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The traveller saw a broken face near the stave which was half sunk in the sand. There were expressions of frown and sneer on the face of the statue looking at those facial expression, one could easily guess that the sculptor was perfect in his art of sculpture. He praised the sculptor saying that he had read/understood the emotions of the king very well. That’s why he could carve them an statue’s face.

Poetic Devices :

Cold command – Alliteration

Value Points :

Belongs to Ozymandias - lying in the sand half sunk, ravaged by time.

Detailed Answer :

The shattered visage in the poem ‘Ozymandias’ belongs to the King Ozymandias. He had a frowning expression on his face which reflected his scornful and contemptuous nature. It was half-sunk because it had been ravaged by time which spares no one. whether rich or poor. 

Value Points :

Captured all nuances of the cold expressions of the arrogant king - a good judge of king’s character. He could depict the cold hostility of the frowning scornful face, knitted brow and the wrinkled lip-highlighted the arrogance of the king.

Detailed Answer :

The sculptor was a skilful artist. He carved the expression of scorn and cold command on the face of Ozymandias statue in such a manner that it seemed as if the sculptor mocked at the king’s self obsession and passion.

The poet met a traveller who had come from an ancient land. He told the poet that he saw two huge legs made of stone standing in the desert. They were trunkless.

Poetic Devices :

two vast and trunkless – Alliteration 

On the pedestal of the statue the words inscribed were, “My name is Ozymandias, I am the king of kings. If anyone wishes to know how great I am, then let him surpass my works.” These words indicate the conceit and arrogance of the king. The king appeared to sneer at people who were weak and helpless.

The statue of Ozymandias was found in a distant desert. The head of the statue was broken and nearby two vast legs of stone stood without a body. The head was half sunk in the sand. The statue had a bitter and cruel expression of command and power.

Value Points :

The face was shattered, had a frown, lips were wrinkled, reflected scorn – contemptuous, cold (heartless), hostile, commanding.

Detailed Answer : 

The carving of the facial expression was such that it showed scorn and hostility on the face of the statue. The shattered visage looked cruel and pitiless with a ‘wrinkled’ lip.

Value Points :

thinks he is the greatest of all Kings, arrogant, vain, conceited, egocentric

Detailed Answer :

Ozymandias refers to himself as the king of kings because he thought he was the mightiest of all the kings and no one was more powerful than him. He was boastful, arrogant, vain, conceit, egocentric.

The inscriptions on the pedestal reveal that Ozymandias was boastful, arrogant and held everyone in contempt. He refers to himself as the ‘king of kings’ and he wanted that the other kings/people should feel despair when looking at his superior works.

The poem is set in a desert.

Ozymandias refers to himself as the king of kings because he thought he was the mightiest of all kings and no one was more powerful than him. Through this statement the qualities revealed are boastfulness, conceit and vanity in the king.

The ‘hand’ refers to the sculptor’s hand and the ‘heart’ refers to that of King Ozymandias. The statue made by the sculptor seemed to be mocking at the king’s self obsession and passion.

(a) He saw two vast and trunkless legs standing in the desert. 

(b) A broken face, half sunk, was lying on the sand near the legs. 

(c) antique

The tone of the poem is mocking.

Value Points :

arrogance / aggression / pride / cruelty / egoism / power / ruthlessness.

Detailed Answer : 

The poem reflects upon the king’s grand delusions of his own power and might, which he thought could be immortalised in stone. However, it proved to be only wishful thinking because all that remained of that statue was a colossal wreck.

12, Birsa Munda Road

Ranchi

10 March, 20××

Dear Ramesh 

Recently I happened to go to Jaisalmer. As I moved out of the town, I saw two huge trunkless legs of stone standing in the desert. It was a pleasant surprise to see such a huge structure in the wilderness. Quite near those legs was lying a shattered face half buried in the sand. I came closer and tried to study the expressions stamped on the face. There were expressions of contempt and cold command stamped on it. It was the face of a haughty and arrogant man.

The mystery was revealed when I read what was written on the pedestal of the statue. The statue was of Ozymandias. He was described as ‘the king of kings’. He must have been a very powerful despot. He must have thought all other lesser mortals with contempt. The pedestal read : “Look upon my works, ye Mighty, and despair”. He seems to be challenging even the Mighty not to talk of the powerful and mighty persons of the world. But alas! His symbols of grandeur and glory are reduced to dust. Nothing has remained of Ozymandias now. His broken statue and shattered face are lying half buried in boundless and bare sand.

Yours sincerely 

ABC

(a) It means the huge broken statue of Ozymandias. 

(b) The poetic divice used is alliteration. 

(c) colossal

(a) The words were written on the base (pedestal) of the statue. 

(b) They show that Ozymandias was proud of his great achievements. 

