Matthew Arnold was born on December 24, 1822, in Middlesex, England. His father became the headmaster of a school in Warwickshire, where Arnold would spend much of his childhood and receive most of his early education. William Wordsworth, one of the leading figures of English Romanticism, was a close friend of the Arnold family and undoubtedly exercised considerable influence over the young Matthew. While still a schoolboy, Arnold became interested in poetry and began writing verses of his own, some of which attracted favorable attention from his school. In the fall of 1840, Arnold began attending the University of Oxford, where he majored in Classics. Arnold found his time at Oxford both intellectually stimulating and personally satisfying: He did well in his studies, continued to write and win school prizes, and made many friends. He graduated with his B.A. degree in 1844, receiving second-class honors.

Upon graduating from Oxford, Arnold returned to Warwickshire to teach for a short period at his old school. In 1847 Arnold left teaching to begin working as a private secretary to Henry Petty-Fitzmaurice, Lord Lansdowne, who was at that time Lord President of the Council. In his spare time, Arnold continued to pursue writing, publishing his debut poetry collection The Strayed Reveller in 1849.