An Analysis on William Wordsworth’s I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud

【Abstract】“I wandered lonely as a cloud” is supposed to be a meaning and wonderful poem of William Wordsworth. This paper gives a specific analysis on the poem and its structure， which can make readers have a very clear mind on it and truly.feel the power of nature.

【Key words】Wordsworth； nature； poem

【作者簡介】吉冰冰，河南檢察職業學院。

Ⅰ. Introduction to William Wordsworth

The famous poet William Wordsworth was born in Cockermouth， Cumbercland of England， in 1770. At his childhood， he was indulged in the wondrous beauty in the Lake District. The appreciation of nature took root in his mind and grew steadily with his youth and blossomed into an important Romantic doctrine in history. He was good at descriptions of mountains and rivers， flowers and birds， children and peasants， and reminiscences of his own childhood and youth.

As one of the pioneers in the romanticist movement， Wordsworth is convinced of the importance of subjectivity in poetry. His poetry， divided by the subjects， falls into two major groups： one about nature and the other about human life， because he was not only engrossed in nature， but also held the sympathy for the poor and suffering people. In the early 1800s， the contradiction between bourgeois democracy and traditional feudal idea was increasing. Wordsworth took notice of the initial prosperity of industrialized England but more of the corrupted， depressing and lifeless society. Thats why his poems often revealed the real feelings and sentiment of the common people. Besides， it is not intelligible that he felt “lonely” and seek consolation from the nature.

Ⅱ. Appreciation of I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud

1. Introduction to the Poem

I wandered lonely as a cloud

——William Wordsworth

I wandered lonely as a cloud That floats on high oer 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 Outdid 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.

2. Interpretation of the Poem

Firstly， the poet took himself as a cloud wondering lonely high over vales and hills in the stanza. “Lonely”， which was often used by the poet， establishes a tune of slight melancholy. Whereas in all a sudden， the use of “all at once” at the beginning of the four lines aptly expresses the shift of the poets attraction and brings in the topic as well.

Secondly， the stanza describes the dancing of the daffodils in detail. In sharp contrast with the poets loneliness， the daffodils are happy and bristling with life： they are “dancing”， and “tossing” their heads. As a whole， the number of the descriptive adjectives is the most of the four stanzas.

Thirdly， the waves also join in the dancing in this stanza，. The poet is inspired by the scenery and could “not but” be gay， meanwhile， he begins to think what wealth the show could bring him.

In the end， the forth stanza is dominated by emotions. The poet finally finds the consolation from the nature through his inward eye： with a bliss of solitude， his heart dances with the daffodils. The words “vacant”、”pensive mood” and “solitude” correspond with “lonely” in the first stanza. Here， the past tense is changed into the present tense， suggesting that this precious memory will be recollected by the poet forever.

In general， the image of the daffodils dancing goes through the whole passage. The poet imposed a perfect waltz begins with the leading dance of the daffodils and arrives at a climax by the joining of waves and comes to an end with the dance of the poets heart.

3. The Way the Poem is Structured

The poem consists of twenty-four lines grouped into four stanzas of regular syllabic length， with eight syllables in each line.

Sound Patterning： besides the end rhymes such as cloud-crowd， hills-daffodils and trees-breeze （the first stanza）， the poet also used Alliteration beside-beneath （line 5） to enhance the relation of place and to make the line more compact； Half-alliteration stars-shine （line7） seems to set up a bridge between the subject and the action； Assonances like host-golden （line 4） and Consonances like vales-hills （line 2） hover like a sigh； Reverse rhyme dance-daffodils （line 24） represents the harmony between the poet and the daffodils； Repetition gazed-gazed （line17） expresses fully the poets deep concentration on the scene. With these rhymes， the poem sounds melodic and naturally to the ear.

Metrical Foot： basically， the metrical foot is Iambic tetrameter. However， the last line of the first stanza and the last line of the second stanza are Trochaic. These variations are constructed to give the lines more exciting movement， according to the changed mood of the poet， or in order to emphasize the beautiful dancing of the daffodils.

Figurative language： the main figurative use of language is Trope. At first， the poet looked himself as a cloud. Then， the poet invited the reader to perceive in his mind the continuous shining stars as the vivid image of the daffodils. Still， another obvious figurative use of language is Personification， with which the depiction of the daffodils and the waves is much more vivid.

Syntax： the first two lines of the second stanza are the adverbial clause of the subject of the third line， served as the theme in order to stress the beauty of the daffodils. In addition， Ten thousand in the same stanza are put forward， to emphasize the large number of the daffodils.

Caesura： with the caesura that taking control of the tempo of the lines， the readers would halt for a while and share the emotions of the poet.

Ⅲ. Conclusion

I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud is a very meaningful poem as an inspired and imaginative piece of Wordsworths poetry. It verified Wordsworths conception that nature has a lot to do with man， it can not only refresh ones soul and fill one with happiness， but it can also be reduced into a beautiful memory which will comfort ones heart when in solitude and his assertion that the poetry should be the “overflow of powerful emotion”.

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