Daffodils ICSE Poem Passage's Questions & Answers
PASSAGE-1
(i) The poet compares the daffodils to the stars because of their beauty. He says so since the numerous daffodils around a tree, appear to form the milky way, with every daffodil as a star.
(ii) Through the above line, the poet is saying that the daffodils were stretched in such a long line along the shore of a lake, that the poet thought the line was endless.
(iii) The poet used a hyperbol, and has exaggerated the actual number of the daffodils by saying that there are ten thousand daffodils, that he sees at once.
(iv) The peculiar thing about the dance of the daffodils is the fact that their dance is happening because of the wind. Although the daffodils are not moving by themselves, still it seems very beautiful.
(v) The sight of the daffodils comes to the poet's mind later in the poem, since he describes that whenever he is sad, the sight of the daffodils in his mind makes him feel happy again.
PASSAGE-2
(i) Earlier in the poem, the poet describes the daffodils by saying that they seem as numerous as the stars in the sky, that they are very beautiful, and golden coloured, and looked as if they were dancing when the wind shook them.
(ii) The waves that the poet had in mind were of the currents in the lake situated beside the daffodils. He notices that the currents in the lake makes them seem dancing as well.
(iii) The poet compares the dance of the daffodils to that of the waves because, they were both seemed to be dancing because of the cool breeze that was blowing during the time.
(iv) The poet could not help bring happy in the presence of the beautiful objects of nature, since he enjoys nature more than anything, and it also makes him happy.
(v) The 'wealth' that the poet has referred to here is the wealth of joy from bring around nature. He realizes the wealth of it's joy by being away from natural objects, which makes the poet sad, and in a melancholic emotion.
PASSAGE-3
(i) 'They' are referred to the dancing daffodils situated along a lake, and around a tree. In the past, when the poet was walking around aimlessly, and like a cloud, he fortunately came across a number of daffodils in the forest.
(ii) The sight of natural objects, like the daffodils, and the lake, and seeing them move, which seems like they are dancing, when a cool breeze flows through, makes the poet become happy again, and lost in the beauty of nature.
(iii) In the above paragraph, the poet says that he is only able to think about the dancing daffodils, he has the bliss of solitude, when he is alone, and nobody disturbs him.
(iv) According to the poet, in the past, he came across a bunch of daffodils around a tree, and near a lake, and re-imagining this scene always makes him happy since he loves nature.
(v) The message that the poet has conveyed through these lines is that nature has the power to relieve us of any stress, or sadness. If we be around natural objects most of the time, we can forget all of our sorrows.
Daffodils ICSE Poem Extract's Questions & Answers
Extract I
I wander’d lonely…….in the breeze.
1. Who has been referred to as ‘I’ in the first line of the extract? Where do you think was he wandering?
The poet, William Wordsworth. The poet was wandering near a lake at Grasmere, in England.
2. What does the poet encounter while wandering? Where does he encounter them?
He encountered a large number of golden daffodils, besides a lake and beneath the trees.
3. Why do you think the poet refers to the daffodils as golden?
To symbolise the magical effect it creates in his heart and mind.
4. Discuss the importance of the following lines with reference to the poem:
Beside the lake, beneath the trees,
Fluttering and dancing in the breeze.
These lines personify the beautiful daffodils. The poet sees the daffodils growing along the margin of a bay, and they appear to be dancing and fluttering in the breeze. These lines are important as it was the daffodils’ lively appearance that captivated the poet.
5. Which figure of speech is used in the following lines? How many daffodils do you think the poet saw? Give reason for you answer.
When all at once I saw a crowd,
A host, of golden daffodils,
Hyperbole. The poet saw a huge group of daffodils along the riverside which can be deduced from the words, ‘crowd’ and ‘host’. Moreover, in a hyperbolic expression, he said, “Ten thousand saw I at a glance.”
Extract II
Continuous as the stars….in sprightly dance.
1. How are the daffodils compared to the stars?
Continuous as the stars that shine. This simile is used to describe the daffodils spread continuously like the shining stars that twinkle in the night sky.
2. What is the milky way? Why is it referred to in the extract?
Is the galaxy that contains our Solar System and from the earth it appears as a band of light in the night sky. It is draw our attention between a crowd of beautiful daffodils indistinguishable from each other and a continuous band of twinkling stars in the night sky.
