ASSIGNMENT:
Read “I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud” by William Wordsworth at least twice and
complete the following directions that follow; work due at the end of the bell
I WANDERED LONELY AS A CLOUD
by WILLIAM WORDSWORTH
PARAPHRASE EACH LINE:
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
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 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.
Work to do to analyze the poem (all work except the “paraphrase” to go on separate paper to turn in):
1. paraphrase each line on the right side of the paper
2. define any words that are unknown [use GLOSSARY first, then a dictionary]
3. write a statement that explains the poem’s literal meaning
4. write a statement that explains the poem’s figurative meaning
5. explain the poem’s speaker
6. identify the poem’s rhyme scheme for all lines
7. explain any rhymes in the poem with 2-3 examples
8. identify an example of a simile in the poem
9. identify an example of imagery in the poem
10. identify an example of inversion in the poem
11. identify an example of personification in the poem
12. identify an example of alliteration in the poem
13. explain a possible theme in the poem