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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 8 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. Which is the best description of the statue's expression?

2. What is the meter of the poem's first two lines?

3. In line 4, "Half sunk a shattered visage lies," what techniques are employed?

4. What is the rhyme scheme of "Ozymandias"?

5. What part of the statue is still standing when the traveler sees it?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does the poem's setting support its main point?

2. How does the epithet that Ozymandias gives himself help the reader understand the intentions behind his quote?

3. Briefly summarize the action of the poem.

4. Describe the poem's form.

5. What poetic techniques create impact in the line, "Half sunk a shattered visage lies" (line 4)?

6. Identify the three voices heard in "Ozymandias."

7. Explain the irony of the poem's ending.

8. What claims does the poem make about the statue's sculptor?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Write an essay that analyzes "Ozymandias" as an artifact of English Romanticism. Explain the key characteristics of the style and subject matter of Romanticism, place Shelley within this tradition, and then show how "Ozymandias" reflects this tradition. Use both quoted and paraphrased evidence from the poem to support your claims, and cite all sources in MLA format.

Essay Topic 2

Write an essay that makes and defends a claim about Shelley's use of the sonnet form in "Ozymandias." Be sure to discuss which form he uses as well as his departures from the traditions of that form. Show how his use of the sonnet form supports the poem's overall meaning. Offer evidence from the poem to support your observations about the poem's structure.

Essay Topic 3

Write an essay in which you explicate the imagery of "Ozymandias." Describe the poems images and then show how they function to support the poem's overall meaning. Use both quoted and paraphrased evidence from the poem to support your claims.

(see the answer keys)

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