English GCSE AQA: Comprehensive Analysis of the Power and Conflict Poems

Ozymandias (1818) - Percy Bysshe Shelley

Précis: Shelley's poem imagines a meeting between the narrator and a "traveller" who describes a ruined statue he - or she - saw in the middle of a desert somewhere. The description of the statue is a meditation on the fragility of human power and on the effects of time.

Context: Written by Shelly in a collection in 1819, it was inspired by the recent unearthing of part of a large statue of the Egyptian Pharoah, Ramesses II. Ozymandias is the Greek name for Ramesses II.

The Egyptian Pharaohs like Ramesses believed themselves to be gods in mortal form and that their legacy would last forever. The reference to the stone statue is likely a direct reference to the statues and sculptures like the one which was unearthed, which the ancient Egyptians made. Interest in Ancient Egyptian history was fashionable in the period and the importation of statues to British and French museums was beginning in earnest. It isn't clear whether Shelley would have seen statues himself and whether he was inspired by a real piece of sculpture.

On the base of the statue, there is written (translated) "King of Kings am I, Ozymandias. If anyone would know how great I am and where I lie, let him surpass one of my works."

Percy Bysshe Shelley lived a chaotic, nomadic life but managed to produce poetry and pamphlets for most of his adult years. He eventually married Mary Wollstonecraft Godwin, the daughter of philosopher William Godwin, and eloped with her to Europe, living in a circle of artistic friends and lovers which included, for a time, Lord Byron.

It was during this time that Shelley died at the age of 29 when his boat sank in a storm in the Gulf of Spezia, Italy. Atheist, pacifist and vegetarian, he was mourned by his close friends but back in England he was seen as an agitator.

His wide-ranging poetry lives on. A sensitive nature poet, he wrote the oft-quoted To a Skylark and The Flower That Smiles Today, but he could pen political verse too.

Ozymandias is a political poem at heart, written at a time when Napoleon's domination of Europe was coming to an end and another empire, that of Great Britain's, was about to take over.

Shelley's poem encapsulates metaphorically the outcome of such tyrannical wielding of power - no leader, King, despot, dictator or ruler can overcome time. Overall, this sonnet paints a picture of an egotistical character who thought himself without rival but who was cruel to his people.

Themes: Looking at power and conflict we can imagine Ozymandias as a powerful ruler who sees himself as a "king of kings", perhaps a great warrior and one of the most powerful men in the world. The poem is almost being ironic, pointing out that now all that remains is an arrogant boast on a ruined statue. Perhaps the poet feels sorry for him or is laughing at his expense. Either way, it looks about the inevitable downfall of all rulers and tyrants, and how nothing, not even power, lasts forever.

Structure: Written in a sonnet with loose iambic pentameter. Most sonnets break into two parts: an "octet" (the first eight lines) and a "sextet" (the last six lines), with the second part commenting on the first.

"Who said: Two vast and trunkless legs of stone"

Sonnets were generally popular romantic or love poems, perhaps this being a love poem about Ozymandias, a joke about the ruler's ego. Or simply to capture the romantic and exotic tone of a lost legend. The Rhyme scheme is irregular, perhaps symbolic of the broken statue itself, no longer perfect. Furthermore, it's not a Shakespearean sonnet, nor is it a Petrarchan - the poet made certain of its individuality by choosing not to introduce a "turn" after the second quatrain. Instead, there is a simple shift of emphasis, the narrator sharing the words on the pedestal that are in effect, the words of the fallen leader. Is this Shelley yet again breaking with tradition, defying the establishment?