Question

What does William Wordsworth mean by "dancing" in the following bolded 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 a sprightly dance. The waves beside them danced; but they Out-did 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 in 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. Wordsworth started to dance in the field. Wordsworth did not know how to dance. People had arrived to dance in the field. The daffodils looked like they were dancing.

the bolded line is: Fluttering and dancing in the breeze.

Answer 1

The daffodils looked like they were dancing.

Answer 2

The daffodils looked like they were dancing.

Throughout the poem, the speaker describes what he is seeing as he is daydreaming laying on his couch. He starts the poem by describing how he is floating like a cloud and suddenly sees "a host, of golden daffodils". He then goes on to describe the daffodils. He says the daffodils flutter and dance. He goes on to compare them to stars and sparkling waves. The purpose is to show how the daffodils provide a happy positive distraction that fills his heart with pleasure.