WJEC Eduqas GCSE English Literature Skills for Literature and the Unseen Poetry Student Book
This document is an essay on how Ozymandias and how Hawk Roosting present power. The essay covers a range of subunits and analyses each poem critically including: the title, lexis, imagery, tone and structure.
How do Ozymandias and Hawk Roostings present power?
The title of ‘Ozymandias’ is the Greek name for King Rameses II. This is his less known name and Shelley
may have chosen this to diminish any power and relevance. However, ‘Ozymandias’ means “to rule the air”
which gives this dictator some biblical power as it is usually God who is above and ruling.
The title of ‘Hawk Roosting’ suggests a hierarchy with the hawk having the most power since it is a bird of
prey. The symbol of a bird usually represents freedom but the poem is about a ruler who is controlling which
contradicts this idea. ‘Roosting’ suggests the bird is sleeping which could create some vulnerability but the
poem juxtaposes this and shows the hawk as hubristic. Both titles have the same idea of a dictator ruling the
air as they are at the top of hierarchy.
The phrase ‘yet survive’ in ‘Ozymandias’ highlights how weak this dictator is now. It suggests he is only
hanging on to his life and power. However, it is the sculptor’s art that has lived on as the statue has survived
but Ozymandias’ power has not. This shows that it is actually the sculptor (art) who had the power.
In ‘Hawk Roosting’, the word ‘hooked’ is repeated which suggests entrapment. It may be that this hawk is
clinging onto his power and he is still as controlling as he used to be. The first word ‘I’ (which is a personal
pronoun) and further emphasises his vanity. The language in two poems contrast: ‘Ozymandias’ shows a fallen
dictator who has lost power due to his negative audacity. ‘Hawk Roosting’ is about a bird who is stable with his
power and is still controlling. The bird may have excessive pride but has not fallen.
The image of, ‘heart that fed’ in ‘Ozymandias’ is a very sinister image. It shows that the dictator wants to feed
off his people’s fear. Shelley would have been very much angry whilst remembering this as he is a Romantic
poet who questions authority and believes in freedom. A dictator who feeds off fear would not have allowed
much freedom.
The phrase, ‘no arguments’ in ‘Hawk Roosting’ has a dictator image where, yet again, he is not allowing
freedom of speech. Along with, ‘allotment of death’, they both have connotations with WWII. Hughes was alive
during the Holocaust so it would have affected him during childhood. This suggests that the hawk is actually
Hitler. Both images in each poem are very unsettling.
In ‘Ozymandias’, the sentence, ‘Nothing beside remains.’ has an amused tone. Shelley seems to be
diminishing the dictator’s power which is emphasised by the emphatic full stop. This sentence may mean that
nothing is left next to this fallen statue or that nothing but the statue is left.
The tone of ‘Hawk Roosting’ is proud which can be seen in the line, ‘the sun is behind me’. This hawk is proud
of the fact that something so essential to life is ‘behind’ him, making it appear as though it has less power. The
tone in these poems contrast. The tone is mocking and negative in ‘Ozymandias’ but quite arrogant in ‘Hawk
Roosting’. This would be because ‘Hawk Roosting’ is a dramatic monologue from the Hawk’s perspective so it
makes sense that this dictator is proud. ‘Ozymandias’ is told from the perspective of a traveller who points out
all his negative features. As a result the power is misplaced towards to storyteller, instead of Rameses II.
The structure of ‘Ozymandias’ is a Petrarchan sonnet: it has an octave, volta, sestet but no rhyming couplets.
There is some rhyming in the octave such as ‘land’ and ‘sand’ but after the volta and when ‘Ozymandias’’
words appear, the structure breaks. The poem has plosive alliteration such as, ‘boundless and bare’ which has
an angry tone. This is in the penultimate line so Shelley may have become angrier whilst talking about this
dictator.
In ‘Hawk Roosting’, the structure is simply six quatrains. This represents the hawk’s control with his power and
as he seems unphased even when he says, ‘my eyes closed’. The last stanza is made up of four sentences all
having full stops. This sound mirrors official statements almost like decree. This shows he is in control, yet
again, as he is confident and calm with everything he says. The synecdoche in ‘Ozymandias’ is ‘hand’
whereas it is ‘foot’ in ‘Hawk Roosting’. This is because both these body parts are where the two dictator’s have
most control. Both these body parts would be very precious and special to each dictator.
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