So today we're going to be reading I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud by William Wordsworth. Take a minute to just pause this video and read the poem over on your own. So I've assumed that you've paused this video and we're going to jump right in and analyze four essential elements of this poem and those are form, devices, tone, and meaning. So if we were to analyze the form of this poem, we could see that the poem is written in four stanzas, or four chunks of text.
And it's also written in iambic tetrameter, which sounds really scary, but actually it's just a pattern of syllables that poets sometimes use to give their pieces a bit more structure. So FYI, one iamb is one unstressed syllable plus one stressed syllable. And iambic tetrameter means that there are four iambics.
iambs in each line of the poem. When looking at the first line of the poem, I wandered lonely as a cloud, you can see that the text that is bolded and underlined shows those stressed syllables, while the plain text is just the unstressed syllables. So if I were to read this exaggerating the stressed syllables, it would sound like this.
I wandered lonely as a cloud. It sounds kind of of silly, but it shows that there are four iambs in each line of the poem. But why is this important? Iambic tetrameter means that the poem sounds more harmonious and pleasing to the ear when Wordsworth uses the structure.
When analyzing form, we also have to look at rhyme scheme. So if we look at the last word of each line in the poem, we can see that the rhyme scheme pattern is ABABCC. That also shows that the last two lines of each stanza form a couplet.
So now let's analyze the literary devices in the poem. But it's not enough to just identify the devices. We have to figure out the effect that they have on the poem itself.
So the first thing that sticks out to me is that there's a simile in the first line. The speaker compares himself to a cloud. And that shows that there's a slight sad, melancholy tone in the beginning. The speaker seems like a lone observer who's just floating around and watching the world passively.
Another simile occurs when the speaker compares the daffodils to the stars that shine and twinkle on the Milky Way. And this is really vivid imagery that shows the imagination of the speaker. It also indicates that nature seems to possess a perfect, pristine pattern.
He's comparing the constellation. of the stars to this perfect pattern of daffodils. Another device that we can see is the hyperbole, when the speaker states that he sees 10,000 daffodils in a never-ending line.
So that's not actually true. The daffodils are not actually never-ending, but it contributes to the overall effect that this is a wide expanse of daffodils. Another important device is personification.
So, So when the speaker gives human traits to inanimate objects, that's really significant because it's showing that man and nature aren't as far apart as they seem. I've highlighted some examples of personification. In this poem, we can see that the daffodils are dancing and fluttering, which makes them seem really jovial and excited.
They're also tossing their heads in a sprightly dance while the waves are dancing beside them, also reflecting the happiness of the daffodil. And in the end, the speaker's heart actually dances with the daffodils. That shows that the speaker's own emotions reflect the beauty and the buoyancy of the scene around him. Now let's take a look at tone, which is just the attitude of the speaker. We can see that the speaker is in awe of the daffodils because they seem to lift his spirits.
He's really fascinated by the beauty of the scene. And he's also very fanciful, which is another word for imaginative. we can also see that the speaker transforms throughout the course of the poem in the beginning he uses the word lonely which has a negative connotation the speaker is lonely or sad because no one is around in the beginning of the poem but by the end he feels the bliss of solitude that's a transformation that shows that now the speaker is happy that he's alone he's happy that he can take a moment to just sit back and enjoy this experience We also have to look at diction.
or word choice when analyzing tone. Wordsworth uses picturesque, simple diction, which sounds counterintuitive, but hear me out. He uses short, easy-to-understand words such as twinkle, spark, sparkling solitude and pleasure to show the simple pleasure that he experiences when witnessing this scene. Now let's take a look at the meaning or message conveyed by this poem. Wordsworth elaborates on the connection between man and nature, showing that the speaker is overcome with a feeling of joy whenever he sees the daffodils.
This suggests that the natural world is able to evoke strong emotions such as awe, which is a universal human experience. Also, this is an indelible memory, or an unforgettable memory for the speaker. Even when he's just sitting on his couch, he's transported back to that moment of silence. seeing the daffodils no matter where he is. It also shows that he feels a spiritual connection to the natural world.
The speaker is also really imaginative. He can see the scene in full color in his own inward eye or in his own mind. And lastly, but most importantly, the speaker gains a new understanding. He talks about the wealth that this show of daffodils has brought him, but he's not talking about literal wealth.
wealth as in money or riches. He's talking about a new wealth of knowledge. Now the speaker understands that he can gain simple pleasure from something as small as a single flower. Please comment below and tell me if you'd like to see another video about poetry analysis, and also tell me what other writing topics you'd like me to go over in another video.
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