(c) despair

(a) This expression tells that the sculptor had well read the feelings present on the face of the man whose statue he was to make. 

(b) The passions that stamped on the face of the statue of stone still survive. 

(c) frown

“The hand that mocked them” here means the hand of the sculptor. After understanding the passions that arose in the heart of Ozymandias, he reproduced (mocked) them on the stone. “The heart that fed” here means the heart of king Ozymandias which gave birth to those passions as were mocked (reproduced or copied) by the sculptor on the stone. 

The sculptor was able to understand Ozymandias’ feelings.

The expression on the face of the statue is one of contempt.

(a) Egotistical.

(b) none of the mighty works referred to remain.

(c) alliteration.

(d) Limitless.

It symbolizes that all worldly power, pride, glory and grandeur are short lived. It also conveys the idea that time and tide, wait for no one. Time keeps on ticking and takes away the glory and freshness of everything.

Value Points :

Inscription : ‘I am Ozymandias ...........’, mocks at his claim to power and might. Statue is on the ground - ravaged - destroyed by time - nothing to be seen except the vast and endless stretch of sand.

Detailed Answer :

The condition of the statue and the inscription on the pedestal are ironical. The statue was completely shattered. Only two legs stood on the pedestal and the head was lying in the sand. Whereas, the inscription said ‘look upon my work, ye Mighty and despair’, and ‘king of kings’. Such a mighty and powerful king who looked down upon everyone else, was destroyed. It conveys that nothing is stable in this world; everything is subject to change and decay. Everything gets destroyed by time.

The poet met a traveller. He had returned from an ancient land. He told the poet of seeing two huge trunkless legs of stone standing in the desert. Near those legs a shattered face was lying half sunk in the sand. The face of the broken statue showed signs of contempt, cold command and authority on it.

Value Points

Irony : nothing left to show his greatness, trunkless legs remained in the wilderness forgotten by people Lesson : wealth, power and position do not last forever time, it is the ultimate leveler / time conquers all

Detailed Answer :

Ozymandias was a cruel and arrogant king who got his statue erected so that people would remember him even after his death. But with the passage of time, the condition of the statute became piteous, it was completely shattered. There were only the trunkless legs which remained in the wildness and nothing else was these which could show the greatness of Ozymandias, ‘the king of kings’. It is ironical that a person who was so powerful and who looked down upon others was reduced to a trunkless statue.

The poem leaves a message that wealth, power and position do not last forever. So they should be used for the welfare of mankind and should not be misused. Time is the ultimate lever. One must realize that respect is never demanded. Real power is in winning hearts and not in ruling the weak and the needy. Time conquers all, so if one wins the hearts of people it is the real victory. 

A sonnet is a poem of fourteen lines with a structured rhyme scheme. Each line contains ten syllables. The single idea runs throughout the poem. The idea is that all power, pelf, glory and grandeur are short-lived. The ravages of time spare none. The ‘king of kings’, Ozymandia’s dream of dazzling and overawing the world with his authority and feats. He lies shattered and buried in the boundless and bare sand of the desert.

Both the poems, ‘Ozymandias’ and ‘Not Marble, nor the Gilded Monuments’ focus on the ravages of Time. In ‘Not Marble, nor the Gilded Monuments’, Shakespeare mocks at the marble and gilded monuments, memorials and statues built by the princes, rulers and the rich. They raise these memorials to show their power, authority, wealth and grandeur. They want to perpetuate their memory for the posterity. It is a vain attempt to become immortal or to keep their memory alive in the minds and hearts of the coming generation. However, the ravages of time and the agents of destruction like wasteful wars and tumults destroy, damage and deteriorate such buildings and monuments. Shakespeare wants to highlight that ‘the powerful rhyme’ outlives all such worldly glories and grandeurs.

P.B. Shelley’s ‘Ozymandias’ also highlights that the sickle of time spares none. Once all-powerful ruler, ‘the king of kings’, Ozymandias wanted to overawe the present and future generations by his authority and achievements. He met a tragic and ironical fate. The ravages of time shattered his pride and his statue and face lie broken and buried in the sand. Such tall claims and show of power, glory and grandeur meet their tragic end with the passage of time. So, both the poets highlight that all worldly power, glory and grandeur meet their destruction and deterioration at the hands of all-powerful time.

Through his famous sonnet ‘Ozymandias’, Shelley wants to convey a definite message to his readers. Time is all-powerful. The sickle of time spares none, not even the ‘king of kings’ like Ozymandias. All worldly power, pride, glory and grandeur are a nine-day wonder. His vain attempt of perpetuating his memory proved futile. His statue lies shattered and broken half-sunk in the sand. There is nothing else but boundless sand all around it. Only the art of the sculptor who mocked all those passions which are stamped on lifeless stones, survive the ravages of time.

