Daffodils
Stanza I
I wandered lonely as a cloud
That floats on high o'er vales and hills,
When all at once I saw a crowd,
A host, of golden daffodils;
Beside the lake, beneath the trees,
Fluttering and dancing in the breeze.
Action of poet - wandering, i.e. walking aimlessly
State of mind - negative, lonely (although he was walking with his sister, he felt lost/alone)
He is compared to a cloud (simile)
Clouds - float high over vales and hills (floats - metaphor)
Symbolism of cloud - aimless, lonely/isolated, ephemeral/short lived - temporary
Verbs mentioned to describe poet and cloud's movement - wandered, floats - No sense of purpose, no
anchor, no grounding
First sight of daffodils -
All at once - indicates that it happens suddenly.
Crowd - mob/gathering
Host -
Warriors/Legion/Collection - uniform/look alike
Army - wear similar uniform and look alike, just like the daffodils.
Golden daffodils -
Golden - yellow, short-lived, best version of themselves at that point.(symbolism)
Location - Beside the lake, beneath the trees
Action - Fluttering and dancing in the breeze
Fluttering - a short rapid movement, shows a degree of excitement.
Dancing - joy/happiness
Elements of nature - Clouds, vales, hills, lake, trees, daffodils, breeze
Contrasting nouns -
Cloud and Crowd -
Cloud - refers to alone, He feels alone/lonely like a cloud.
Crowd - He seeks solace after seeing the crowd of daffodils.
Vales and Hills -
Ups and downs of life.
Stanza II
Continuous as the stars that shine
And twinkle on the milky way,
They stretched in never-ending line
Along the margin of a bay:
Ten thousand saw I at a glance,
Tossing their heads in sprightly dance.
Daffodils compared to - Stars (simile)
Stars -
Action - Twinkle, Shine - bright, continuous
Location - The Milky Way Galaxy
Similarity between stars and daffodils -
Both the daffodils and stars stretch in a never-ending line. (hyperbole)
Spatial continuity, expanse - both stars and daffodils are continuous.
Location - more detailed - Along the margin of a bay, beside the lake, beneath the trees
Number of daffodils -
Ten thousand (hyperbole)
It was an exaggerated estimate to show how amazed he was at the sight.
Action - Tossing their heads in sprightly dance -
Shows that the daffodils were happy and active. (personification)
Significance - They dance as they are carefree, happy, and free.
Stanza III
The waves beside them danced; but they
Out-did the sparkling waves in glee:
A poet could not but be gay,
In such a jocund company:
I gazed—and gazed—but little thought
What wealth the show to me had brought:
Same movement as daffodils - Waves -
Visual Imagery -
Waves - Move up and down - dancing
Daffodils - Move to and fro or side to side - dance better than the waves
Competition -
The daffodils outdid the waves in glee.
Emotion - glee - delight from ones fortune
Effect on the poet -
Emotion - happy/gay
Reaction - Gazed and gazed, could not stop looking at the daffodils -Mesmerized at the scene.
He did not think of the spiritual wealth, and the lasting effect of this scene.
spiritual wealth - connection with nature.
little thought - here little refers to none, or no thought.
Inference about Nature -
Nature is a source of great inspiration and joy.
Nature is a sight that gives you great memories, spiritual wealth, and a lasting effect.
Stanza IV
For oft, when on my couch I lie
In vacant or in pensive mood,
They flash upon that inward eye
Which is the bliss of solitude;
And then my heart with pleasure fills,
And dances with the daffodils.
Activity of the poet -
Currently - Lying on the couch - passive action
Previously -
Wandering - semi-active
Saw a beautiful sight - passive
Gazed and gazed - physically passive
Location of the poet -
Currently - his couch
Previously - midst of nature - lake, trees, daffodils
Contrast -
Couch - civilization, modern
Midst of nature - simplicity
State of mind of the poet -
Couch Midst of Nature
Vacant, Pensive mood - contemplative Previously - Lonely, Wandering aimlessly
Remembers the daffodils - Pleasure After seeing the daffodils - Happy, cheerful
Significance of how the vision of daffodils happened -
Real vision - All at once - makes a lasting memory
Mind vision - Flash - comes to his mind unexpectedly
Inward eye - imagination (metaphor)
Bliss of solitude -
Bliss means perfect happiness, and solitude means the state of being alone.
The poet feels happy when he imagines the daffodils when he is alone.
Contrast between loneliness and solitude - loneliness is being sad when alone, and wanting
company, while solitude is being happy alone.
When in solitude - mind is active, there are no distractions, leading to imagination (inward eye), in
this case the vision of the daffodils which is blissful and makes the poet happy.
Effect of vision on the heart ❤️ of the poet
❤️ fills with pleasure, dances with the daffodils. (personification)
Resonance with the daffodils -
Daffodils - dancing and fluttering in the wind, tossing their heads in a sprightly dance.
Waves - dancing by moving up and down.
❤️ - Fluttering and dancing when the poet sees the vision of the daffodils. (spiritual wealth of
nature, lasting effect of the sight)
Poet - prefers his own company -
He wandered alone like a cloud in the beginning.
He feels a bliss of solitude when remembering the vision of daffodils.
Themes -
Nature is a source of perpetual inspiration, bliss, joy.
The sight of Nature gives spiritual wealth and a lasting effect which can make someone happy
when they are feeling down.
Context of the times when it was written -
Written during 20th century -
Period of colonization in England
Industrial Revolution
Industrial Revolution - Effects -
Increase in pollution
Decrease in forest cover
Degradation in environment and nature
Relevance in current times -
Urbanization and rapid growth of cities and towns causes pollution and cutting down of trees,
leading to destruction of nature.
People do not have time to appreciate nature.
This poem highlights the beauty of nature and how important it can be in ones life.
