Jump to content

Ozymandias (Shelley)

From Wikisource
For works with similar titles, see Ozymandias.
Versions of
Ozymandias
by Percy Bysshe Shelley
"Ozymandias" is a famous sonnet by Percy Bysshe Shelley, published in 1818. It is frequently anthologised and is probably Shelley's most famous short poem.
It deals with a number of great themes, such as the arrogance and transience of power, the permanence of real art and emotional truth, and the relationship between artist and subject. It explores these themes with some striking imagery, amplified by a setting–Egypt and the Sahara desert–that was exotic for European audiences in the early 19th century. The poem's sense of distance is further enhanced by its second-hand narration; the commentator is relating to us the words of an unnamed "traveller from an antique land".
1638OzymandiasPercy Bysshe Shelley
Versions of Ozymandias include:


Reading of Percy Shellys Ozymandias