How are the daffodils described in the poem "I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud"?

In “I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud,” the speaker dwells on two features of the daffodils that he stumbles upon along the edge of the bay:  their number, and their movement in the breeze.  He describes them first as a “host,” in the sense of a great number, and then states in the second verse that they are “continuous as the stars that shine…They stretched in a never-ending line.”  It is clear that we have...

In “I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud,” the speaker dwells on two features of the daffodils that he stumbles upon along the edge of the bay:  their number, and their movement in the breeze.  He describes them first as a “host,” in the sense of a great number, and then states in the second verse that they are “continuous as the stars that shine…They stretched in a never-ending line.”  It is clear that we have a huge number of daffodils on our hands; the speaker notes that there are at least “ten thousand,” likely many more, stretching all along the edge of the bay off into the distance.  This imagery is foolproof and conjures up a field of bright “golden” flowers as far as the eye can see.

In addition, the speaker sees the flowers all “Tossing their heads in sprightly dance.”  There is a sturdy sea-breeze blowing along the water, and the daffodils are all being bent forward and back by its light force.  By being described as dancing, and as having heads, the daffodils are being personified – that is, they are being given human characteristics  -- which reinforces the living quality of nature.  In the next verse, the daffodils “out-did the sparkling waves in glee,” and are then described as “jocund.”  The flowers are, by their color and their movement, exceedingly joyful beings, and raise the spirits of the speaker to such an extent that he thinks of them even when he is at home on his couch, and the memory makes him happy.

The daffodils are described as conscious beings, as living things with the capacity to express happiness, and this gives a purposefulness to nature, and helps to justify its healing quality in the minds of human beings.