The traveler describes the visage (face) of the statue of Ozymandias as having a frown and a "wrinkled lip." These facial gestures suggest haughtiness, an expression of someone who feels superior to all others. The face also expresses a "sneer of cold command." The sneer is a look of contempt and/or mocking those who look upon it. The "cold command" describes this tyrant's selfish attitude. He rules or commands with no warmth for his people.
...
The traveler describes the visage (face) of the statue of Ozymandias as having a frown and a "wrinkled lip." These facial gestures suggest haughtiness, an expression of someone who feels superior to all others. The face also expresses a "sneer of cold command." The sneer is a look of contempt and/or mocking those who look upon it. The "cold command" describes this tyrant's selfish attitude. He rules or commands with no warmth for his people.
The sculptor understood Ozymandias' self-righteous, elitist attitude well. So, he mocks those attitudes with these arrogant gestures on the statue.
The script on the pedestal shows that Ozymandias wanted all who look upon the statue to be in awe of his greatness. He even wanted future rulers ("ye Mighty") to feel inferior when looking upon his monuments. So, he assumed that his greatness would intimidate people, powerful and weak, for the rest of time. The statue and the script show the ruler's arrogance and narcissism. The irony is that, over time, the statue has eroded and is now simply an outdated wreck.
No comments:
Post a Comment