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| Image by genius.com |
Percy Bysshe Shelley (1792-1822) was an author known to possess the “rebellious spirit” of his time. One of his most famous poems, “Ozymandias”, tells of a deserted and forsaken statue in the middle of the desert. The poem portrays the irony behind the attitude men have that they are powerful and immortal.
The second paragraph shows this by first inserting the quote on the pedestal of the statue. It reads,
“My name is Ozymandias, king of kings: / Look on my works, ye Mighty, and / despair!” (It is almost as if the statue itself is yelling into the void to force its greatness.)
The author then uses imagery to show the areas surrounding the statue. He writes,
“Nothing beside remains.” (Meaning that the city or people that created the great statue have left it to ruin.)
He uses words like “decay”, “colossal wreck”, and “bare” to describe the statue as having nothing of worth.
Shelley then describes the area around the statue by saying,
“The lone and level sands stretch far / away.” (His use of the term “level” means that even the wind, known to create waves and hills in the sand, has also deserted the statue.)
Together, the quote of the statue and the description of its current state and surrounding area
show the irony of men believing they are invincible, but time brings change and inevitably those men are forgotten.
The second paragraph shows this by first inserting the quote on the pedestal of the statue. It reads,
“My name is Ozymandias, king of kings: / Look on my works, ye Mighty, and / despair!” (It is almost as if the statue itself is yelling into the void to force its greatness.)
The author then uses imagery to show the areas surrounding the statue. He writes,
“Nothing beside remains.” (Meaning that the city or people that created the great statue have left it to ruin.)
He uses words like “decay”, “colossal wreck”, and “bare” to describe the statue as having nothing of worth.
Shelley then describes the area around the statue by saying,
“The lone and level sands stretch far / away.” (His use of the term “level” means that even the wind, known to create waves and hills in the sand, has also deserted the statue.)
Together, the quote of the statue and the description of its current state and surrounding area
Click here to see Ozymandias performed by Alexander Feht - Interesting!
You commented on my post saying that we both caught on to the irony. I enjoyed reading your post after seeing that comment!
ReplyDeleteI like how you focused more on the landscape than the statue, as the rest of us did. It made me get a lot out of it!
ReplyDelete