The Loss Of Power In Ozymandias

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Arguably the most venerated and yet despised King of 19th Dynastic Egypt, Ramses II is portrayed by Shelley as the “King of Kings,” highlighting the fact that he was not merely a ruler, but the divinely appointed God above all others (10). The author cleverly deliberates Ozymandias’ power by correlating his inevitable decline to the decay of his temples, illuminating the ephemeral quality of the shared human experience. The once mighty kingdom is gone but still Ozymandias remains a substantial, albeit fragmented, presence. His rule itself is timeless, ironically by the author’s text, firmly embedded in the annals of literature as well as history, echoing the words carved at the base of his gargantuan statue so many eons ago.

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