Ozymandias - Percy Bysshe Shelley Flashcards
What themes does Ozymandias explore?
- Power of Humans.
- Power of Nature.
- Negative emotions - pride.
Who was Percy Bysshe Shelley?
He was a romantic poet, who only really became famous after his death. He wrote Ozymandias in 1817, after hearing about how an Italian explorer had retrieved the statue from the desert.
What is some context for Ozymandias?
Shelley was a ‘Romantic’ poet - ‘Romanticism’ was a movement that had a big influence on art and literature in the late 170Os and early 180Os. ‘Romantic’ poets believed in emotion rather than reason, tried to capture intense experiences in their work and particularly focused on the power of nature. Shelley also disliked monarchies, absolute power and the oppression of ordinary people.
His radical political views were inspired by the events of the French Revolution, where the monarchy was overthrown.
What does Ozymandias mean?
It is another name for Ramesses IIm a ruler of Ancient Egypt.
What is Ozymandias about?
1) The narrator meets a traveller who tells him about a statue standing in the middle of the desert.
2) It is a statue of a king who ruled over a past civilisation. His face is proud and he arrogantly boasts about how powerful he is in an inscription on the statue’s base.
3) However, the statue has fallen down and crumbled away, so that only ruins remain.
What is the form followed in Ozymandias?
The poem is a sonnet, with a turning point (volta) at line 9 like a Petrarchan sonnet. However, it doesn’t follow a regular sonnet rhyme scheme, perhaps reflecting the way that human power and structures can be destroyed. It uses iambic pentameter, but this is also often disrupted. The story is a second-hand account, which distances the reader even further from the dead king.
What is the structure followed in ozymandias?
The narrator builds up an image of the statue by focusing on different parts of it in turn. The poem ends by describing the enormous desert, which helps to sum up the insignificance of the statue.
What is the irony used in Ozymandias?
There’s nothing left to show for the ruler’s arrogant boasting or his great civilisation. The ruined statue can be seen as a symbol for the temporary nature of political power or human achievement. Shelley’s use of irony reflects his hatred of oppression and his belief that it is possible to overturn social and political order.
What is the language of power used in ozymandias?
The poem focuses on the power of Ozymandias, representing human power. However his power has been lost and is only visible due to the power of art. Ultimately, nature has ruined the statue, showing that nature and time has more power than anything else.
What is the angry language used in ozymandias?
The tyranny of the ruler is suggested through aggressive language.
What are the symbols used in Ozymandias?
- Sand.
- The statue.
Why did the poem Ozymandias use the symbol of sand?
In the poem, sand is a symbol of nature’s power and also of time itself. The sand has eroded and buried the statue and all of Ozymandias’s works, a reminder that nature can destroy all human achievements, no matter how substantial. Because it destroyed the statue over time, and because of the idea of sand in an hourglass, sand also represents time itself, which has similarly worn down and eventually buried Ozymandias’s empire.
Why did the poem Ozymandias use the symbol of the statue?
First, it is a physical representation of the might of human political institutions, such as Ozymandias’s empire; this is the symbolic purpose for which Ozymandias himself had the statue built. However, because the statue has fallen into disrepair, it also holds a symbolic meaning that Ozymandias didn’t intend: it represents how comparatively fragile human political institutions actually are in the face of both time and nature’s might.
Why did the poem Ozymandias use the symbol of the statue, in relation to art?
The statue also symbolizes the power of art. Through the sculptor’s skill, the statue captures and preserves the “passions” of its subject by stamping them on “lifeless” rock. And the statue also symbolizes the way that art can have power beyond the intentions of even those who commission it. While Ozymandias saw the statue as a way to forever capture his power and magnificence, the poem hints that the statue so thoroughly reveals Ozymandias’s haughty cruelty that it also serves to mock him. While Ozymandias’s great works have been destroyed and disappeared by nature and time, art in the form of the stature endures, keeping Ozymandias’s memory alive (albeit not in entirely the ways he would have wanted).
Why did the poem Ozymandias use the symbol of the statue, in relation to being worn down?
It is also possible to interpret the statue in a third way. Because Ozymandias is clearly a tyrant, the fact that the statue has become a “wreck” hints that the statue might symbolically represent the speaker of the poem’s hope and belief that tyranny will always crumble, which also happened to be one of Shelley’s own personal political passions.
What are the feelings in this poem?
- Pride.
- Arrogance.
- Power.
Why is pride explored in this poem?
The ruler was proud of what he’d achieved. He called on other rulers to admire what he did.
Why is arrogance explored in this poem?
The inscription shows that the rule believed that he was the most powerful ruler in the land - nobody else could compete with him. He also thought he was better than those he ruled.
Why is power explored in this poem?
Human civilisations and achievements are insignificant compared to the passing of time. Art has the power to preserve elements of human existence, but is also only temporary.
What is 1 quote that shows the power of humans?
“My name is Ozymandias, King of Kings;”
What is the device used in this quote?
Allusion.
Why has the writer used allusion?
The use of “King of Kings” is an allusion to a title often associated with powerful rulers, emphasizing Ozymandias’s claim to supreme authority.
What is some analysis of this quote?
This line introduces Ozymandias as a powerful ruler with the grandiose title “King of Kings.” The repetition of the title emphasizes his claim to ultimate authority. The use of a semi-colon creates a sense of formality, adding to the regal tone. This quote establishes Ozymandias’s pride and sets the stage for the exploration of his character and legacy.
What is some context for this quote?
In the early 19th century, the world witnessed the rise and fall of powerful empires, including Napoleon’s conquests and subsequent defeats. The title “King of Kings” echoes the grandeur often associated with authoritarian rulers of the time, like Napoleon, who sought to dominate vast territories. Shelley, a Romantic poet, might have been influenced by the political upheavals and the dangers of unchecked power, cautioning against the arrogance of rulers.
What is quote 2 that shows the power of humans?
'’Look on my Works, ye Mighty, and despair!”
What is the device used in this quote?
Direct address and irony.
