THE DAFFODILS

 PREPARED BY :-

 RITIKA JOSHI (COMPUTER FACULTY)

 GOVT. SEN. SEC. SCHOOL,
 TALWANDI DASAUNDA SINGH,AMRITSAR
POEM
 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 but be 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.
GOLDEN DAFFODILS
 CENTRAL IDEA

It is a beautiful poem. It
reveals the poet’s love for
nature. It expresses his deep
joy at the sight of daffodils.
It fills him with great
delight. Its memory becomes a
source of comfort and joy. His
heart is filled with pleasure .
It begins to dance with
daffodils.
Explanation with Reference
to the context
 I Wander’d (moved) lonely as a cloud
 That floats (flies) on high (sky )o’er vales
(valleys) and hills
 When all at once I saw a crowd,
 A host (crowd )of golden Daffodils
 Beside the lake , beneath (under) the trees ,
 Fluttering (moving) and dance in the breeze.
 Reference to the context
 These lines have been taken from the
poem, ‘The Daffodils’ written by William
Wordsworth. The poet loves beautiful
sights of Nature. The daffodils attract
his attention. He enjoys their sweet
company.
 EXPLANATION
 ONCE THE POST WAS WANDERING
AAL ALONE LIKE A PIECE OF CLOUD
IN THE SKY. He moved freely in the
countryside . All of a sudden he saw a
big crowd of daffodils . They grew
beside the lake and under the trees .
They were dancing with joy in the cool
breeze.
 Stanza II
 Continuous (growing in large number) as the
stars that shine
 And twinkle (shine )on the milky way,
 They stretch’d (spread )in a never ending
(endless) line
 Along the margin (bank) of a bay (lake) :
 Ten thousand saw I at a glance (look),
 Tossing (moving up and down )their heads in a
sprightly (happily) dance.
 Reference to the context
 These lines have been taken from the
poem, ‘The Daffodils’ written by William
Wordsworth. The poet describes the
beauty of daffodils. He feels very happy
to enjoy their company.
 EXPLANATION
 The poet says that the daffodils were
endless. They grew as close together as
the stars in the sky. There were no end
to them. They grew along the bank of
the lake. They were in thousands. They
were dancing in a joyful mood. The post
enjoyed the beauty of the scene very
much.
 STANZA III
 The waves beside (near )them danced , but
they
 Outdid (surpassed ) the sparkling (shining)
waves in glee (happiness) :
 A poet could not but be gay (happy),
 In such a jocund (sweet) company :
 I gazed and gazed but little thought
 What wealth (gain) the show to me had
brought.
 Reference to the context
 These lines have been taken from the
poem, ‘The Daffodils’ written by William
Wordsworth. The poet is a great lover
of nature. He takes delight in the
beauty of Daffodils. He enjoys their
sweet company.
 EXPLANATION
 The poet says that the daffodils were dancing
merrily beside the lake . The waves were also
dancing joyfully . But the dance of the
daffodils surpassed the dance of the waves.
The post is full of joy in their company. He is
enchanted by their beauty. He continues to
look at the beautiful scene. He feels that the
flowers have brought comfort and joy to him.
 STANZA IV
 For oft (often) , when on my couch (bed) I lie,
 In vacant (spare time) or in pensive
(thoughtful) mood (state of mind),
 They flash (appear suddenly) upon that inward
eye (imagination)
 Which is the bliss (great joy) of solitude
(loneliness) ;
 And then my heart with pleasure fills
 And dances with the daffodils.
 Reference to the context
 These lines have been taken from the
poem, ‘The Daffodils’ written by William
Wordsworth. The poet is a great lover
of nature. He takes delight in the
beauty of Daffodils. He enjoys their
sweet company.
 EXPLANATION
 The poet often finds himself in a
thoughtful mood . Then the memory of
the daffodils flashes before his mind .
It fills his heart with great pleasure.
The poet recalls the scene of the
daffodils. It makes his heart dance with
joy. Thus the sight of the daffodils
becomes a permanent source of joy.
 SUMMARY
 ‘the daffodils’ is an excellent poem. It
shows word’sworth great love for the
beautiful objects of nature .
 Once the poet was wandering all alone in
the counrtside. All of a sudden, he saw a
lrge number of daffodils growing beside
the lake . The daffodils were dancing in
the breeze. They were in a happy mood.
 CONTD..
 Thepoet compares the daffodils to the
shinning stars in the sky. They were
spread in a never ending line. The waves
were also dancing beside them. But the
dance of the daffodils surpassed the
dance of the waves. Such was the
beauty of the golden coloured daffodils.
 CONTD..
 The poet felt very happy in the company
of the daffodils. He continued to look at
the scene of daffodils. He as onder-
struck at their beauty. But he did not
realize then that these daffodils would
be a source of comfort and joy in the
years to come.
 CONTD..
 The scene of the daffodils leaves a
lasting impression on the poet’s mind.
Whenever he is in a thoughtful mood,
the scene of flowers flashes across his
mind. It gives him joy and comfort. The
poet becomes so happy that his heart
begins to dance with joy. He finds peace
and pleasure.
 HISTORY OF THE POEM
 Wordsworth s
famous poem about
daffodils was
composed in 1804,
two years after he
saw the flowers
walking by Ullswater
on a stormy day with
Dorothy.
 CONTD..
 His inspiration for the poem came from an
account written by Dorothy. In her journal
entry for 15th April 1802 she describes how
the daffodils:
 tossed and reeled and danced, and seemed as
if they verily laughed with the wind, that blew
upon them over the lake;
 Wordsworth published his poem, 'I wandered
lonely as a Cloud' , in 1807. He later altered
it, and his second version, published in 1815, is
the one widely known today.
 ABOUT THE POET
 The poet William
Wordsworth was born in
1770. By the time of his
death in 1850 he had
produced some of
English poetry’s
greatest works and
influenced future
generations of poets.
 Most of his life was
spent in the Lake
District.
 CONTD..
 Hewas born in Cockermouth (a town in
the northern Lakes); educated at
Hawkshead Grammar school; and spent
much of his adult life in Grasmere and
Rydal, right in the heart of the Lake
District. He died at Rydal Mount in
1850, and is buried, with his family, in
Grasmere churchyard.
 CONTD..
 He was witness to great social, political
and artistic change and his experiences
and attitudes are reflected not only in
his poetry, but also in letters and prose
works. Place and family were also
important to Wordsworth. This is clear
in his abiding love of the Lake District
and settled domestic life, celebrated in
poems such as ‘Home at Grasmere’.
 CONTD..
 Dove Cottage and the Wordsworth
Museum give a unique insight into the
way Wordsworth worked: where his
ideas came from, his use of notebooks,
the making of fair copies and the
continuous correction and reworking of
poems.