Analysis of Ozymandias

About the Author

Percy Bysshe Shelley was a romantic poet. This was a type of poetry that had more to do with abstract ideas and concepts, usually based around nature. He came from a wealthy family and went to Oxford University. He was kicked out for writing about atheism (the belief that there is no God). He was a pacifist, someone who believed in peaceful protests but he lived under the reign of George the Third (who fought wars, waged wars, and wanted a big empire). Percy was the husband of Mary Shelley, the author of Frankenstein. 

Analysis

"I met a traveller from an antique land/Who said: Two vast and trunkless legs of stone/Stand in the desert"

This cluster of lines set the scene. The poet says he met a traveler that came across two vast and trunkless legs of stone. Vast means huge, trunkless means there was no body that was attached to these legs. These legs of stone were barely upright. They were eaten away by time and the desert. This shows the futile struggle to survive when no one cares about your upkeep. 

"Near them on the sand,/Half sunk, a shattered visage lies, whose frown/And wrinkled lip, and sneer of cold command"

The poet uses "half sunk" to show that this statue is nearly gone. A visage is a face. A shattered visage would then mean an unrecognizable face. It has no purpose. It's broken and useless. The word wrinkled shows that it's old but wise, however this can also display weakness. The poet uses negative words like "sneer" and "cold command" which gives the poem an aggressive sound. It shows that this leader was powerful but arrogant. He could give commands but didn't care about his people. 

"Tell that its sculptor well those passions read/Which yet survive, stamped on these lifeless things,/The hand that mocked them and the heart that fed;"

The last line of this cluster has a double meaning. The hand is both making and laughing. It's a pun, people!
"And on the pedestal these words appear:/'My name is Ozymandias, king of kings:/Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair!'"
Ah yes, the turning point. This is where we hear the words of the ruler, mighty king Ozymandias (if you can't detect sarcasm through your screen, this is my helpful hint). This sign is a warning point to all other rulers. It shows that he thinks he is the best and the others don't stand a chance of being better. The exclamation point in this line gives off a strong and authoritative vibe which is ironic because no one is listening! (Was my exclamation mark ironic because no one is listening? Yikes). His sign also has references to religion. He is seeing himself and presenting himself as godly.
"Nothing beside remains. Round the decay/Of that colossal wreck, boundless and bare,/The lone and level sands stretch far away."
Colossal --> a metaphor for this guy's big ego. "Boundless and bare" refers to a message of loneliness. There is nothing around. It's a vast, empty wasteland with no one around. "Lone and level" sands outlast the structure. This is juxtaposed to the power and ego of the statue. Sand is symbolic of time (think the sand in the hourglass).

Even more analysis:
Lines 4-7 is the sculptor capturing the essence of this man.
Line 11 vs Line 12 = Juxtaposition! It shows his strength will fall. He is temporary. Art is forever.
There is also a possible link to Shakespearean sonnets here. They are both 14 lines, about love (well, love of power really, love of yourself?).

Annotations:

Happy revising, kiddos :)