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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. What is the likely purpose of capitalizing "Works" (line 11) and "Wreck" (line 13)?

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

3. What part of the statue's face does the traveler describe?

4. What technique is employed in the poem's final two lines, "Of that colossal Wreck, boundless and bare/ The lone and level sands stretch far away”?

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

Short Essay Questions

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

2. Describe the poem's form.

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

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

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

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

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

8. Briefly summarize the action of the poem.

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

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.

Essay Topic 2

Write an essay in which you explicate Shelley's use of the sound devices alliteration, assonance, and consonance in "Ozymandias." How do these techniques link or emphasize ideas and impact the poem's flow, pace, and mood? Use both quoted and paraphrased evidence from the poem to support your claims.

Essay Topic 3

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.

(see the answer keys)

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