BigSlate Icon
Home
Study
Engaging English

Engaging English

Preeti Roychoudhury, Sadeqa R, HarperCollins

ICSEClass 6
English

The Daffodils

William Wordsworth

About William Wordsworth

William Wordsworth (1770 - 1850) is one of the most important British poets. He believed that Nature was man's greatest teach 'Lucy Gray', The Ruined Cottage‘ and 'The Solitary Reaper' are some of his most famous poems.

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
Out-did the sparkling waves in glee:
A poet could not hot he gay,
In such a jocund company:
I gazed-wind gazed-but little thought
What wealth the show to me had brought:

For oft, when on my couch I lie
to 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.

Summary
The poet William Wordsworth who lived between 1770 and 1850 brought a completely new approach to the writing of English poetry The poem “The Daffodils” written by William Wordsworth highlights the poet’s attachment towards nature It was first published in ‘poems’ in two volumes in the year 1807 Wordsworth is known to be a romantic poet and he had his special inclination towards nature He compares nature to a thing of extraordinary beauty and often finds in a solace in nature to his otherwise pensive self According to Wordsworth Nature has the power in itself to provide not only a ...

Available Answers

  1. 1.

    Find lines from the poem that indicate that following:
    1. The poet was wandering aimlessly one day.
    2. The daffodils were of a golden colour.
    3. The daffodils were countless in number.
    4. The poet did not realise the deep effect the scene would have on him.
    5. The memory of the image of the daffodils brings great joy to the poet.

  2. 2.

    They stretched in never-ending line
    Along the margin of a bay

    1. What are being referred to as 'they'?
    2. Which words indicate that the poet saw a large number of those things?
    3. Where did the poet spot them?
    4. What does he compare them to? What figure of speech does he use?
  3. 3.

    A poet could not but be gay,
    In such a jocund company:

    1. What does the word 'jocund' mean? Who were jocund?
    2. Whom did they outdo in being jocund?
    3. How did their mood affect the poet?
  4. 4.

    They flash upon that inward eye
    Which is the bliss of solitude;

    1. What do the words 'inward eye' mean? What flashed on the poet's inward eye?
    2. What does the phrase,'the bliss of solitude' mean? How does the poet feel 'the bliss of solitude'?
    3. What impact does the memory of the daffodils have on the poet?
    4. What happens when he experiences this feeling?
  5. 5.

    What role does memory play in this poem?

  6. 6.

    Does everyone have an 'inward eye' or do only poets have this gift? Give reasons for your answer.

Please login to post your comments.