To Daffodils BY ROBERT HERRICK

 To Daffodils

BY ROBERT HERRICK

Fair Daffodils, we weep to see

You haste away so soon;

As yet the early-rising sun

Has not attain'd his noon.

Stay, stay,

Until the hasting day

Has run

But to the even-song;

And, having pray'd together, we

Will go with you along.

We have short time to stay, as you,

We have as short a spring;

As quick a growth to meet decay,

As you, or anything.

We die

As your hours do, and dry

Away,

Like to the summer's rain;

Or as the pearls of morning's dew,

Ne'er to be found again.

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Summary: The lyric poetry "To Daffodils" portrays the speaker's adoration and sorrow for daffodils, which are symbolic of life's beauty and shortness. The speaker speaks directly to the flowers, as if they were living beings, and compares their plight to his own.

The poem is divided into two stanzas of eight lines each, with the rhyme pattern ABABCCDD. The first verse depicts the daffodils' appearance and growth, while the second stanza describes their decline and death. Iambic tetrameter is used in the poem, which implies that each line includes eight syllables with alternate stresses. Alliteration, assonance, consonance, imagery, personification, simile, metaphor, and apostrophe are also used in the poem.

The speaker compares the daffodils to a swarm of people or a choir of angels in the opening stanza because of their beauty and freshness. He describes them as fair and lively, which means lovely and cheery. He also claims that they grow rapidly and abundantly, similar to plants or stars. He admires their energy and excitement and hopes he could be like them.

In the second verse, the speaker laments the daffodils' brief lifespan and compares it to his own. They are quickly cut down by the wind or the scythe, implying that they are destroyed by natural or human causes. He also claims they wither and fade away, similar to a shadow or a dream. He recognizes that their lives are limited and uncertain, and that he, too, will go. He closes with a sorrowful and resigned sigh.

The poem is a meditation on mortality and the transience of life. The speaker utilizes daffodils as a metaphor for his own existence, expressing his admiration, envy, grief, and acceptance. He demonstrates his understanding of the beauty and joy of life, as well as its fragility and inevitability. He suggests that life is a precious gift that should be treasured and enjoyed while it is still available.

1.The speaker praises the daffodils for their beauty and delight, comparing them to a multitude of people or an angel choir.

2.The speaker admires the vibrancy and abundance of the daffodils and compares them to weeds or stars.

3.The speaker laments the daffodils' brief life and fragility, comparing it to his own.

4.The daffodils, according to the speaker, are quickly cut down by the wind or the scythe and wither and fade away like a shadow or a dream.

5.The speaker conveys his sorrow and acceptance as he muses on the issue of mortality and the transience of existence.