Ozymandias Analysis

I just had to choose Ozymandias by Percy Bysshe Shelley. If anyone reading this is an avid Breaking Bad fan, you know why.

I met a traveller from an antique land,

Who said—“Two vast and trunkless legs of stone

Stand in the desert. . . . Near them, on the sand,

Half sunk a shattered visage lies, whose frown,

And wrinkled lip, and sneer of cold command,

Tell that its sculptor well those passions read

Which yet survive, stamped on these lifeless things,

The hand that mocked them, and the heart that fed;

And on the pedestal, these words appear:

My name is Ozymandias, King of Kings;

Look on my Works, ye Mighty, and despair!

Nothing beside remains. Round the decay

Of that colossal Wreck, boundless and bare

The lone and level sands stretch far away.”

Title:

The title "Ozymandias" is a reference to an ancient Egyptian pharaoh named Ramesses II. Ramesss II was and is considered one of the most powerful rulers of the Egyptian empire's history. He won great wars and conquered vast territories, building cities, temples, and grand monuments. So to bring it back to the poem, the title of "Ozymandias" provokes a thought of great power and strength which gives some words a higher volume and others a deeper meaning.

Paraphrase:

"...Half sunk a shattered visage lies, whose frown,

And wrinkled lip, and sneer of cold command,

Tell that its sculptor well those passions read

Which yet survive..."

So to sum this up it basically says that halfway buried in the sand there is a visage which is a face. This face has a upset and stern look and we know it is a face made out of some sort of stone or metal (not real flesh) because it mentions a sculptor that made it. This sculptor must have done a good job because the face expresses the proper "passions" that were harbored by the model per se.

Connotations:
"Antique" is used to to describe the land that this so called traveler came from. When I first think of the word antique my mind usually imagines some old piece of useless junk I could find in my grandma's garage. The connotation of the word is to be untouched and somewhat of value for how old and rare it is. Shelley used that word instead of "old" because "antique" not only matches the tone of the poem, but uses the connotations of it to keep the poem consistent with the atmosphere.
Another word Shelley uses for its connotative value is "visage." I had to look this up and apparently visage is literally someone's face. But when you get into the deeper more intricate meaning of the word, it is more of the expression and emotion displayed. Humans have a great ability to identify faces out of almost anything. It is one our basic instincts tied to pattern recognition which is basic for survival. So to use the word "visage" we can enrich the vision in our head of what kind of expression the sculptor had formed to the face. The "...frown, and wrinkled lip, and sneer of cold command..." all tells us that this sculpted face belonged to a person of great power and iron ruling. The image of a "wrinkled lip" gives off a stern and focused, yet determined authority.
The use of the word "lifeless" is also used for its connotation. It is obvious that the sand and rocks are not living, but the word "lifeless" is used this way for how still the scene is. Everything is just frozen in place, trapped in the empty desert.

Attitude:
The attitude of the author is very dark and grim. The use of words like "shattered", "cold", "lifeless", and "decay" give off a gloomy connotation. The general attitude of the poem is stern and focused. There isn't a point in the poem where you can relax and just be calm. The poem demands to be read in a fierce and almost fearful way.

Shift:
A clear shift in this poem is when the narrator mentions the pedestal and its message.

"My name is Ozymandias, King of Kings;Look on my Works, ye Mighty, and despair!"

The poem changes to a more frightening tone with the word of "despair" and the sharp change in tempo. The exclamation mark is used perfectly in this circumstance to show the building of volume that each word carries. Before this part of the poem we did have any sort of direct connection to the "visage" and its meaning or intensity. We could only infer based upon the expression of it what level of power it was. The function of the message Ozymandias leaves is to strike fear in the unwanted traveler and to make it be known that they should "tread lightly" for they are on legendary grounds of which this almighty king once ruled.

Title Revisited:
With the knowledge gained through further analysis of this poem, the title can somewhat carry a greater meaning. It is worth noting that towards the end of the poem, after the intense message of Ozymandias, the land beside it is described as "bare" which is almost ironic how he literally says "look on my works." Here lies a juxtaposition which exposes Ozymandias as someone who perhaps arrogantly thought of himself and his empire to be immortal. The empty desert sand certainly doesn't offer any sort of "works" to behold. While Ozymandias was great and powerful and heroic and mighty, his reign ultimately ended and so did the despair and fear he struck into his subjects.

