Okay, first of all, he was married to the Frankenstein author?! How cute is that! That randomly makes me really happy.
Next, I really enjoyed the poem “Ozymandias” and, strangely enough, have found myself thinking about it a lot over the past few days. I really like what this poem is saying about the shallow nature of power. He starts the poem by talking about an “antique land,” which automatically seems to distance the reader from the king. By having the story told by a traveler, it makes the subject seem even more distant and unimportant. Not only did it happen long ago and far away, but it’s a secondhand account. He then describes the statue that has been destroyed and engulfed by the sand, which shows even more the absolute insignificance of the man depicted. Although he was once great he is now “trunkless.” There is no heart, no backbone, no power. The words of domination on the pedestal become ironic as we see that he is no “Kings of Kings,” only “shattered” stone.
On my first few readings I was a little bit confused by this poem. Although I enjoyed it, I didn’t see how it fit in with the romantic themes that we had been following. After thinking on it, though, I saw that it ultimately did come back to nature. This man thought that he had the power and the control, but ultimately the desert overcame and decayed him. When he was gone, the “level sands” still “stretch[ed] far away.” I think that this poem continues the theme that ultimately it is nature that lasts and has the real power.
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Isn't it awesome that he was married to "Lady Frankenstein?" They are essentially the ultimate Romantic power couple of their time.
ReplyDeleteI love it.
Emily, I love your explanation of this poem. On my first few read-throughs, I had a hard time understanding what was romantic about it as well. I couldn't grasp what was really happening here. After reading your post, I read the poem again and I found your interpretation very helpful!
ReplyDeleteNow, in reading it again, I can see where this is really a nature vs power poem. Nothing lasts forever, except nature. She's the only thing the goes on forever and ever. I love that imagery. Even the most powerful rulers, kings, etc die, and all that they leave behind eventually dissolves and decays, thanks to nature. Even human nature can dissolve and decay the powerful. Think of all the revolutions and revolts throughout time all over the earth! And what a romantic thought, that nature dominates.