Power & Conflict Poetry Flashcards
In Ozymandias what does the frown and “sneer of cold command” indicate about Ozymandias?
It indicates that the sculptor understood well the emotions (or “passions”) of the statue’s subject.
What type of poem is Ozymandias?
A sonnet (14-line poem)
What are some of the themes of Ozymandias?
beauty, expression, love, imagination, power of nature
“The hand that mocked them and the heart that fed” - Ozymandias
Double meaning - the hand could be Ozymandias who was a mocking leader, the sculptor who mocked Ozymandias when he made him with “sneer of cold command” or “wrinkled lip”.
“ye mighty, and despair!” - Ozymandias
Ozymandias is upset that he is no longer worshiped and his memorials no longer stand.
“I met a traveler”, “Who said” - Ozymandias
Says that it’s a story about someone else
“Two vast and trunkless legs of stone”
Stone is meant to last forever, but the legs have fallen and are on their own - just like how Ozymandias feels
“a shattered visage lies”
“shattered” can mean no longer strong
“visage” is his face in which has shattered.
Implies that Ozymandias is no longer powerful
What does the regular rhythm show?
Ozymandias wants to show order, structure, and importance
What theme is ‘London’?
Abuse of power, oppressed group, powerlessness of man, power of nature
What do the people on the streets in London show?
- poverty
- Immoral behavior
- drunkenness
- lawlessness
‘Charted Maps” - London
mapped out, owned, controlled
“mark in every face I meet”
“marks of weakness, marks of woe” - London
everyone has depressed faces as he walks by.
There is no sense of happiness, even though the streets are charted.
“In every cry of every man, In every infant’s cry of fear, In every voice, in every ban” - London
Repetitive use of the word ‘every’ to show that everyone is in despair. They’re all being effected, there’s no escape.
“in every infant’s cry of fear” - London
They are born into it, no escape.
“black’ning church” - London
a religious reference. The church seems dirty and corrupt. Normally people go to church to offer support, but it id doing nothing to help
“soldier’s sigh” - London
the poem was written right after the French Revolution did away with the monarchy. Perhaps Blake is criticizing the way power is being handled
“Blasts the new-born infants tear’s” - London
You would expect a child to be innocent, but the tear is not innocent. They were born on accident, probably by the “harlot’s curse” (prostitutes)
“marriage hearse” - London
Oxymoron - marriage is meant to be a happy thing, and a hearse is an upsetting thing because it’s what you carry dead people in at funerals
What is the themes of Storm on the Island?
Natural/ nature power
Fear and isolation
man’s relationship with nature
Storm on the Island could be about a storm, but what else could it mean?
about the dangerous political wars that were being fought at the time the poem was written.
“we are prepared: we build our houses squat”
this suggests that they try their best to be prepared because they know its coming. ‘squat’ means their house is small, but sturdy and reliable
“this wizened earth has never troubled us”
personification
“Which might prove company when it blows full blast:”
Blast: is enjambment. Personification, the wind gives them company because you can hear it. It lets the reader know the wind can be dangerous
