William Wordsworth`s Daffodils

Sahar Yassin Alshobaki

Mrs. Ahlam Anber

Romanticism

17^th October, 2013

Reflection on William Wordsworth`s Daffodils

    

   For the Romantics, the poet was a seer, a creator and a sensitive. He is the one who has a great imagination and has the ability to introduce the nature to people in different way they viewed it before. William Wordsworth, a well known figure of the 18^th century English society and a perfect representative of romantic age, introduces nature as a source of inspiration, peace, tranquility and imagination; therefore, all human have to love and unite with nature. In his poem “Daffodils”, we, as readers, can hint two romantic features, that Wordsworth was famous of, which are nature and 

imagination.

      First of all, nature is a clear image that appears form the very beginning of the poem till the end of it. First, the title “Daffodils” is a part of nature. This indicates that even the simplest element of nature affects him as a poet and leads him to feel and write about it. Second, if we read Wordsworth`s two sentences, “I looked to the primary qualities of humanity where man and nature are related” and “as if they are stars shining, trees walking or drops of water sparkling”, we can feel the idea of the transcendental unity between nature and man and nature and nature.

       The first kind of unity is between nature and man and vice versa. He begins his poem with, “I wandered lonely as a cloud that floats over vales and hills”. This beginning indicates that he is part of nature; he unites himself with every part of it such as vales, hills, daffodils, trees, lakes and stars. In addition, nature is part of humans. This appears in the so many personifications of nature. For example, he personifies the daffodils as a crowd of people and as a friendly host that welcome anyone loves or gets near from it. Then he personifies them as humans who are dancing, tossing their heads and being “a jocund company” to him. The waves as well are personified by dancing like humans. Thus, both of man and nature are like a body and a soul that we cannot separate them. At the end, the poet himself and the nature are totally united and they are dancing together as he says, “then my heart with pleasure fills, and dances with the daffodils”. The second kind of unity is between the natural aspects together. He says, “continuous as the stars that shine and twinkle on the milky way”. Here, as if the daffodils, like stars, link the earth with the sky by their brightness suggesting the unity between them. After that, he says, “the waves beside them danced” which also suggests the unity between the natural elements together.

    

 Secondly, Wordsworth`s sentence “there is a central peace subsisting at the heart of endless agitation” indicates that faith in nature leads to peace. This peace will lead to imagination and creativity. In this poem, there are so many hints to his imagination. First of all, he says, “I wandered lonely as a cloud”. Here, the word “cloud” indicates that he, above all earthly aspects, limits and restrictions, is superior, different, free, and can see more than others by his imagination. Second, he says, “I gazed and gazed but a little thought what wealth the show to me had brought”. This verse demonstrates that anyone contemplates deeply in nature, he will gain a very precious wealth, and his imagination will lead him to happiness. Such experience will be recollected again and again in “vacant or pensive mood”. Therefore, daffodils are planted in his insight, his “inward eye”, whenever he wants he can remember them again, so he will fill his heart with pleasure.

     

All in all, William Wordsworth wants people to love nature. He wants them to be moved by simple natural beauty, to be imaginative and creative, and to appreciate the small or subtle things around them. In his poem “Daffodils”, he expresses his emotions toward nature, the unity between human and nature, and the unity between the natural elements. In addition, he celebrates his imagination which was brought form nature in the first place.