Shelley presents Ozymandias as a very powerful ruler. He calls himself ‘the king of kings’. He is mighty and proud of his power and achievements. He is contemptuous of other lesser mortals. He challenges all the powerful and mighty persons to look upon his wonderful feats. They will get lost in deep achievements and overawed by his power and authority. The ‘sneer of cold command’ on the face of the statue tells much about his character.

The poet P.B. Shelley very emphatically presses on one point. The ravages of time spare none. All power, authority, glory and grandeur are reduced to dust with the passage of time. Nothing else is left of Ozymandias, the king of kings. His statue and face lie broken and half-sunk in the sand. Art outlives or survives all worldly power, glory and grandeur.

The words of Ozymandias, ‘the king of kings’ prove to be tragic and ironical. The irony in the poem is brought about by the message that the poem gives to the readers. The memorial or the huge statue was erected to overawe and dazzle the posterity. It displayed the power, glory and grandeur of king Ozymandias. But what is the result? The statue that was to perpetuate Ozymandias’ memory lies broken into pieces on the sand in a desert. Nothing has remained except the boundless and bare sand stretching all around.

I thought I was the mightiest of all human beings on this earth. I was drunk with power and authority. I had everything—glory and grandeur. I used to have contempt and arrogance for others. I considered myself a demi-god. But I wanted to perpetuate my memory for the coming generations. I wanted to erect a grand memorial for myself. A great sculptor was employed to make a unique statue that would overawe and dazzle the people of all ages. Even the mighty and powerful would feel belittled when they came to know of my great achievements and heroic feets.

They say man proposes and God disposes. What can be more painful than to see your dreams shattered to pieces before your own eyes? Where is the king of kings now? His face is lying half buried in the sand and shattered into pieces. The ravages of times have shattered the pride and arrogance. And now what is left of the man who was feared and dreaded even by the kings? Only two trunkless legs stand in the desert. They are ironical reminders that all power, pride, glory and grandeur are short-lived. This is a lesson not only for an arrogant ruler like me but also for the whole humanity.

Value Points : 

Travelled to a space where once an ancient civilization existed a broken statue in the middle of the desert – a description of a statue – pride and arrogance – all gone now – man is mortal; pride hath a fall – art if in the state of a ruin is immortal.

Detailed Answer : 

Wednesday,

18th September 2015,

11 p.m.,

Dear Diary,

Last week I had a chance to visit an Ancient land. I had a very strange experience because there I saw a statue which had only two large legs without the upper part of the body. It was, in fact, a broken statue in the middle of the desert. I tried to find the face of the statue which I found lying near it, half-buried in the sand. The face was broken but the expression of sneer and cold command could easily be seen on it. One could easily make out that the person must have been cruel and arrogant. Then my eyes fell on the pedestal on which the name ‘Ozymandias’ was written. Perhaps, he had got his statue carved as he wanted the world to remember him even after his death without realising that time does not spare even the ‘king of kings’. Even the statues carved out of marble get shattered. But still man gets them carved to immortalize himself. Ozymandias was an arrogant man who forgot that pride hath a fall. The ‘king of kings’ could be seen by anyone in a ruined state.

Through his famous sonnet ‘Ozymandias’, Shelley wants to convey a definite message to humanity and his readers. All power, pelf, glory and grandeur are only a nine-day wonder. The ravages of time spare none—not even the likes of Ozymandias. The ‘king of kings’ who wanted to overawe lesser mortals with his power, authority and great achievements, now lies shattered and buried in the sand. Nothing remains of his power, glory and grandeur. Only boundless and bare sand is seen all around his broken and shattered statue in the desert.

The theme of ‘Ozymandias’ is clear and vivid. It conveys that human emotions of haughtiness, pride, and arrogance do not assure immortality and durability against all powerful time and nature. The poem highlights the vanity of human glory and power. Everything in the world perishes with the passage of time and under the powerful influence of the elements of nature. Even the mightiest of the mighty becomes one with the dust. No trace of them is left on the sands of time. Ozymandias, a powerful king of Egypt was proud of his glory and achievements. He desired to immortalize his name and got a statue built. But nothing could stand against time and the powerful elements of nature. The broken statue symbolizes the destruction caused by time and the sands, lone, boundless and bare symbolize the power of the elements.

Those were great and glorious times! ‘Ozymandias!’ Even this word was enough to make people tremble and bow in respect. The rich and the mighty looked upon my glorious feats and heroic deeds and were lost in deep despair. The commoners trembled. The rich and the powerful bowed. The fate and fortune seemed to dance to my tunes. I wanted my memory to be alive even after my death. So I employed the best sculptor of the kingdom to erect the grand statue to perpetuate my memory for the coming generations.

