Ozymandias: Imagery

The various images in this poem contribute to a general theme and meaning among the work. Ozymandias was a powerful Egyptian tyrant during his reign. Statues and monuments were created of him boasting "My name is Ozymandias, king of kings." However, the imagery of the poem conveys that all things eventually end. The images of an "antique land" describing post-kingdom Egypt create a sense that the power of the kings, especially, Ozymandias has dissolved into history. Though Ozymandias thought himself invincible, the images of the monument, or "colossal wreck", in "decay" illuminate the meaning of the poem that all things, even once thought invincible, will come to be just a mere "antique" of history. This, to me, creates a bleak sense about our world today. The tone of this poem has two sides to it: that all opression will come to an end but also, with it, all other good things in life. The tone just seems to imply that all things come and go and no matter how invincible people think they are, they will eventually be forgotten.