The message or theme of the poem (sonnet) is that man is insignificant and his efforts are vein when compared to the forces of time and nature. The subject matter, diction, figures of speech, sound devices and structure used by shelly convey the idea of permanence and impermanence. <Tab/>To consider the issue of the power of time and nature the poet has the narrator reporting on a meeting with a …showed first 75 words of 1042 total…

…showed last 75 words of 1042 total…sands stretching away to infinity and these sounds conclude the poem's images of the power of nature and how over time great rocks are reduced to grains of sand. <Tab/>Subject matter, juxtaposition, allusion, irony, antithesis, alliteration, assonance and careful choice and balancing of diction are skillfully woven by Shelley into a work of art demonstrating man's insignificance in the face of the power of time and the power of nature.