Irony in Ozymandias by Percy Bysshe Shelley Essay

Both initially poems follow a strict structure, which presents the idea of power and control immediately. For example, in Ozymandias, the fourteen-line poem has a similar form to that of a Shakespearean sonnet, a form of poetry that could represent strict tradition. However, as the poem continues, the rhyme scheme breaks down into more of a free verse, with less structured rhyme and the introduction of caesura, for example “Nothing beside remains. Round the decay” in line twelve. The crumbling of a traditional structure could mimic the destruction of the “colossal wreck” that is the statue, or more metaphorically the breakdown of Ozymandias’s

In conveying the issue of time and nature, the poet introduces a traveler from an ‘antique land’, who sees the remains of a vast statue, which gives this poem’s meaning. The antique land refers to a place in pass civilization that no longer exist. The poet uses certain language to express the idea in a more understanding, visual way. The statue reflects Ozymandias’ power and the attitude he holds against others. The facial expressions sculpted in the statue are a mockery of those who he viewed as less prominent in the society. “And wrinkled lip, and sneer of cold command” (Shelley 4). The poet used Ozymandias’ sneer to convey his attitude towards others as uncaring and rude, as he thinks that he holds a great power among everyone else. Shelley used the phrase “cold command” to also emphasize Ozymandias’ sneer, to imply that he was selfish, not caring about the situation of

A sonnet by definition is, a poem of fourteen lines using any of a number of formal rhyme schemes, in English typically having ten syllables per line. A poem is a piece of writing that says a lot in a few words; this sonnet does exactly that, it utilizes a multitude of literary devices to tell a story of a writer examining life with an ending message to push forward and go. In “An Echo Sonnet”, the author, Robert Pack uses repetition, hypophora, antithesis and synecdoche to reveal the voice experiencing writer's block which leads to the discussion of life and death between the voice and the echo.

Percy Bysshe Shelley wrote this poem "Ozymandias" to express to us that possessions do not mean immortality. He used very strong imagery and irony to get his point across throughout the poem. In drawing these vivid and ironic pictures in our minds, Shelley was trying to explain that no one lives forever, and nor do their possessions. Shelley expresses this poem’s moral through a vivid and ironic picture. A shattered stone statue with only the legs and head remaining, standing in the desert, the face is proud and arrogant, "Half sunk, a shattered visage lies, whose frown, And wrinkled lip, and sneer of cold command, Tell that its sculptor well those passions read"(lines, 4-6).

The poem is structured in a way which follows the proper metre for a sonnet, however, it is unusual in a sense that it is free verse and has no rhyme scheme. The sentences are broken to fit the iambic pentameter. This creates pauses, and a choppiness in the flow

He describes the face of the statue as “Half sunk, a shattered visage lies” referring to the way the face of the statue, which by the nature of statues should be high in the air, is lying on the ground half buried. He goes on to describe the “frown,/ And wrinkled lip, and sneer of cold command” enshrined in the facial features of the statue, and remarks on how the detail must have come from the sculptors familiarity of those expressions on the face of the man. Another detail Shelley contributed about the statue was the description of its size: “that Colossal wreck” refers to the enormity of the statue, which leads one to believe that Ramses was inflating his own ego, as well as providing yet another way the pharaoh alienated himself from the common people and tried to alienate himself from other rulers. Also interesting is Shelley’s use of the word “colossal” to describe the statue, as it refers to the Colossus of Rhodes that was build over the harbor leading into Rhodes as a tribute to the sun god Helios. Ramses’ attempt to elevate himself to the status of a god similar to Helios was unsuccessful, as the decay and destruction of the statue revealed how impermanent one man’s time on earth is in the grand scheme of the

Shelley dwells little on the small details of Ozymandias' face, but by Ozymandias' frown, wrinkled lip, and sneer of cold command, delivered in less than two lines, immediately carry to the reader a vision of a cold, callous, yet strong and determined leader who is commanding his people building his great vast statue hoping his power would be immortal. These concrete items are vital to the description, but are not as strong as what can not be seen. Shelley gives a nod to the talent of the sculptor, from whom Ozymandias received a mirror image of his personality, placed in stone because of his thinking to survive

Percy B’s poem “Ozymandias” captures the belief that the King’s words still remain powerful after all this time. The statue is surrounded by desert and is eroded and broken but the belief is still intact that he is powerful and mighty.

A poem about a statue that has far outlived its boastful inscribers, albeit shattered in pieces. This discrepancy is seen between the lines 10-12, “My name is Ozymandias, king of kings/ Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair!/ Nothing beside remains. Round the decay…” Clearly, these people thought they were mighty and great, but instead, they are gone and all that remains are the shattered statues. When we die, we cannot take anything with us. It doesn’t matter how rich and important someone is in life; They are nothing but a memory when they are

Sonnet means a small or little song or lyric. A Sonnet has 14 lines and written in iambic pentameter. An line has 10 syllables. It has own rhyme scheme. Sonnet 30 is one of the 154 sonnets which it was written by famous playwright Shakespeare , scholars agreed that was written between 1595 and 1600. This poem consist of 14 lines of iambic pentameter , and divided into three quatrain and a couplet . most of the Shakespeare’s sonnet in between 1_126 are talk about a fair young man , who described as a young man . Who display the male relationship between male and female. Though some people agree that is talk about male relationship more and homosexuality.

The nature of the metaphors with which the lyrical subject of the sonnet presents the nature of our world are grim and

Shelley’s version of “Ozymandias” pays particular attention to the details of what remains of Ramses’s statue. Shelley conveys to the reader that no matter how powerful a ruler may be, their influence will fade with time. The description of what Babylon looks like when the poem was written gives the reader a clear

The king Ozymandias has a great amount of pride for what he has accomplished during his time as ruler. He had a sculptor erect a massive statue of him, which shows how highly he thought of himself. The pedestal of the statue stated "My name is Ozymandias king of kings: / Look upon my works, ye Mighty, and despair!" (Shelley, 136, 10-11).

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.

In Sonnet 7 (“Lo, in the orient, when the gracious light..”), one out of the 154 sonnets written by the English playwright and poet, William Shakespeare, focuses on the burden of beauty and how human life can be compared to the passage of the sun rising and setting. Throughout the whole poem, the advice is given to the young man, to follow the sun and its direction. This sonnet is written in iambic pentameter, consists of three quatrains and ends with a couplet while following the rhyme scheme: ABAB CDCD EFEF GG. The poet 's way of using poetic and literary devices such as rhythm, alliteration, and caesuras strengthens the poem’s argument that the sun and man must coexist to live on and that the only way for the youth to ensure their