Odajyan 1

Diana Odajyan

Professor Batty

English 102

Are clouds lonely...

William Wordsworth sought to represent the joys one can obtain by traversing

nature in his poem I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud. The narrative is sad at being lonely

and walked around the hills and valleys, where he encounters some dancing daffodils.

The plants begin to dance and it excites the narrator (Wordsworth, I Wandered). At the

end of the experience, the protagonist is amazed at the value the walk brought and

appreciates the impact of nature. However, the poets wording reveals the nature of

self-centeredness in that one can presume the environment is meant to foster

happiness. As a result, the literature proves how ones opinion can affect perception.

The opening lines set the tone of the egocentric nature of the piece. I wandered

lonely as a cloud. That floats high oer vales and hills (Wordsworth, I Wandered). The

reader is presented the image of a person being above nature. One can argue that the

metaphor of a cloud is meant to symbolize loneliness; however, the second line

validates the idea of egotism. A cloud is unique dependent on shape and size, and the

clouds that float over the hills are usually large. In the process, the image of floating

over the vales is representative of superiority, which becomes apparent as the poem

continues.
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The following lines highlight the notion of self-centeredness. When at once I saw a

crowd, a host, of golden daffodils (Wordsworth, I Wandered). Wordsworth changes

from crowd to host to imply that the daffodils would welcome the narrator as he walks

through the scenery. Furthermore, the color golden is associated with royalty and

uncommon in the modern era, meaning nowadays we relate to much more peaceful

colors, such as silver or white. The word is intended to create the perception of beauty

given that gold is a special color. Consequently, the scene creates the idea that the

lonely individual is unique and finds an authentic collection of plants that welcome his

presence as the hosts.

The narrator goes on to talk about how the wind causes the flowers to dance while

he watches (Wordsworth, I Wandered). Essentially, the writer chooses the word

dancing rather than swaying in the wind. In some traditions, the hosts would welcome

a guest with dance to emphasize the importance of the person or to symbolize

excitement at the arrival. The same rationale can apply in the poem as the writing

insinuates that the scenery is beautiful and the dancing daffodils are welcoming the

writer to the place.

The focus in the second stanzas changes from the flowers to the stars, but

maintains the same idea of welcome the person. Wordsworth states that the stars

stretched in never-ending line in the way that people would line-up to meet a

renowned person (Wordsworth, I Wandered). The idea of stars making a line is

far-fetched because the heavenly bodies are independent and lack cognition to be

orderly. However, it is a made as a point in the reading to imply that the narrators
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presence in the locale may have contributed to the improbable alignment. Although the

Milky Way is a band of stars, the notion of the bodies forming a line is inaccurate but

applies in representing self-importance in the scene.

Moreover, the stanza continues by depicting the stars are entertaining the writer.

Ten thousand saw I at a glance, tossing their heads in sprightly dance (Wordsworth, I

Wandered). The lines refer to the heavenly bodies seeing the narrator and not vice

versa, which is the conventional way of portraying the scene. In this case, the stars see

the traveler and dance as though to suggest excitement. The wording might have

focused on the person first as the center of attention to make the reader see the

individual as the centerpiece of the narrative or this is a way of portraying how romantic

poetry can change the meaning of a simple poem. Poets of the Romantic Era tried to

express their feelings of beauty, nature and decay through poems. The vivid use of

imagery throughout the poem attracts the readers interests and conveys the writers

creativity and this is why the narrator uses examples of nature to describe his feelings.

The final stanza represents the idea of self-centeredness with the focus on the

narrator. For oft, when on my couch I lie (Wordsworth, I Wandered). The line

includes a double emphasis on self in reference to possession. The protagonist is

invested in letting the reader know of ownership of the scene as highlighted by my and

I in the same line. Alternatively, Wordsworth would have talked about lying on the sofa

but he chose to address the relevance on self in reflection of the time in the hills.

Furthermore, the section continues to focus on ownership. They flash upon my

inward eye And then my heart with pleasure fills (Wordsworth, I Wandered).
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Though the segment is about the writer reflecting on his time in nature, the wording is

skewed towards egotism. the stars flash upon the inward eye is to imply that he visual

picture of the heavenly bodies shining inside the eyelids, which means he has managed

to keep a picture of the image in his eyes. In the process, he manages to keep the

depiction to please him. Consequently, the narrator manages to take the image from the

hills as a lasting solution to become and/or stay happy.

"Much Romantic writing emerges from a desperate sense of alienation from the

natural world and expresses an anxious endeavor to re-establish a vital, sustainable

relationship between mankind and the fragile planet on which [we] dwell" (The

Wordsworth Circle, Jim McKusick). These statements point to a position that many

recent writers have defended, albeit from divergent and importantly distinctive

perspectives. Romantic literature is a germinal site for the rise of ecological concern

and practices.

Therefore, the poem underlines the extent of a self-absorbed ideology. The narrator

illustrates how a person can use the environment to enhance self-value. However, the

focus is on how people can find happiness and serenity in nature, the wording to the

literature proves that the element of self-indulgence is evident in the sequence of

events. We need to be aware of this so we dont try to dominate nature is some way.

Thus, the reading has an undertone that reflections perception.

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Works Cited

Wordsworth, William. I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud. Poetry Foundation,

https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/45521/i-wandered-lonely-as-a-cloud.

Accessed 19 Sept. 2017.

Wordsworth Trust. Wordsworth's Daffodils - Wordsworth Trust,

wordsworth.org.uk/poetry/historical-poetry/daffodils.html. Accessed 24 Sept. 2017.

'I wandered lonely as a cloud'. The British Library, The British Library, 15 Jan. 2014,

www.bl.uk/works/i-wandered-lonely-as-a-cloud. Accessed 24 Sept. 2017.

Hutchings, Kevin. James C. McKusick, Green Writing: Romanticism and Ecology.

Hutchings, Kevin, Romantic Circles,

www.rc.umd.edu/reviews-blog/james-c-mckusick-green-writing-romanticism-and-ecolog
y.