power n conflict poems Flashcards
(12 cards)
what is the main message of ‘Ozymandias’
power is never absolute or eternal
The most prominent theme of Ozymandias is the transience of human power and achievement. Ozymandias’s boastful inscription is ultimately ironic because it highlights how all his grandeur and might have faded into nothing. No matter how powerful a ruler may be, time will eventually reduce their works to dust. - theme
impertenance of power
Ozymandias represents the archetype of hubris, or excessive pride, often seen in powerful rulers who believe their legacy will last forever. The inscription “Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair!” emphasizes his arrogance, but the surrounding desolation reveals the folly of his arrogance. - theme
arrogance and hubris
The desert and the ruins of the statue convey the theme of time’s destructive power. The sands of the desert slowly encroach upon the once-glorious statue, symbolizing how time inevitably wears down all things, no matter how impressive they once were. - theme
inevitability of decay and time
The sculptor captured Ozymandias’s “passions,” yet ironically, the very art that was meant to immortalize the king’s grandeur also reveals his downfall. While the king believed he would be remembered for his greatness, the statue now only serves as a symbol of his fallen empire. The poem suggests that art, while it may preserve a moment, cannot save a legacy that is doomed by time. - theme
art and legacy
who is ozymandias based on ?
ramesses ii
The poem begins with the speaker recalling a story told by a traveler. This distant, historical perspective sets the stage for the exploration of a fallen empire. The phrase “antique land” implies an ancient, lost civilization, suggesting that the world the traveler describes has long passed. - quote
“I met a traveler from an antique land”
The image of “vast and trunkless legs” is a powerful metaphor for the incomplete, fragmented nature of the statue, symbolizing the crumbling remains of what was once a mighty empire. The legs, without the torso or head, suggest that the ruler’s power has been reduced to mere ruins. - quote
“Two vast and trunkless legs of stone / Stand in the desert.”
The “shattered visage” (face) lying half-buried in the sand is symbolic of the decay of the king’s legacy. The fact that the face is “shattered” hints at the fragility of human pride and power, which cannot withstand the ravages of time. - quote
“Near them, on the sand, / Half sunk, a shattered visage lies”
The description of the king’s expression—”frown,” “wrinkled lip,” and “sneer of cold command”—reveals the arrogance and tyrannical nature of the ruler. The sculptor captured the king’s ruthless personality. However, the irony here is that these passions, which the ruler thought would endure, are now fixed in a ruined, lifeless object. - quote
“whose frown / And wrinkled lip and sneer of cold command / Tell that its sculptor well those passions read”
The inscription on the pedestal is a direct proclamation of the ruler’s ego and pride. Ozymandias is not just a king; he is “king of kings,” positioning himself as the supreme ruler. The phrase “Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair!” is an arrogant claim, meant to intimidate others by the supposed magnificence of his achievements. Ironically, the only thing that remains of his empire is the wreckage and ruin, which contrasts starkly with his boast. - quote
“My name is Ozymandias, king of kings: / Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair!”
These lines reflect the ultimate futility of Ozymandias’s pride. The vast desert, with its “lone and level sands,” symbolizes the passage of time and the insignificance of human power in the face of nature and eternity. The “colossal wreck” is all that is left of the king’s once-mighty empire. Everything he built has decayed, leaving behind only emptiness. - quote
“Nothing beside remains. Round the decay / Of that colossal wreck, boundless and bare / The lone and level sands stretch far away.”
