In Shelley's "Ozymandias," Shelley gives us a poem that is also a departure from the traditional romantic themes we have come across so far. The ruined statue of Ozymandias, a great king of old, lies forgotten in the desert, covered by sand. Shelley was described in the intro as an anarchist and revolutionary, infamous for his intolerance of "kingcraft"; Ozymandias is his statement on what comes of man's pride.

Shelley tells us of meeting a stranger, who tells him about the statue. The first thing the traveller tells us about is the "trunkless legs of stone;" the torso has fallen and vanished beneath the shifting desert sands, maybe telling us that this Ozymandias lacked heart or "guts", or courage. The only clue to his personality is his "visage...whose frown,/and wrinkled lip, and sneer of cold command" tells us that this king was cruel and arrogant. Shelley tells us that the sculptor "mocked" those "passions" that he included in the king's image, telling us that people do not respect power or the poeple who hold it for power's sake alone. The king was mighty and powerful in his time, but now even his image lies wasted. That we get this image in a tale from someone who is hearing it from someone else further reduces the power that Ozymandias had.

Next we come to his epigraph, an obviously ironic statement: "Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair!" His works lie in ruins, his name and kingdom forgotten and buried by sand, victims of true power--the power of time, to which humans are insignificant. Human power doesn't last, Shelley is telling us, as time will bury us all, cover us in "lone and level sands". Conversely though, this is not just a statement on those who wield power over others as a weapon, but on anyone, good or bad. If we are all subject to being forgotten, then our works do not matter regardless of what we do.