Ozymandias

Question 1

Themes (3)

Answer 1

• Power of humans
• Power of nature
• Pride

Question 2

About

Answer 2

The speaker tells the story of a traveller who comes across the ruined statue of a great king. The poem ends with a sense of despair and loss.

Question 3

Big ideas (3)

Answer 3

1. Death and mortality
2. Power
3. Arrogance

Question 4

“sneer of cold command”

Answer 4

Pride
“Sneer” = stern and serious, looking down on others, cruel, self-importance,
“Cold” = harsh, unwelcoming look, disgusted by others, possible corrupt power
“Cold Command” = alliteration, harsh sounds, cutting, authoritative figure, absolute ruler – can do what he wants

Question 5

“hand that mocked them and the heart that fed”

Answer 5

Arrogance
“mocked”: to imitate, to make fun of: 1. The sculptor’s hand who made the statue imitated him well. 2. Ozymandias was a cruel leader who mocked his people, slaves, the sculptor made fun of Ozymandias’s passions and ways
“fed”: emotions – heart – “fed” his cruelty and made him oppress the people. 2. His heart was lifeless, he was so unfeeling and cruel he was ‘lifeless’ even before his death

Question 6

“my name is Ozymandias, king of kings: Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair!”

Answer 6

Arrogance
Pride
He believes he is superior over not only all the people but also all the other kings and other things, he has a huge ego and a God complex.
The other kings and leaders should look at his huge sculptors and works and should feel inferior and unworthy to his abilities and might and power.
They should feel misery as they will never match his greatness
He challenges the other leaders, “despair” is a threat to those who would challenge his power and should surrender when they face him and his egotistical nature

Question 7

“nothing beside remains”

Answer 7

Power of nature
Directly juxtaposes the “look on my works”
Proves that autocratic rule never lasts and that nature will always outlive man-made status or control
IRONY: he is proud and showing off his statues and works of greatness but it is now half buried in the sand and broken/destroyed, didn’t last and this is mocking his pride just as he mocked his people
Nothing remains to prove the power he once had
Second-hand story told by another traveller reinforces that no-one has actually seen his power, he is no more than a myth or story – distancing effects reinforces his obscurity

Question 8

“collossal wreck, boundless and bare, lone and level sands stretch far away”

Answer 8

Power of nature
“Colossal” - huge and vast contrasts with “wreck” – destruction and ruins
It is empty, there is nothing there and it is isolated from any attention and is not irrelevant and insignificant
Alliteration in “Boundless and Bare” reflects the endlessness of the desert and bareness. Makes it more memorable (the boundless desert) than the actual statue which Ozymandias was so proud of.
“Level”: 1. The desert sand is flat and untouched because the ruins are not visited, 2. At the time there was huge inequality and many romantic poets wanted it to be fairer so “level” could reflect society without the autocratic rule and with equality instead

Question 9

Structure (5)

Answer 9

• Second-hand account emphasises how unimportant Ozymandias is now
• Sonnet – romantic – in iambic pentameter mirrors Ozymandias’ egotistical love for himself
• First 8 lines: statue is described in different parts to show how it has deteriorated over time
• Last 2 lines: describe vastness of desert to show insignificance of human power and pride
• Refusal to conform to one sonnet style could show his romantic poet ways of breaking away from the natural ways of society

Question 10

Context (5)

Answer 10

• Shelley teaches the moral lesson that tyranny and human power are only short-lived compared to art and nature – time will challenge any great civilisation or ruler
• Shelley was a Romantic poet who was interested in emotion, the power of nature and disliked the concept of monarchy and the opposition of ordinary people
• His message could be directed at the autocratic rulers in England in 1818 as he is stating that their arrogance and repressive policies will ultimately be destroyed
• When it was published the readers could see links between Ozymandias, Napoleon and those who ruled in Britain
• Early 1800s: Britain’s industrial revolution – big changes – migration to cities – rural (freedom) to urban (controlled) – became overwhelmed – not enough jobs – employers had too much power – autocratic rule