3. What is meant by the margin of the bay?
The margin means the line where land and water meet. The daffodils in the poem, line the shore of the lake.
4. State how the technique of using exaggeration heightens the poetic effect in the extract?
Exaggeration is used to emphasise the large number of daffodils that he saw during his walk along the river. The exaggeration of daffodils stretched endlessly in a ‘never ending line” along the margin of a bay is beautiful. The use of such exaggeration thus heightens the poetic effect.
5. Briefly describe the musical quality of the extract.
Daffodils is a lyric poem. The word ‘lyric’ is derived from ‘lyre’, and it implies that the poem is meant to be sung to the accompaniment of the lyre.
The rhyming pattern followed in this poem is that in each stanza the first line rhymes with the third; the second with the fourth; and the fifth with sixth. Each stanza ends with a rhyming couplet.
Extract III
The waves beside…….show to me had brought.
1. How did the daffodils outdo the waves?
The water in the lake had ripples looking like waves dancing. The daffodils tossing and dancing like human beings seemed to be competing against these waves. According to the poet, the daffodils defeated the waves in glee.
2. What is meant by jocund company? Which jocund company is the poet referring to? Why does the poet find it jocund?
It means a happy and gleeful company. The poet is referring to the jocund company of thousands of daffodils.
The beautiful daffodils dancing before the poet captivated him. It made him happy and refreshed. It made him feel one with nature. That is why he finds their company jocund.
3. Which wealth referred to by the poet? Explain how the wealth was brought to the poet?
Wealth refers to the peace and happiness that the show of daffodils fluttering and dancing before him brought to him, something he could be not acknowledge at that very movement.
The wealth was brought to the poet when he encountered the golden daffodils surpassing the beauty of dancing waves.
4. What is the mood of the poet in the above extract? Which lines tell you so? Why is he in such a mood?
The poet is in a happy and cheerful mood. He himself reflects his happiness in the following lines:
A poet could not but be gay,
In such a jocund company
The feeling of ones with nature that the poet has experienced on seeing lively and dancing daffodils is the reason for his happy mood.
5. With reference to the above extract, state why Wordsworth can be called nature poet.
The poet in the beginning wanders lonely as a cloud but the vast belt of daffodils tossing their heads in sprightly dance captivates him. The daffodils even outdo the waves and this golden company makes the poet feel happy and one with nature. Thus, Wordsworth can be called a nature poet.
Extract IV
For oft, when on my couch……… with daffodils.
1. What happens to the poet when the he lies on his couch in a pensive mood?
The image of the golden daffodils flash before him and change his mood into happy one.
2. What is the ‘bliss of solitude’ referred to in the extract? How does the bliss of solitude take place?
The bliss of solitude is referred to the paradise the poet finds himself in as soon as the image of golden daffodils flashes before his eyes. His loneliness is overtaken by the image of daffodils which make him feel as if he were dancing along with the daffodils.
3. Explain the transition from poet’s pensive mood to his heart filled with joy.
When he is in a pensive mood, the image of golden daffodils flashes before him and changes his mood. The poet, who was lonely in the beginning of the poem, experiences ‘the bliss of solitude’ by the end. He then feels calm and refreshed. The memory of the daffodils fills his heart with joy and he feels as if his heart were dancing with the daffodils.
4. With reference to the last two lines of the extract, state the influence that nature can have over an individual’s mind.
Nature becomes positive force for the poet. When the poet lies on his couch in a contemplative mood, the image of dancing daffodils flashes before him, he is filled with happiness. Thus, the very thought of being in the lap of nature uplifts the spirit.
5. Wordsworth says that poetry is “ the overflow of feelings arising from emotions recollected in tranquillity.’ In this context, state how the poem shows the truth of his statement.
Poetry for Wordsworth does not depend upon rhetorical and literary devices, but is the free expression of the poet’s thoughts and feelings. When he was away from noisy and polluted cities, he relied on his memory and reconstructed his experience of his feelings. Thus collecting his emotions with the help of his memory of encountering daffodils, he composed this poem.
No comments:
Post a Comment