Daffodils

by William Wordsworth

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.

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.

The waves beside them danced, but they

Outdid the sparkling waves in glee:
A poet could not be but gay,
In such a jocund company:
I gazed - and gazed - but little thought
What wealth the show to me had brought:

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.

Biography

The poet William Wordsworth was born in Cockermouth, Cumberland on 7 April 1770. Much of his
poetry was inspired by the dramatic landscapes of the Lake District, and his work did much to alter
public perceptions of that part of England.

His sister and lifelong companion, Dorothy, was born in 1771. They were looked after by relatives
after the early death of their parents. Between 1787 and 1790, William studied at Cambridge,
spending holidays walking in the lakes and trekking across revolutionary France to the Alps.

In 1795, William and Dorothy set up home together in the West Country. There they met Samuel
Taylor Coleridge, with whom Wordsworth published Lyrical Ballads (1798), which included ‘Lines
Written a Few Miles above Tintern Abbey’.

Wordsworth and Dorothy returned to the Lake District in 1799, settling at Dove Cottage in Grasmere;
Robert Southey and Coleridge lived nearby. In 1802, repayment of substantial debt owed to his
father enabled Wordsworth to marry Mary Hutchinson. Life at Grasmere inspired some of his
greatest poetry, including ‘I wandered Lonely as a Cloud’ and ‘Ode: Intimations of Mortality’ – as well
as the prose work A Description of the Scenery of the Lakes in the North of England (1822).

In 1813, the Wordsworths moved to Rydal Mount, Ambleside. He continued to write poetry,
including The Excursion (1814) and The River Duddon (1820), but the conservatism of his later work
annoyed radical friends. Wordsworth died on 23 April 1850 and was buried in Grasmere churchyard.
His great autobiographical poem, The Prelude, which he had worked on since 1798, was published
shortly after his death.

Further information about the life of William Wordsworth can be found via the Oxford Dictionary of
National Biography.

Words Meaning

wandered walked aimlessly

vales Valley
Fluttering flickering / Waving
Continuous non stop
twinkle sparkle / shine
stretched prolonged
Tossing throwing
sprightly lively / energetically
Outdid surpass / do better than
glee delight
gay carefree
jocund cheerful
gazed stare / look
vacant Empty
pensive thoughtful
inward eye in his dream
bliss heaven / Enjoyment
solitude loneliness

Central Idea

The central idea of "Daffodils" is the beauty of nature.

The poem conveys the idea that natural things area source of delight. The things in
natural environment provide us an everlasting joy and merriment— the idea is that

"A thing of beauty is a joy forever."

Summary

The poet or the speaker in this poem, says that, once while “wandering like a cloud floating above hills
and valleys”, he came across a field of daffodils beside a lake. The dancing, fluttering flowers stretched
endlessly along the shore, and though the shining waves of the lake danced beside the flowers, yet the
daffodils outdid the water with their beauty.

The poet says that the golden daffodils twinkled and stretched in a continuous line just like the stars in
the Milky Way galaxy for putting a greater implication in indicating that the flowers are heavenly as the
stars. He seems the endless view of the golden daffodils as a never-ending line. The poet’s exaggeration
of the number of flowers by saying “Ten thousand saw I at a glance” indicates that he has never seen so
many daffodils at once. The poet could not help to be happy in such a joyful company of flowers.

He says that he stared and stared, but did not realize what wealth the scene would bring him. For now,
whenever he feels “vacant” or “pensive” the memory strikes “that inward eye” that is “the bliss of
solitude” and his heart fills with pleasure, “and dances with the daffodils.”

Comprehensions
Q 1: What does the poet compare the daffodils with and why?
Ans : The poet compares the daffodils with stars. The daffodils resembled the stars in some ways. The
daffodils stretched along the margin of a bay in a never-ending line like the Stars spread on the milky
way. The daffodils fluttered In the breeze while the stars twinkled in the sky.

Q 2: What does Wordsworth see when he lies upon his couch in a pensive mood! What happens to the
poet when he lies on his couch? 
Ans : When the poet lies on his couch, the beautiful scene of the daffodils comes before his eyes. His
heart then fills with pleasure and dances with the daffodils. His loneliness then becomes a great joy. 

Q 3: How can wealth come to the poet by looking at the scene before him?
Ans : William Wordsworth was a poet of nature. He loved natural beauty. When he looked at the
beautiful scene of the daffodils he valued his happiness as wealth.

Q 4: Describe the scene Of the daffodils?

Ans : The daffodils were fluttering and dancing in the breeze. They were beside the lake,
beneath the trees. They stretched in a never-ending line. They were in a very large
number.

Q 5: Write the message/central Idea of the poem "The Daffodils"?

 Ans : Beautiful things especially nature's beauty is a great source of happiness. A beautiful
scene stays in the memory for a long time. Whenever such scenes flash back in the
memory, they fill us with pleasure.