English Literature & Creative Writing
Document Type
Oral Presentation
Location
Indianapolis, IN
Subject Area
English Literature & Creative Writing
Start Date
10-4-2015 10:00 AM
End Date
10-4-2015 10:30 AM
Sponsor
Niamh O'Leary (Xavier University)
Description
As lead character Walter White increasingly transforms from relatable everyman to overzealous despot, AMC's television show Breaking Bad uses Percy Bysshe Shelley's Ozymandias both implicitly and explicitly. Partly functioning as a marketing technique to draw attention to the show, the appropriation also links Breaking Bad to the classic narrative Shelley's poem remains rooted in-tyrannical hubris climaxing in devastation. Walter, especially from the beginning of season five to the show's end, evokes the tyrannical aspirations of invincibility and arrogance of Ozymandias himself as represented in Shelley's poem. Ultimately, the foolish vanity and overzealous aspirations of both Walter and Ozymandias result in a destructive path culminating in each figure's demise.
On the Appropriation of Percy Bysshe Shelley's Ozymandias in AMC's Breaking Bad
Indianapolis, IN
As lead character Walter White increasingly transforms from relatable everyman to overzealous despot, AMC's television show Breaking Bad uses Percy Bysshe Shelley's Ozymandias both implicitly and explicitly. Partly functioning as a marketing technique to draw attention to the show, the appropriation also links Breaking Bad to the classic narrative Shelley's poem remains rooted in-tyrannical hubris climaxing in devastation. Walter, especially from the beginning of season five to the show's end, evokes the tyrannical aspirations of invincibility and arrogance of Ozymandias himself as represented in Shelley's poem. Ultimately, the foolish vanity and overzealous aspirations of both Walter and Ozymandias result in a destructive path culminating in each figure's demise.