By Percy Bysshe Shelley
The title of the poem, “Ozymandias,” alludes to Ozymandias, the Greek name for Ramessess II, who was regarded as one of the greatest and most powerful of the ancient Egyptian pharaohs.
I met a traveller from an antique land
Who said: “Two vast and trunkless legs of stone
Stand in the desert . . . Near them, on the sand,
Half sunk, a shattered visage lies, whose frown,
And wrinkled lip, and sneer of cold command,
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:
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.”
excerpt from The Historical Library of Diodorus the Sicilian
by Diodorus Siculus
At the entrance stand three statues, each of one entire stone, the workmanship of Memnon of Sienitas. One of these, made in a sitting posture, is the greatest in all Egypt, the measure of his foot exceeding seven cubits; the other two, much less than the former, reaching but to his knees; the one standing on the right, and the other on the left, being his daughter and mother. This piece is not only commendable for its greatness, but admirable for its cut and workmanship, and the excellency of the stone. In so great a work there is not to be discerned the least flaw, or any other blemish.
Upon it there is this inscription: – ‘I am Osymandyas, king of kings; if any would know how great I am, and where I lie, let him excel me in any of my works.’
Question
What is one way Shelley uses source material in “Ozymandias”?
Responses
The statue is from Egypt.
The statue is from Egypt.,
The quality of the stone is faultless.
The quality of the stone is faultless.,
The story is told by a traveler.
The story is told by a traveler.,
The statue has an engraving.
The statue has an engraving.,