Theme:
I think the theme of this poem could be that all power and ferocity fades with time. Time is the all powerful ongoing force that rules all. Even the King of Kings cannot defeat the insurmountable force of time. All of the once thriving and  flourishing cities, temples, and monuments built at hands of its mighty king lie in wreck and ruin with his own visage half buried in what his creation.

Breaking Bad is one of my all-time favorite shows ever. I like this poem mainly because of its ties to Breaking Bad, but after reading and analyzing it, I found a much better reason to like it. Anyway, for those of you who don't know how this relates to the show, here's the bone chilling, hair raising, heart pumping, gut wrenching, toe curling, goosebump inducing video. And if you're not a fan of the show, don't be all "Ughh Breaking Bad I don't care blah blah..." Broaden your horizons and watch a cool video. Enjoy

Huxley Essay Attempt #2

From an early age, we are socially constructed to conform to the boundaries of society. There is an external pressure that society forces on us while the instinctive inward questioning acts as the internal force pushing back. In Brave New World by Aldous Huxley, the character called Bernard Marx displays this clash between inward questioning and outward conformity. To showcase this conflict, Huxley utilizes the literary techniques of characterization and symbolism.

               When Bernard is first introduced to the audience, it is obvious that he is facing an imbalance of internal and external pressures. Huxley uses indirect characterization by creating the conversation between Henry Foster and Assistant Predestinator overheard by Bernard himself. Bernard listens to the conversation, disgusted by the two “talking about her as if she were a bit of meat.” Bernard’s character is defined here as he doesn’t allow his internal pressures to be noticed by the other characters. When Henry does notice Bernard and offers him soma for his “glum” look, Bernard resists to conform showing some backbone and denies Henry’s offer. Through Bernard’s decision to dismiss the offer of soma, the reader can take notice to how Bernard makes more decisions than the other characters who seem to take it whenever they please.

               Another example of how Huxley uses characterization to show the tension between outward conformity and inward questioning is when Bernard is with Lenina after the fight match. Bernard watches the rushing water of the English Channel while Lenina urges him to take soma. The external pressure Lenina forces on Bernard is contested with his internal questioning. Bernard doesn’t want to conform to the social pressure because he wishes to be an individual and separate from the sex-crazed soma addicts. This external pressure proves to be more powerful than Bernard’s internal pressure to resist conformity.

               In addition to the use of characterization to show the tension between outward conformity and inward questioning, Huxley also employs symbolism. Symbolism is most evidently present in the magical drug of soma. Soma is perhaps one of the most industrial elements in Brave New World because of its versatility and lack of negative consequence. The utopian society is almost adhered together by the drug because of its widespread use and social popularity. It is most comparable to marijuana today in the way it provides joy and relaxation, that is, except for Bernard. Bernard is one of the few characters who refuses to take soma when presented because he doesn’t want the emotion of happiness to be in the form of a small tablet. The symbol of artificial happiness is what Huxley uses to show the genuineness of Bernard and his struggle between outward conformity and inward questioning. Bernard troubles himself with the idea of soma because of his inward questioning which causes him to endure the external pressures of conformity.

               Brave New World is a book about questioning social traditions and individuality. Bernard’s characterization reflects upon the work as a signal that the external pressures of outwards conformity are usually more dominant that the inward questionings. If the internal pressure and desire is the opposite of what the external pressure is, the more powerful force is usually going to be the external. Bernard is Huxley’s tool of portraying this through his use of characterization and symbolism in the story.

Tobermory Unriddled (kinda)

"If he was trying German irregular verbs on the poor beast," said Clovis, "he deserved all he got."

