# St. Paul — Culture and Anarchy character guide

> St. Paul in Culture and Anarchy by Matthew Arnold.

**Role:** supporting

**Also known as:** St. Paul

**First appearance:** 0002-culture-and-anarchy

## Snapshot

The apostle whose strenuous Hebraism the narrator treats as a necessary discipline of self-conquest, yet also as a force that must be renewed by Hellenic thought.

## Who they are

He presides over the long schooling of mankind in self-conquest, the centuries of painful effort that the narrator credits with making England capable of walking steadfastly by whatever light it knows. Yet his stiff and stark notions must be turned upon by a stream of fresh thought and consciousness, as Bishop Wilson did, if Hebraism is ever to become a joint force with Hellenism rather than its rival. He matters because the book's hope of a perfected humanity rests on whether his discipline can be crowned, not replaced, by sweetness and light.

## Relationships

### [Narrator](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/culture_and_anarchy_se/characters/narrator)

_psychological_

St. Paul is used by the narrator as a symbol of Hebraism, representing a moral and religious force contrasted with Hellenism.

## In the story

### [Sweetness and Light](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/culture_and_anarchy_se/chapters/i-sweetness-and-light)

Referenced implicitly through the religious command to 'resist the devil' and 'overcome the wicked one,' illustrating the moral striving of the English race.

### [IV: Hebraism and Hellenism](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/culture_and_anarchy_se/chapters/iv-hebraism-and-hellenism)

Cited as a representative of Hebraism; his words 'that we might be partakers of the divine nature' are used to illustrate the shared aim of both forces.

### [Chapter III](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/culture_and_anarchy_se/chapters/iii)

Mentioned as an example of fruitful Hellenising within Hebraism.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/culture_and_anarchy_se/characters/st_paul
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/culture_and_anarchy_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/culture_and_anarchy_se/characters