Ozymandias

• What poems can be compared to Ozymandias?

  Human power and pride: My last duchess, London

  Power of nature: The prelude, Exposure, Storm on the island
• "I met a traveller from an antique land" 


  Shelley frames the poem as a story to make it clear the narrator hasn't seen the statue himself, only heard of it to emphasise the unimportance of Ozymandias in the present day

  The poet's narrative structure is a story within a story which distances the reader from Ozymandias and symbolises the vast gap between the king's intended legacy and his actual remembrance
• "Two vast and trunkless legs of stone stand in the desert"


  This image evokes the insignificance of human achievements against the vastness of time and nature

  "Trunkless legs" suggest the incomplete legacy of power emphasising the theme of extinction and the futility of human endeavours
• "Half sunk, a shattered visage lies"


  The ironic phrase shows that even a powerful human can't control the damaging effects of time

  Also, the fragmented statue serves as a powerful symbol of Ozymandias' fallen empire and shattered pride

  "Shattered" reinforces the idea of impermanence and the inevitable decline of those who seek to celebrate their name through tyranny
• "the hand that mocked them and the heart that fed"


  Illustrates the dual nature of Ozymandias' rule, both the creator and destroyer of his people

  Adjective "mocked" can possibly show that the sculptor intended on the statue making fun of Ozymandias
• "The lone and level sands stretch far away"


  Concludes the poem with the image of endless desert sands symbolising human civilisations and achievements are insignificant compared to the passing of time.

  "Stretch far away" shows that the desert is vast and will last longer than the incomplete further emphasising the power nature has over humans
• sonnet conveys his love for himself and his power
• iambic pentameter shows the insignificance of human power compared to the inevitable passing of time