TO THE SAME FLOWER
WITH little here to do or see Of things that in the great world be, Sweet Daisy! oft I talk to thee, For thou art worthy, Thou unassuming commonplace 5 Of Nature, with that homely face, And yet with something of a grace Which Love makes for thee! Oft on the dappled turf at ease I sit and play with similes, 10 Loose types of things through all degrees, Thoughts of thy raising; And many a fond and idle name I give to thee, for praise or blame, As is the humour of the game, 15 While I am gazing. A nun demure, of lowly port; Or sprightly maiden, of Love's court, In thy simplicity the sport Of all temptations; 20 A queen in crown of rubies drest; A starveling in a scanty vest; Are all, as seems to suit thee best, Thy appellations. A little Cyclops, with one eye 25 Staring to threaten and defy, That thought comes next—and instantly The freak is over, The shape will vanish, and behold! A silver shield with boss of gold 30 That spreads itself, some fairy bold In fight to cover. I see thee glittering from afar— And then thou art a pretty star, Not quite so fair as many are 35 In heaven above thee! Yet like a star, with glittering crest, Self-poised in air thou seem'st to rest;— May peace come never to his nest Who shall reprove thee! 40 Sweet Flower! for by that name at last When all my reveries are past I call thee, and to that cleave fast, Sweet silent creature! That breath'st with me in sun and air, 45 Do thou, as thou art wont, repair My heart with gladness, and a share Of thy meek nature!
“To the Same Flower” by William Wordsworth (1770-1850) is one of my favourite little-known poems. On the surface it is nothing much more than a sentimental poem about a daisy. However, deep a little deeper and it is a poem that is full of philosophical wisdom. As is ever with Wordsworth, not all is as it seems.
The daisy has long been a flower which has been celebrated from as far back as Chaucer and Milton for its common and uncomplicated beauty. In Wordsworth’s poem it gains symbolic significance as an item of plain living, rejecting the overt commercialism of the material world.
“To the Same Flower” is a gently and simply structured poem, as are a great majority of Wordsworth’s poems. Wordsworth believed in writing poems which were in the “language of common men” (Lyrical Ballads) and rejected overcomplicated verse forms or “poetic” language. Instead, Wordsworth’s poetry is written with the intention of being earth-bound and something which represents the everyday person. Its simplicity also brings it closer to nature, something which Wordsworth was deeply concerned with.
Wordsworth himself would be lucky enough to be able to take this stance being able to live and work in the Lake District for the majority of his life. He would spend his time walking and composing poetry in this beautiful place on an almost daily basis. Sometimes this would be with his rock and companion Dorothy his sister, sometimes with a group of friends, which would often include other writers such as Coleridge and Southey. The houses he possessed there such as Rydal Mount and Dove Cottage were stunningly beautiful places, with equally stunning views.
In the poem, which was written in 1805, the narrator immediately rejects the hustle and bustle of the industrial world and instead reposes himself in the grass by some daisies. Interestingly it is therefore the daisy which is “worthy” and not the call of the commercial world to this figure. Depending upon how an individual views this it can either be seen as a reclusive or a wise behaviour, as the person has seen what lies in the “great world” and rejects this in favour of peace and tranquillity.
“To the Same Flower” is not by any degree one of Wordsworth’s very best or most well known poems. It is not a poem which is likely to be found in a standard anthology, however despite of this it is a poem which I believe has at its heart a deep understanding of world. Much of the poem is relatively standard and straight-forward material. Most of the poem is taken with describing the nature of the daisy, or more importantly really, the nature of the poet, take this line for example:
Oft on the dappled turf at ease
I sit and play with similes
This aspect of the poem is clearly about the poet himself who composes on the grass at ease. There is nothing particularly important in these lines, although it paints a nice picture, it is very common place which is after all what the poem is about. The same can be argued of the description of the daisies themselves:
A little Cyclops, with one eye
Starting to threaten and defy
What is interesting about this description, however, is the liking of the daisy to a Cyclops, obviously referring to the physical appearance of the flower. However the comparison to a giant is intriguing. We could read this as likening the real power of a daisy to that of more nobler heights and status, it is another way to say how much the poet narrator feels for the flower. However, overall it is a fairly common place description. The real power in the poem rests within the last stanza, which contains an element of philosophical wisdom to be found in other works by Wordsworth in particular “Tintern Abbey.” Here is the part in question:
Sweet silent creature!
That breath’st with me in sun and air,
Do thou, as thou art wont, repair
My heart with gladness, and a share
Of thy meek nature!
The part that holds real significance for me is the aspect regarding “repair my heart with gladness”. Here the comparison to Wordsworth’s great poem “Tintern Abbey” is obvious. Wordsworth believed in the power of nature to heal the mind from the stresses and strains of the world or the “sneers of selfish men”. The poem at this point is revelling in this aspect of nature. The really touching element for me is that the poet is seeking a “share” of the meek nature of the flower, as if nature and man are on the same level here.
This is one aspect of the poem which I find personally of interest. This particular point in the poem may sound strange and “over the top” to some people or even a “weak” way to view the world, but I think the exact opposite. Personally ,I think that this shows someone who is brave and secure, someone who has seen the world and rejected much of it to the noble joys of peace. It represents to me a figure who possess deep wisdom, someone who has reason above the day-to-day aspects of life. Many will disagree, but that is the nature of literature, as Oscar Wilde once said “when the critic disagrees the artist is in accord with himself”. “To the Same Flower” represents a minor work of Wordsworth, but to me it is no less fascinating.
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