OzymandiasPercy Bysshe Shelley, Theo Gayer-Anderson
Ozymandias
by Percy Bysshe Shelley, Theo Gayer-Anderson · first published 1999
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2015–2026first – last mentioned
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So many... but recently... Shelley, Ozymandias: 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,…
on “Ask HN: Who are your favorite poets?” ↗…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.” — Percy…
on “Ask HN: Best way to host a website for 500 years?” ↗Another reference is found in the epitaph, which quotes from Percy Shelley’s poem Ozymandias, the title and theme of the AMC series’ antepenultimate episode. Maybe I'm just being dense, but I don't see an epitaph in any of those photos.
on “Grave of Walter White” ↗"think it depicts Ramses II, Ozyamandias, the Great Ancestor—one of Egypt’s most famous and celebrated pharaohs." I was wondering if the Shelley Poem about Ozymandias was about this guy [1]. Except the sonnet talks about finding the civilization remains in the desert vs under a road. ...And on the pedestal these words appear: 'My name is Ozymandias, king of kings: Look…
on “Found: A Colossal Statue of Ramses II Hiding Under a Cairo Street” ↗…references to “Shelley” may more likely mean Mary than Percy Bysshe (the obscure author of Prometheus Unbound). This is a joke, or at least intense hyperbole, right? I'd wager way more people have read "Ozymandias" than Frankenstein (unfair because one's a page, and one's hundreds of pages, yes, but still, if we're talking frequency of mention) and several other of his verse works come up fairly often, while little…
on “Review of annotated editions of Frankenstein” ↗…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. – Percy Shelley…
on “Ask HN: Who are your favorite poets?” ↗Ozymandias Percy Bysshe Shelley, 1792 - 1822 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…
on “Aristotle’s (apocryphal) advice to Alexander the Great on Persian elites (2013)” ↗> The universe will never know of us. If there is anything out there with the capacity to "know", perhaps one day they'll find our ruins and compose some art along the lines of Shelley's poem Ozymandias. As I've been enjoyed the sci-fi of Adrian Tchaikovsky of late[0], I hope that it's sentient octupuses who can express the tragedy and mystery of our downfall in a dance of colour and movement. [0]:…
on “These are real compounds” ↗Extremely cool. I love this use of technology. The trilingual inscription of King Xerxes at the main gate reminds me a lot, in tone, to Ramesses II's words in Shelley's famous poem "Ozymandias".
on “Persepolis of ancient Persia rendered in WebGL” ↗…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. — Percy Shelley
on “Drone footage reveals The Line megacity under construction in Saudi Arabia” ↗Except that, with that mindset, we'd never had a US Constitution, or a Déclaration des droits de l'Homme et du citoyen. History is made by people who want to make it. Shelley's Ozymandias is a paradox, not an admonition.
on “The WordPress 100 Year Plan” ↗…"Shelley wrote the poem in friendly competition with his friend and fellow poet Horace Smith (1779–1849), who also wrote a sonnet on the same topic with the same title." https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ozymandias Horace's entry is: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ozymandias_(Smith) In Egypt's sandy silence, all alone, Stands a gigantic Leg, which far off throws The only shadow that the Desert knows:— "I…
on “Tyrian purple: The lost ancient pigment that was more valuable than gold” ↗…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. - Percy Bysshe…
on “A.I. researchers are negotiating $250M pay packages” ↗Percy Shelley's poem Ozymandias plays in my head every time I see another short-sighted action by this administration that will cause long-term damage to our Republic: > And on the pedestal, these words appear: > "My name is Ozymandias,…
on “Pentagon expands oversight of Stars and Stripes, limits content” ↗…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. – Percy Bysshe…
on “Make America AI Ready: Strengths, Weaknesses, and Recommendations” ↗