OZYMANDIAS

I met a traveller from an antique land,
Who said-"Two vast and trunkless legs of stone
Stand in the desert. . . . Near them, on the sand,
Half sunk a shattered visage lies, whose frown,
And wrinkled lip, and sneer of cold command,
Tell that its sculptor well those passions read
Which yet survive, stamped on these lifeless things,
The hand that mocked them, and the heart that fed;
And on the pedestal, these words appear:
My name is Ozymandias, King of Kings;
Look on my Works, ye Mighty, and despair!
Nothing beside remains. Round the decay
Of that colossal Wreck, boundless and bare
The lone and level sands stretch far away."

Ozymandias - Context

Percy Bysshe Shelley (1792 - 1822) was known as a 'radical' during his lifetime and some people think "Ozymandias" reflects this side of his character.

"Ozymandias" was published in January 1818. It was written about a pharaoh called Ramses II, also known as "Ozymandias"​.

The poem also makes the implied comparison between the Egyptian empire, ruled over by Ozymandias, (and how the power of this empire eventually crumbled) and the growing power of the British empire at the time that Shelley was writing.

Ozymandias - Analysis of Key Lines

I met a traveller from an antique land.

The poem is a second-hand account or a report of someone else's words. The word 'antique' has subtle differences of meaning to the word ancient as it may imply something perhaps collectible but which has no use.

wrinkled lip and sneer of cold command

We are not meant to look kindly on this ruler. He was harsh and tyrannical. The phrase 'cold command' has alliteration of the hard c sound, perhaps reflecting the harshness of his rule.

'Look on my works ye mighty and despair'

The inscription on the pedestal of the monument's remains is ironic since very little is left of his power.

the decay / Of that colossal wreck

The oxymoron reflects the power that Ramses once had and the ruin that is all that is left.

Ozymandias quiz. How much can you remember?