"time is the greatest leveler."explain this phrase with reference to the poem Ozymandias.
Answers
Time indeed is great-leveler. It is a well-established universal truth that time is the ultimate power. It is also true Man is mortal! In the eternal onward march of life, kings, emperors, despots, generals, etc. do not matter at all! Life is immortal. He doesn’t know what its design is! When in the long past, Ozymandias was such a mighty king in Egypt, he was so high-handed and arrogant of his power, wealth, and valour. He thought nobody could defeat him. He won many wars against his adversaries also.
He got his statues built throughout his kingdom so that people would look at his works and shudder. However, his glory lasted only a few years. He became old, weak, and finally died. He was so sad at the approaching death. All his wealth, victories, and pride could not save him from the claws of death!
After a few centuries not even a trace of his kingdom was left! His palace, his wealth, the statues and buildings he had got built, all decayed into ruins. His statues lie broken, surrounded by sandy deserts on all sides. Not a single statue is intact! All broken!
All men are equal. It does not matter whether you are a common man or an emperor! All die at the end. All power belongs to time, life, and God, who created the both. Only art and creativity survive. For example, the sculptor who sculpted his statue, he has survived till now in his art. Life is so complex and powerful.
The Ozymandias from the poem literally learn according to the inscription and this is a great question.
It precisely gives and deals on moral of the poem Ozymandias taken at Bysshe Shelly.
Perhaps, it has been taken at bitter and cruel expressions on face of the statue.