the other poems Flashcards
“wrinkled lip, and sneer of cold command” - Ozymandias
wrinkled lip - noun phrase, harsh unpleasant nature of ozymandias
sneer - noun, reinforces arrogant and superior attitude
cold command - alliteration, hard c, emphasising and reflecting harsh leadership
cold - adjective, no empathy toward his subjects, unemotional and unfeeling ruler, tyrannical and believed those under him are insignificant
“Look on my works, ye mighty, and despair!” - Ozymandias
look, despair - imperative verbs, show his aggression and force even through death, shows his pride, demanding other leaders to look at his lifes work
my works - noun phrase, what he has achieved through his reign, ironically his accomplishments are only visible because of his subjects he mistreated and oppressed
even dead he does not want to relinquish power in afterlife
wanted his legacy to last forever
“round the decay of that colossal wreck” - ozymandias
round - preposition, his statue is encircled, encompassed by nothing, no dvidence of his empire
decay - noun, broken, destroyed and crumbling, in a state of decay. over time, nature has reclaimed its power and has balanced the power imbalance, his power was temporary, he is insignificant/ irrelevant in the face of nature
colossal wreck - oxymoron, adj colossal juxtaposes noun wreck.
the statue was a symbol of wealth, power and pride - however his legacy is ironic, the statue is broken, mocking his power and arrogance which lies in a wreck on sand
“I wander thro’ each chartered street” - London
chartered - adjective, everything is controlled and commercialised, the city is managed and owned by authorities and businesses, the extends to nature, chartered thames, showing humans exert their power of nature and themselves
wander - verb, juxtaposes the light-hearted and free spirited tone. could be symbolic of human nature, born to be free spirited but constrained within society and restricted within society. control and restriction is emphasised through the structure of whole poem, tightly controlled ABAB rhyme scheme repetitive stanza lengths
“Marks of weakness, marks of woe.” - London
speaker see marks of weakness and woe within everyone
weakness, woe - alliteration, emphasises mournful tone
weakness - shows physical and mental weakness, shows a lack of strength, being disconnected from nature creates exhaustion and being powerless
woe - a deep sadness
marks - noun, repeated, shows repetition in poem and mimics the mundane life of london
, - caesura, fragmented rhythm and reflects the broken, fragmented state of london and its people.
“The mind-forg’d manacles I hear” - London
metaphor!
mind-forg’d - adjective, shows they are invisible and only exist in peoples heads. people place restrictions upon themselves and conform to societal standards built by the capitalist businesses and powerful organisations/authorities, the people themselves have little power.
manacles - noun, chained, handcuffs, limited mobility and cannot make a change, refers to how the london population does not make a change, juxtaposes the french lower class and how they revolted against the french monarchy
hear - sensory imagery, the chains are so constricting the speaker is able to hear them, the chains are ever present
“And blights with plagues the marriage hearse.” - London
blights with plagues - disease imagery, Londone is disease and is spreading
marriage - noun, typically one of the most happiest moments of life, is being plagued, Londons corruption creates despair and misery in joyful places, children follow marriage, the new generation is also being disease with societal problems
marriage hearse - oxymoronic, hearse is for funerals, shows that now marriage has negative connotations and is potentially doomed to end
“Theirs not to reason why, Theirs but to do and die.” - COTLB
theirs -
