Who were the Populace in Matthew Arnold’s classification of English society?

In his seminal work Culture and Anarchy, the Victorian critic Matthew Arnold classified English society into three distinct groups. Within this framework, he described the Populace as being "still raw and blind."12

Arnold utilized this tripartite classification to analyze the state of Victorian England, contrasting the Populace with the other two segments of society:

• Barbarians: The aristocracy, characterized by their lofty spirit, serenity, and distinguished manners, though noted for their inaccessibility to new ideas.12
• Philistines: The commercial middle class, which served as the stronghold of religious nonconformity. While they possessed significant energy and morality, Arnold argued they lacked "sweetness and light."12

Arnold believed that none of these individual classes represented the nation's "best self." Instead, he argued that the true repository of collective national ideals was found in the idea of "the State," which he hoped would foster an awakened intelligence to guide the nation away from the "anarchy" of a democracy lacking standards.12