Analyzing the Spectrum of Ozymandias Essay

Shelley’s poem and depiction of Ozymandias could be a symbolic way of promoting his views against the monarchy, as he depicts Ozymandias as a tyrant with harsh descriptions such as “a sneer of cold command” and mocks him with the juxtaposition of “king of kings” and “colossal wreck”. However, instead of obviously putting forward his views and risking negative exposure, Shelley distances himself from the poem with intriguing use of multiple perspectives. The poem begins with “I met”, a first person introduction, but quickly switches to the traveller’s perspective as Shelley depicts what the traveller saw. In this way, he subtly puts across his socialist views without incriminating himself through symbolism and distancing himself from the narrative. In this way, the poem presents two powerful rulers, with Ozymandias symbolising King George.

This shows that meteorological conditions are able to affect a character’s thoughts and alter their feelings. As has been noted, Shelley accentuates the description of spring to express the hope and renewal bestowed upon the creature by the exemplifications of the weather.

Shelley used imagery and a very impressive ironical way to write this poem. Basically, the poem is divided into two parts; the first eight lines are describing an ancient decayed sculpture seen by a traveler. The last six lines however talk about the words on the pedestal and the desolate surroundings; he contrasts the great sculpture with the surrounding emptiness, which gave a stronger feeling about the poem. In Shelley’s work, it described the visage "sneer of cold command"(Line, 5).

Despite this, Shelley creates a natural flow throughout, yet there is a clear distinction between each changing perspective. For example, the narrative seamlessly switches from Walton’s letters to Victor’s account: “Strange and harrowing must be his story… thus!” Through Victor’s story, she moves us on to the creature’s direct dialogue by using speech marks at the beginning of each paragraph: “he thus begins his tale.”

The author uses imagery in the poem to enable the reader to see what the speaker sees. For example, in lines 4-11 the speaker describes to us the

The poem "Ozymandias" is one of the best sonnets of Percy Bysshe Shelley. In this poem Shelley described a mighty king who was striving in his whole life for his possessions and got involved in worldly assignments so much that he forgot his ultimate destiny. Beside this, Shelley reminds the readers of their mortality through the realization that our earthly accomplishments, so important to us now, will one day be finished. By drawing these vivid and ironic pictures in readers minds, with different symbols, Shelley was trying to illustrate that no one lives forever in the

In Ozymandias, the narrator speaks of an “antique land” that he’s travelled to and comes across a statue which is the King Ozymandias (who is the Egyptian pharaoh Ramesses II.) The structure of the poem is written in an petrarchan

to lend meaning to the poem beyond its existence as a work of historic fiction

“Ozymandias”, “To Autumn”, and “I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud” all are widely-read poems written by the Romantic poets Shelley, Keats, and Wordsworth, respectively. In all of these poems, the passage of time inexorably leads to the death of man-made creations. Also, natural emotions and living things experience the cycle of life and death, but escape the permanent death experienced by unnatural things. In short, man-made things are impermanent, while natural things are immortal.

Shelley uses a wide range of language to describe the weather. To begin with the rain not only falls, but it patters “dismally”. The negative feeling that surrounds this word forebodes that something bad is going to happen; making the reader anxious and alert. It reflects the adverse tone and mood in this section of the extract. Similarly, the night is described with the adjective “dreary”. Together, the cumulative effect of these words creates a semantic field of a sense of danger which only adds further to this already tense (atmosphere) part of the extract.

The poem opens with the speaker comparing humans to "clouds that veil the midnight moon" (Line 1). The clouds move radiantly across the sky and cover the light of the moon. The words "speed", "gleam", "quiver" and "streaking" personify the cloud image. Shelley describes the cloud's actions as a metaphor for human actions, "How restlessly they speed, and gleam, and quiver, / streaking the darkness radiantly!" (Lines 2-3). He believes that humans go through life with speed, not taking time to rest; like clouds at night, we do not last forever. Shelley’s use of the word of "veil" instead of "covers" creates a sense of purposefully hidden light. In lines three to four of the poem the wondrous sight is eventually extinguished by the darkness, "- yet soon/ Night closes round, and they are lost forever.” By using this image of the night Shelley shows the cycle of change and demonstrates human morality. The speaker is pointing out that humans have short lives on Earth and regardless of how radiantly we may shine, we are like clouds at night that are overshadowed.

In the poem Percy Bysshe Shelley “Ozymandias” there are several different sound devices portrayed. The author demonstrates use of rhyme and meter. In the beginning of the poem the author used rhyming words to give a description of the mans journey through the dessert, and informing that he found a statue. It states, " Two vast and trunk less legs of stone stand in the dessert." Although, the statue is destroyed and seems to be smashed, considering the 2 legs. Towards the end of the poem the author demonstrates irony, when it says," a colossal wreck, boundless and bare." It was once said to be mighty and powerful, but reveals there is nothing but sand on the desert. "Which yet survive, stamped on these lifeless things" references that the

By calling himself “king of kings”, he alludes to God and believes he is greater than all other men. He ruled his kingdom solely on the fear of those beneath him. The intimidating language on the pedestal and the statue made for him display that Ozymandias possessed almighty power. To end the poem, Shelley writes, “Round the decay of that colossal Wreck, boundless and bare The line and level sands stretch far away.” As time passed, the sand literally destroyed the symbol of what was once the greatest man alive.