And now. O God! How pathetic and heart-rending the sight is! ‘The king of kings’ lies shattered and buried in the sand. The ravages of time have reduced all symbols of my power, authority, glory and grandeur to dust. Only two huge legs of stand in the desert. The ‘head’ that used to bow thousands of heads in submission is not traceable anywhere. Only the half shattered and half-buried face mocks at my fate. And nothing else is left except the boundless and bare sand all around. 

Ozymandias seemed to be a typical despot of an ‘ancient’ land. The description given by traveller proves the point that the king considered himself far above than all other mortals of his race. He loved to call himself ‘the king of kings’. He was drunk with power and authority. He had nothing but sneers of ‘cold command’ for others. Ozymandias was proud of his mighty deeds and wonderful achievements. He challenged the mighty and the powerful to look upon his marvellous feats, his glory and grandeur. Those who tried to do so only met with deep dismay and despair. Ozymandias’ attempt to perpetuate his memory for the future generations proved only a false dream. The ravages of time reduced the symbols of his power, authority, glory and grandeur only to dust. This is the lesson that we can learn from Ozymandias’ futile efforts to immortalise himself and his memory. The statue of the ‘king of kings’ Ozymandias’ lies in pieces with his shattered face half-buried in the sand.

We can form a clear picture of Ozymandias from the description of the traveller and the words written on the pedestal. He emerges as a powerful despot. He was highly conscious of his power and position and placed himself far above all other lesser mortals. Such an authoritative and proud personality had no room for any soft, milder and sensitive human feelings. 

‘Ozymandias’ is a very famous sonnet of P. B. Shelley. In the octave, he develops the idea and in the sestet, he reaches the conclusion that the ravages of time spare none. The use of alliteration heightens the poetic effect. ‘Cold command’, ‘king of kings’, ‘boundless and bare’ etc. are some of the examples of alliteration. The use of ‘Synecdoche’, substitution of a part to stand for the whole is effectively used in ‘the hand that mock’d them’ and ‘the heart that fed’. The use of metaphors like ‘cold command’ also enrich the poetic effect.

‘Ozymandias’ is one of the most famous sonnets written by Shelley. The ma in idea is developed in the fourteen lines of the sonnet systematically. In the octave, the poet describes how he met a traveller who came from an ancient land. Then he describes what the traveller saw there. He saw two huge trunkless legs of stone standing in the sand. Near them lay a shattered face half-buried in the sand. There were signs of contempt and ‘cold command’ on the face of the statue. The man was haughty, arrogant and authoritative. The workmanship of the sculptor was of quite a high quality. It seems he had well read the passions arising in the heart of the person before stamping them exactly as they were on the stone.

Shelley concludes the message in the sestet of the sonnet. The message is very clear. Time is all-powerful and spares none. All worldly power, pelf, glory and grandeur are just a nine-day wonder. Ozymandias used to call him ‘the king of kings’. He was mighty, proud of his wonderful feats and achievements. He thought himself a demi– god. But the ravages of time reduced Ozymandia’s attempt to outlive the posterity to dust. His broken statue and shattered face lie half buried in the sand. Nothing else has remained but only boundless and bare sand all around the shattered statue.

Value Points

power and glory short-lived/transitory, power and glory is deceptive/Ozymandias got his statue built in order to be remembered by posterity but his statue lies shattered/ broken, time kills/ destroys physical glory, power or riches.

Detailed Answer :

Arrogance does not assure immortality and durability against all powerful time and nature. The poem highlights the vanity of human glory and power. Everything in the world perishes with the passage of time and under the powerful influence of the elements of nature. Even the mightiest of the mighty becomes one with the dust. No trace of them is left on the sands of time. Ozymandias, a powerful king of Egypt was proud of his glory and achievements. He desired to immortalize his name and got a statue built. But nothing could stand against time and the powerful elements of nature. The broken statue symbolizes the destruction caused by time and the sands, lone, boundless and bare symbolize the power of the elements.

Friday,

18th August 2015,

10-30 p.m.,

Dear Diary,

I visited the land where my relative Ozymandias had got his statue carved out to immortalize himself. I was shocked when I reached there as I found that his face was lying in the sand and there were only his trunkless legs on the pedestal. I was reminded of him the way he was when he was alive. He had a boastful nature and always held himself in esteem. He was arrogant and egotistical. He had his statue carved out so that people would remember him even after his death. But what I saw there was only a broken statue as if it was making fun of human pretensions. It was conveying the fact that man is mortal and time is all powerful. No one can beat time. It spares none. The man who was so powerful and always thought of others as inferior was lying in the sand of course, it was his statue but still, time had defeated him, making everyone realise that pride hath a fall.