost his father and was feeling anxious about whether he would be able to earn a living by writing poems. In addition, the period following the Napoleonic Wars was one of decline for England. There were large-scale emigrations, including that of Arnold himself, who traveled to Switzerland where he taught at a school for six years before going back to England and earning a living as a writer. In the poem, the speaker compares the beach he sees from his room window to a "bride" because she is so beautiful and splendid. Then, he adds that her girdle of bright waves seems like a "dazzling garment" to him. Some believe it means a belt, while others think it can also mean a shawl or cloak.