Question

Write a prose paraphrase of "Ozymandias.

Answer 1

The poem "Ozymandias" is a poem by Percy Bysshe Shelley. As most poetry, it is written in verse. However, if we were to paraphrase the poem in prose, it would look something like this:

I met a traveller from a land with an old history, and he told me the following: "There are two legs made of stone buried in the desert. Close to these legs, partly hidden by sand, is the shattered face of a statue. You can tell that the face has a wrinkled lip and a sneer of command, which shows that the sculptor was skilled enough to transmit the personality of the model to the stone. On the pedestal of the statue, you can read the following words:

'My name is Ozymandias, King of Kings;

Look on my Works, ye Mighty, and despair!'

However, all around the remains, nothing else is to be found. Time has destroyed everything, and the wreck that we find is surrounded by bare space and sand that stretches far away."

Answer 2

Heart that fed: And on the pedestal these words appear: 'My name is Ozymandias, king of kings: Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair!' Nothing beside remains. Round the decay Of that colossal wreck, boundless and bare The lone and level sands stretch far away.