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Can someone please mark my Power and Conflict poetry comparison Essay? (Out of 30)

In both “My Last Duchess” and “Ozymandias”, Robert Browning and Percy Shelly present the hubristic power of man. In “My Last Duchess”, Browning conveys the misuse of male power to emphasise the unjust treatment and view of Victorian women indicating the supposed ownership males felt over their wives. Similarly, Shelly mocks and satirizes the ancient statue of Ramses II to follow his beliefs as a romantic poet and heighten the power of nature over man. Both poets undermine this arrogant, conceited attitude of human power using structure to reverse the hierarchal subject of the poem.

Through the subject of the Duke of Ferrara, Browning highlights the pompous and conceited attitude of upper class, misogynistic men. In Victorian England, women were viewed as the property of their husbands upon marriage. This idea is perceived though Browning’s repeated use of the possessive pronoun “my” – “that’s my last Duchess painted on the wall”. This guarded attitude over his wife displays the unjust society and domestic power of man – leaving his wife with no autonomy or free will. Moreover, “last” has ominous overtones as it evokes a question of how many duchesses the Duke has had. This suggests the male authority to have a disposable attitude to marriage which, once again, degrades femininity and female rights. The protection over the portrait, suggested by the covering of the “curtain” indicates that the Duke has managed to maintain power over her – even when she is dead - as he has the ability to control who views her. Therefore, Browning conveys male power as overly assertive and protective – as a result, removing power, voice and autonomy from his “last Duchess”.

Shelley on the other hand, heightens the power of monarchy and reign through his depiction of the great statue of Ramses II. Power is presented through the sheer size of the “vast and trunkless legs”. Vast connotes grandeur which links to authority and greatness thus presenting the stature and Pharoah as domineering and high-powered. The declarative sentence “My name is Ozymandias, king of kings// Look beyond my works” suggests the sustained power – even after death. The imagery of the “pedestal” creates an air of superiority and supposed honour indicating the Pharaohs superior power over his country. Therefore, Shelley uses Ramses II to convey the overruling power of superficial sovereignty and autocracy.

Yet Browning doesn’t celebrate the power of man, and instead, undermines its ability by implying free flowing structural techniques to contrast with the ordered, controlled decisions of the Duke. The poem is written in the form of a dramatic monologue with the speaker containing only one person – the Duke. Whilst it would appear that in this case, the Duke had authority over his subject - due to unanswered silence, this rambling, lengthy structure immediately overwhelms the reader as indicates the Duke’s lack of phycological control and selection over his thoughts, demeaning and diminishing his power.

Similarly, the changing sonnet form in ‘Ozymandias’ between Petrarchan and Shakespearean sonnet demonstrates the ability of literary conventions to overpower the power of the Pharoah – indicating, really, his lack of power. The altered sonnet form also alludes to the transience of conventions and the idea that everything can be changed, replaced and edited. He criticises the belief system of those in power believing that their power is invincible and supreme – as shown by Ozymandias’ hubristic statement that he is the “king of kings”. Therefore, Shelley presents power as impermanent – highlighting its ever-evolving nature. After the shift in form, Ozymandias’ power sinks, until he is a “colossal weck”, “boundless and bare” – presenting human power as futile whilst the “lone…levels of sand” are still present – “stretch[ing] far away”. Once again, Shelley’s message is understood in that nature will always overpower man.

Enjambment is utilised in both “My Last Duchess” and “Ozymandias” to undermine the supposed power of both the Duke and Ozymandias. The lack of rigidity, control and structure between each line reflects the lack of control of both supposed powerful figures.

In conclusion, both Browning and Shelley subtly criticise and mock the patronizing, haughty figures who believe they have ultimate power. In ‘Ozymandias’, the proud assertion that power remains forever is disproven. In ‘My Last Duchess’, the notion of male power over women is presented and subtly undermined.

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