Question 128
HardOriginal questionI met a traveller from an land
Who said: Two vast and legs of stone
Stand in the desert...Near them, on the sand,
Half sunk, a shattered lies, whose frown,
And wrinkled lip, and 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 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 wreck, and bare
The lone and level sands stretch far away.
The "sneer of cold command" on the statue's face suggests a ruler who was
Show the answer and explanation
Correct answer: C
Explanation
A sneer is a scornful smile, and "cold command" suggests someone used to giving orders without feeling.
Together they paint a proud, harsh king.
Worth noting
The face also has a "frown" and a "wrinkled lip". Nothing about it is gentle.
- Concept
- Working out a character from a description
- Typical timeTypical
- 45 s
- Your timeYours
- —
Ten questions from Poems and conversations, at your own pace.