I WANDERED LONELY AS A CLOUD By William

“I WANDERED LONELY AS A CLOUD” By William Wordsworth

WILLIAM WORDSWORTH • Childhood • Adult Life • Experiences that influenced his writing • Literary Achievements

Loneliness and Isolation “vacant or in pensive mood” (20) “daffodils” (4) “lake” (5) “trees” (5) “breeze” (6) “stars” (7) “bay” (10) “waves” (13) “jocund company” (16) Happiness

SIMILE “I wandered lonely as a cloud” (1)

HYPERBOLE “Ten thousand saw I at a glance” (11)

PERSONIFICATION “The waves beside them danced” (13)

METAPHOR “When all at once I saw a crowd, A host, of golden daffodils” (2 -3)

RHYME SCHEME/STANZA “Continuous as the stars that shine And twinkle on the milky way, They stretched in never-ending line Along the margin of the bay Ten thousand saw I at a glance, Tossing their heads in a sprightly dance. ” A B C C Rhymed couplet

QUESTION 1 (TWO PARTS): • Describe the speaker of the poem. • What do you think the speaker means by “that inward eye” (21)? How might the “inward eye” be the “bliss of solitude” (22)? QUESTION 2: What is theme, or message the author is trying to convey through this poem?

CONCLUSION • The speaker expresses a sincere appreciation and love for nature. • The speaker, while struggling with feelings of isolation and loneliness, is overcome by the beautiful image of the daffodils. • The speaker realizes that whenever he is feeling “vacant” or in a “pensive mood, ” there is an escape; he now has the “wealth, ” or memory of this sight, to reflect on in order to feel “bliss” or “pleasure. ”