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- ‘She Walks in Beauty’ is a short eighteen line poem celebrating female beauty. The beauty of the woman the speaker describes is in both her external appearance and her inner goodness.
- Although it might generally be classified as a love poem, the poet never actually declares that love. He concentrates on the subject’s captivating attractiveness and purity.
- The speaker is a highly biased observer and he seems entirely fascinated by the woman’s beauty. He is telling himself what he finds most captivating about this woman but at the same time communicating his feelings to a wider audience – the reader.
- We are therefore given a portrait of this woman, as seen through someone else’s eyes. The speaker is keen to emphasise that it is not all about outward appearances.
- The early description of her physical beauty is matched by the description of her inner beauty or 'goodness' towards the end of the poem. She almost seems to be unobtainable and, to some extent, we may sympathise with the poet’s sense of longing.
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- The title and opening line ‘She walks in beauty’ celebrates female beauty, a portrait of a woman through someone else’s eyes.
- References to light suggests an inner radiance – ‘starry skies’ and ‘tender light’.
- Sense of mystery surrounding her - she is compared to the darkness of night and ‘raven tress’ is associated with bad omens.
- Suggestion of a recent encounter as description is superficial – ‘smiles that win, the tints that glow’ suggests inner modesty and she is loved by all.
- Final words – ‘A heart whose love is innocent!’ is the first time love is mentioned and her beauty is described both internally and externally.
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- At the beginning of the poem, Byron expresses his admiration for the woman and as the poem progresses he then speaks about her inner ‘goodness’.
- He ends the poem with the idea of ‘love’, an experience that perhaps brings together both the external and internal beauty.
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- Byron was a leading figure of the Romantic movement and liked to break conventions.
- Byron’s private life was very public and he was known for his many relationships with different women.
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