While the theme of this is incredibly vague and ambiguous, I suppose it could have something to do with not pushing luck??? I honestly am having a lot of trouble digging out any meaning of this story. For tone, I would say it is kind of a nonchalant bizarreness. Nobody really finds it astonishing that a cat can talk and everybody just accepts it. Also, the tone has a very dry humor sprinkled around it. Cornelius' death is almost a joke as an elephant killed him. It kind of points at a cartoon-like image of a man being squished like a pancake by a monstrous mastodon. 

Chakra Attack

If you have ever played GTA V, you know how much fun it can be cruisin' around in a quick little car, weaving through traffic. One thing you may not have know is that there are multiple radio stations you can tune into whilst you are driving. One of those stations is called "Chattershpere" and features talkshows. One of those talk shows is hosted by none other than Dr. Ray Deangelo Harris. He is a lot like Montaigne with the way he talks in total stream of thought with no censorship. Anyway, this is the audio of that station. I know it's long, but its freaking hilarious. I highly recommend you listen to it.

Masterpiece Musings

So yeah. Elmo, Lukas, Eric, and I have been writing skits that we could film to get people to laugh and poke fun at some relatable situations. That's our masterpiece. Making people laugh. I like my masterpiece because I enjoy getting a chuckle or even a "heh" out of somebody. One thing I find essential to someone with a good personality is their sense of humor. I honestly think that if a person has a smart, witty, dry, or clever sense of humor, they are a good person. It may not always be true but a good sense of humor is so special because it is almost literally like having another sense. Some people will pick up on a joke while others just kinda nod blankly and think, "Okay?" To me, it is sad that some people can be totally blind to humor but I guess that what makes it such a great personality trait to have. Anywho, making these short comical films can be hard with just a few people, so if you feel like you might want to help, don't be shy. Ask me or the other guys and we would be glad to have you help out with something. Now enjoy this gif

SEEKING MENTOR

The expert would have to teach me about how to capture an audience with curiosity. If I wanna make funny films, I need to get something that grabs the audience and gets them on board with it all in just a few seconds. The questions I would ask my mentor would be things like: How do I coordinate it all? How do I express my idea in the clearest way possible? How do I get everyone to get the joke so it doesn't go over anybody's head? Wheat or rye bread? What other ways could I portray this? This mentor would come in real handy at times.

Brave New World Essay (so far...)

From an early age, we are socially constructed to conform to the boundaries of society. In some ways, we are conditioned to accept certain ideologies or traditions which can be difficult and even frustrating for some people, especially children. The common question of "Why?" is the usually the initial reaction a child may have when being told not to belch in public. The answer, of course, is that it is not polite, which is basically saying "society says no." An example of this situation of conformity to society's traditions while questioning them inwardly is portrayed in the character of Bernard Marx in Aldous Huxley's Brave New World. Throughout the novel, Huxley uses indirect characterization and something else to show this.

From the first mentioning or Bernard there is is a different sort of scent in the book. The reader can infer through indirect characterization that Bernard is a unique character for a few reasons. Through a conversation between Henry Foster and the Assistant Predestinator, eavesdropped by Bernard,we can infer some important things about Bernard. "Bernard overheard what they were saying and turned pale." In this quote, Henry begins talking about Lenina so it can be inferred that Bernard has feelings for her. What is different about Bernard however, is that he has actual feelings for someone wheras other characters will go from work to having sex to electrocuting babies for conditioning without a hint of emotion. The brave new world is an industrious, mechanical, and impassive with a character that reflects the exact opposite of that. Bernard is talked about by the other characters who find him different because of his size, mannerisms, and behavior. For example, he spend most of his time alone, he's "small" and worst of all, does not like Obstacle Golf.

Bernard is presented with the pickle of outward conformity versus inward questioning when he is with Lenina who keeps offering him soma to make him happier. This is what makes Bernard such a unique character. Rather than just instantly accept society's traditions and "take a gramme", Bernard chooses to question the idea of soma and it's artificial emotion. This battle between outward conformity and inward questioning ends with a victory for society as Bernard is finally convinced by Lenina to take the soma. The fact that Huxley has Bernard take the soma is important because he is showing that even those who question the traditions of the strange utopian brave new world will eventually conform to the social pressures constructed by society.

not quite done yet, but this is what i have so far...

Disneyland

"Go fish"