King of All Kings (Poetry Reaction #4)

 

The poem “Ozymandias” by Percy Bysshe Shelley describes to its reader a far away antique land. A  traveler visiting a new land finds an ear to listen to him, the traveler tells this person of a statue of a King, who is long gone. Although the statue was created by a distinguished sculptor, all features sticking out, so much so that the traveller can remember them all and describe it to the listener, it now lays cracked open and in ruins. This poem shows how even a very powerful leader can be forgotten, no matter how long they ruled for, how large their kingdom was, and if they have statues created for them or not, for the most part they are forgotten.

The speaker calls the land that the traveller is from an antique land, it gives off the imagery of an old antique vase to me. One that sits on a shelf high above everything else, far away. Its dusty because no one touches it, afraid it might break. No one really thinks about it, but it still sits there and once and a while there is talk about it and what is painted on it, and how interesting it is. The statue that sticks out of the sand “Two vast and trunkless legs of stone/ Stand in the desert.” that’s the painting thats on the vase. The statue just stands there in this land that no one seems to visit anymore because its so antique, the only person that talks about is the traveller.

        The statue itself is now surrounded by nothing and yet the pedestal still reads “Look on my Works, ye Mighty, and despair!” Its almost Ironic. The King, Ozymandias, the great and powerful, king of kings no longer matters, his whole kingdom is just surrounded by remains that once were probably his kingdom. All thats left is lone and level sand. There is no longer anything thats mighty about this king and yet the statue is still there, like a mockery.

        This king probably deserves what has come to him “sneer of cold command” He was probably one of those kings that let all the power go to his head. He may have even been the reason for his kingdoms downfall. The traveller speaks of this statue like he’s telling him a lesson, or warning. Although you may feel great and powerful at one point in your life, all of that power will one day mean nothing. Even if your name was written on a statue, written on a book,  or even written in stone, one day none of that will matter. Your whole kingdom you have created wont matter, because life goes on around you, present or not. When the humans one day die out, the earth will continue to turn, the plant life will continue to grow, animals will continue to live, because even though we have so much power, it will one day not matter.