Percy Shelley’s “Ozymandias”, and Robert Browning’s “My Last Duchess”, are two very different poems. The similarities between them are that both poems depict their power. “Ozymandias,” a poem about power, shows that time passes in a way that is insignificant when compared with human life. Even for egotistical rulers like Ozymandias who are very powerful, time is not. “My Last Duchess”, the narrative technique used to represent power, makes it feel as if he is speaking directly towards an audience.
Shelley wrote “Ozymandias”, a poem about a ruined statuary of a strong ruler who once controlled an old kingdom. Browning shows Ozymandias to be a harsh ruler. His “sneer” is a reference to Ozymandias’ abuse of power as a cruel leader. It leads readers to believe that Ozymandias, the ancient kingdom’s ruler, was probably a dictator. The harsh alliteration in “Cold Command” shows how to use harsh language. The repetition of the letter C at the beginning of each word gives the impression of power. “command” may also be used to represent the dictatorship over pharaohs. This may suggest that the pharaoh might have been lonely. Shelley uses alliteration in referring to the “boundless bare desert”. It emphasizes that the desert has survived much longer then the statue. His statue has fallen, leaving nothing for “Bare” or Ozymandias. It may also represent the extent of his influence that has been lost. The rhythmic iambic pentameter can also represent a heartbeat. Perhaps ironic, since his life was already over. We see this by the fact that he refers to his surname as “a nine-hundred-years-old name”. This indicates that his family history has been important for hundreds of years. His surname, which is still very significant nine hundred year later, suggests that his name was known all over Italy. To think that his name is one of power over all these centuries, the Duke must be very proud of it.
Ozymandias has an Iambic Pentameter meter. The Iambic Pentameter with the accompanying enjambment are the closest to telling a story through poetry. The poem almost tells a story. It is a glimpse into the life of the Egyptian king. Shelley says that Enjambment means “nothing but remains”. It is evident that the time has passed and that Ozymandias and his achievements have made it more powerful than the ruler. It’s irony in that even a powerful King cannot prevent the devastating effects of age.
Browning’s poem, titled “My Last Duchess”, has also been written in iambic pentameter. This is a clear indication that the poem almost tells the story of the Duke’s life with his Duchess. The poem is dramatic monologue. The speaker can clearly be distinguished from the poet. This gives readers the impression that no poet wrote this. Instead, this is a direct transcript of the Duke speaking. The audience feels like they are present even though there isn’t one. This clever use by Browning of dramatic monologues to convey power creates the illusion that the duke speaks directly to the reader.
“Ozymandias,” a sonnet, is a fourteen line poem in iambic Pentameter. The sonnet’s rhyme scheme is quite unusual in this era. Since it doesn’t follow the Petrarchan patterns, it suggests that things are not right. Ozymandias has lost his power and achievements. This is evidence that Ozymandias’ power has diminished and he no longer holds the king’s authority.