‘Daffodils’

All about ‘Daffodils’

William Wordsworth (1770–1850) lived most of his early life in the natural paradise of the Lake District in England. His poetry expresses his deep love of nature and nature’s healing effect on the soul. Wordsworth wrote this poem after taking a walk with his sister in the Lake District.

‘Daffodils’ by William Wordswor th 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. ©The Educational Company of Ireland

READING

ACT IVITY

1 Choose the two most important words from each stanza. 2 Describe the speaker in this poem. 3 Complete the mood task in your activity book (see page 53). 4 Complete the challenging vocabulary task in your activity book (see pages 54–55). 5 Complete the personification task in your activity book (see page 56) and answer the question that follows. 6 Complete the inference task in your activity book (see page 57) and answer the question that follows. 7 Did you like or dislike the poem? Explain why. 8 This poem was written in 1804, and some of the language used has gone out of fashion. List the words you feel are old-fashioned and suggest a modern version of each word that could be used instead. 9 Look at the line below. I gazed—and gazed—but little thought Name the punctuation mark that is used here. What is the purpose of this punctation mark? What effect does it have on the reader? 10 Does this poem remind you in any way of any other text you have studied? WRITING Which of these pictures of scenery do you like best and why? Can you remember a time when you were blown away by the beauty of nature? Think back to a place of outstanding natural beauty that you have visited or choose one of the pictures above. Write a narrative paragraph that describes your actual or imaginary experience of that natural scenery. Writing Tips Try using at least one example of a simile, a metaphor or personification. Aim to use some interesting descriptive adjectives. Add a variety of punctuation marks to add meaning to your paragraph. For example: –, ! and …©The Educational Company of Ireland