Katedra anglickho jazyka a literatury

English Literature of the 19th Century: Discuss two of

the following poems in terms of how they reflect central

features of Romanticism - Daffodils, Kubla Khan

by Zuzana Mandlkov, Bc AJ-FJ

Vyuujc: Bernadette Higgins, M.A.

4.1. 2015
 The reader might conclude from the titles of the poems that they were written in the
Romantic period, despite knowing anything about them. The title Daffodils might foreshadow
that the poem will deal with nature. Since the daffodils are wonderful yellow flowers that
blossom as spring arrives, the reader might anticipate a theme of joy and beauty. As for Kubla
Khan, the title could arouse a readers curiosity since it sounds exotic, gloomy and outlandish.
Romantic poets often involved a theme of nature as well as exotic elements in their writing.
The aim of this essay is to explore even more of the aspects of Romanticism in one of the
William Wordsworths poems Daffodils and Kubla Khan that was written by Samuel Taylor
Coleridge.
The main characteristic feature of Romanticism in Wordsworths Daffodils is the
glorification of nature through images and similes. The poem abounds with these tropes in all
stanzas. The opening phrase of the first stanza I wandered lonely as a cloud contains a
simile to a cloud. It is a depiction of the narrators isolation and loneliness. In the following
lines, a literal description of the natural scenery occurs: A host of golden daffodils (line 4)
and Beside the lake, beneath the trees (line 5). The daffodils are personified in the third and
the last line, when the narrator speaks about a crowd and dancing daffodils. Another
simile can be found in the second stanza: Continuous as the stars that shine, and the twinkle
on the Milky Way. The author compares the amount of the golden flowers to the vast
number of glimmering objects from the space.
So far, we are filled with radiant emotions about the beautiful spectacle and so is the
narrator in the third stanza. The words glee, gay and jocund are used to describe his endless
joyful mood. Staring in awe, he rejoices a sublime company that would never abandon him
unlike his acquaintances who might. The breathtaking view brings him joy even though he is
all alone. The notion of this stanza is present in the last line What wealth the show to me had
brought where the narrator realizes that his relationship with nature is actually his fortune
and that he cannot lose it.
Romantic writers often mentioned the fleetingness of beauty and its eternalness in art.
Wordsworth depicts the preservation of the ravishing natural scenes in a spiritual vision.
Although, the face of nature is always changing, the spectacle of dancing daffodils will be
permanent in his memories. In the last stanza, these two lines In vacant or in pensive mood,
they flash upon that inward eye express the returning flashbacks of the landscape when
feeling broody. The last three lines of the poem convey the fact that nature has a healing
power:

2
 Which is the bliss of solitude;

And then my heart with pleasure fills,

And dances with the daffodils. (lines 22-23)

With the memory of the ordinary but fresh flowers, the narrator suddenly feels supreme
happiness in his solitude. The principal message might be the fact that the greatest humans
wealth resides in their connection to nature.
Another common theme of Romantic poets is the glorification of commonplace which
is reflected in this poem, be it Wordsworths intention or not. The daffodils can be observed
as simple and inexpensive flowers that grow everywhere. They are not at all posh and yet one
can be highly amazed just looking at them. The idea is that the usual can create an unusual
effect. Actually, wandering and walking in the nature is also considered as an ordinary
activity which everybody can afford. Last but not least, the mentioned exploration of inner
self is important. The usage of a first person throughout the poem signifies the prominence of
the individuals. Sauv affirms it when he claims that romanticism actually constitutes a
change of direction from attention to the outer world of social civilization to the inner world
of the human spirit. They place the individual at the centre of art and make literature the
means of expression for the unique feelings and particular attitudes of that individual.
The references to the natural world are not solely a part of Daffodils, they are also the
main theme of Kubla Khan. According to Brians, the poets are attracted to it precisely
because they are no longer unselfconsciously part of it and that might also be the reason why
they include long exalting descriptions and a number of various images. For instance auditory,
visual, sensory or motion images facilitate the reader to conceive of Coleridges vision in the
poem. In the first stanza, there is a juxtaposition of dark and bright places. Lines 3 to 5
Where Alph, the sacred river, ran through caverns measureless to man down to a sunless
sea picture a river flowing in immense dark caverns to the sea, where no light is. On the
contrary to these following lines

So twice five miles of fertile ground

With walls and towers were girdled round;

And there were gardens bright with sinuous rills,

Where blossomed many an incense-bearing tree;

And here were forests ancient as the hills,

Enfolding sunny spots of greenery. (lines 6-11)

3
they express a safe and beaming place full of life and harmony. At the same time he provides
the reader image of a distant exotic place. Moreover, the scent of incense adds a special
glamorous value to the scenery. The dramatic description of dark savage place continues in
second stanza, where everything is in motion, for instance the waning moon, the dancing
rocks or the meandering river. It is not a harmonic picture as there are many expressions of
chaos. The feeling of tumult is heightened by varying number of metrical feet and inconsistent
rhyme scheme.
Suddenly, in the third stanza, there is a change in the narrating from third to first
person. It might be in order to support the confusion that is present throughout the poem. The
reader also gets a deep description of various sounds. Namely, the mingled measure from the
fountain and caves (lines 33 34), the damsel playing on the dulcimer (line 40) and people
crying, Beware! (line 49). The following lines represent the poets imagination of building the
dome of pleasure. The dome might be a symbol for a utopian place where the joy and the
harmony prevail. Gordon mentions that the imagination itself is a relief from the chaotic
atmosphere throughout the poem. The fantasy is supplanted by a vision of a mysterious
fearful man.

His flashing eyes, his floating hair!

Weave a circle round him thrice,

And close your eyes with holy dread.

For he on honey-dew hath fed,

And drunk the milk of Paradise. (lines 50-54)

According to the description, it seems that the man embodies a great authority and becomes
a source of awe, wonder, and terror combined (Todd). Due to the change of the speaker, the
man might be Kubla Khan, the narrator or both.
These two poems cover the main themes that writers of the Romantic period tended to
pursue. Both of them relate to nature and contain multifarious images that invite the reader to
imagine the authors ravishing vision. The nature in these poems represents a source of solace
or rapture. The abundance of imagination and individualism is another aspect of
Romanticism. Daffodils are about exploration of inner wealth and the whole Kubla Khan is
about a dreamlike vision of a distant place. In addition, Kubla Khan features the exotic distant
site whereas Daffodils exalt the commonplace.

4
Works Cited

Brians, Paul. Romanticism. Public WSU. n. p, 1 October 2004. Web. 22 December 2014.

Sauv, Lynn. The Q&A Guide to English & American Literature. Taipei: Shu lin, 2006. Print.

Todd, Gordon. Summary and Analysis of Kubla Khan. Grade Saver. n. p, 31 May 2011.
Web. 22 December 2014.