Ozymandias
ozymandias

Summary :                            

The Narrator: The narrator starts the poem with the
introduction as to how the traveller had narrated his
trip to the ancient land.
The Traveler: Two huge yet without the upper part of
the body sculptures stood in the desert. Near them lay
a shattered face, which had a frown and a wrinkled
expression on his face. The face also held a hostile
expression of cold command. The expression could be
read very well on these lifeless things because of the
sculptor’s artistry. On the pedestal appeared the words
of the king himself. It read that his name was
Ozymandias, king of kings, who commanded the
forthcoming rulers to look up to him, and be saddened
by the fact that they can never beat the glory he had
achieved.
Ozymandias: I am Ozymandias, king of all kings: look
upon my work and be despaired by my might, which
you can never surpass.

5. a) “The hand that mocked them, and the heart that fed”. Whose hand and heart has poet referred to in this line?

The expression ‘the hand that mocked’ refers to the sculptor’s skill in reproducing king Ozymandias’s facial expressions in stone and ‘the heart that fed’ refers to the arrogance of the conceited king Ozymandias who considered himself to be the mightiest of the mighty.

b) “My name is Ozymandias, king of kings.” Why does Ozymandias refer to himself as king of kings? What quality of the king is revealed through this statement?

Answer- The king Ozymandias described himself as the king of kings because he was very proud of his power, position and glory, he thought himself to be the greatest of all kings 

It shows the vanity and pretentiousness of the arrogant king. 

c) “Look on my works, ye mighty and despair!” Who is Ozymandias referring to when he speaks of “ye mighty”? Why should they despair?

He is referring to his fellow kings who consider themselves to be   very powerful,mighty and great.

 He feels that his greatness is unparalleled, for nobody can overpass the greatness and strength of him,it would pale their achievements into insignificance and give them reasons to be ashamed and dejected.

d) ‘Bring out the irony in the poem.

Answer: The once powerful king who glorified himself  through a grand statue with the thought of immortalizing himself,  is no more  Time devoured all his grandeur and magnificence and his statue is shattered into pieces; lying neglected and half-buried in the sand.Today his challenge to all fellow kings sounds hollow  and the inscription on the pedestal with the trunkless legs ironically mocks at Ozymandias’s claim to power and might.

e) ‘Nothing beside remains’. What does the narrator mean when he says these words?

Answer: Apart from the trunkless legs on the pedestal and a shattered visage, no remains of the once grand statue can be seen in the vast desert. By saying this, the narrator tries to highlight that even Ozymandias had not realized that time will wipe out everything and fragments of the broken statue will lie neglected in the sand.

f) What is your impression of Ozymandias as a king?

Answer-Ozymandias like many other kings is proud, arrogant and  a conceited king. He considered himself incomparable in regard to his greatness and achievements. He was a shortsighted person with a condescending attitude who never could realize that everything in the world is subject to decay, decline and destruction with no exception.

g) What message is conveyed through the poem.

Answer-The Might and majesty of a king do not last. Only great art endures for a period of time. The statue symbolizing the glory of pharaoh has crumbled. Now except some fine pieces of work by the sculptor nothing else remained. The poem compels us to realize that ‘time plays its final hand on every living and non-living creation and a proud king like Ozymandias is of no exception’. 

Question 7:

Shelley's sonnet follows the traditional structure of thefourteen-line Italian sonnet, featuring an openingoctave, or set of eight lines, that presents a conflict ordilemma, followed by a sestet, or set of six lines, thatoffers some resolution or commentary upon theproposition introduced in the octave.

Poetic Device Lines from the poem Alliteration ...and sneer of cold command Synecdoche (substitution of a part to stand for the whole, or the whole to stand for a part) the hand that mock'd themRepitition King of Kings Personification
the hand that mocked them