She Walks in Beauty by Lord Byron

 

Show how the poem, “She Walks in Beauty” is Byron’s noble tribute to woman’s beauty and womanhood

 About the Author:

Lord Byron (1788-1824) is one of the most important among the English poets. Born in London, he was educated at Harrow and Cambridge. His masterpiece is “Don Juan”. His best known works are “Childe Harold”, “Manfred”, and “The Prisoner of Chillon”. He is also a politician. He is one of the leading figures of the Romantic Movement in English literature.

 Introduction:

“She Walks in Beauty" is a famous poem by a British Romantic poet, Lord Byron, first published in 1815. The poem praises and seeks to capture a sense of the beauty of a particular woman, Lady Wilmot. The poet compares this woman to a lovely night with a clear starry sky, and goes on to convey her beauty as a harmonious "meeting" between darkness and light. After the discussion of physical attractiveness, the poet then explains that this outer beauty as representative of inner goodness and virtue. In “She Walks in Beauty”, Byron uses strong imagery and literary techniques to describe the idea that perfect beauty sources from both internal and external attributes.

 Beauty of the Night:

In “She Walks in Beauty”, Lord Byron personifies the night to a woman. The poet characterizes a woman whose beauty makes the impossible, possible. Her beauty allows darkness and light to coexist. Byron begins by illustrating a ‘starry night’ and compares this to woman’s beauty. She brings together these opposites in her beauty and creates a “tender light”. This “tender light” she creates is not like that of daytime, because he describes daylight as gaudy, but it is a light that “heaven” refuses even daytime. The women’s beauty and tenderness are like the beauty and “tender light” of the stars. Byron goes on to explain that even if this darkness and light were not in the right quantities, “One shade the more, one ray the less”, her beauty would not be spoiled. He explains that she would only be “half impaired,” and therefore still radiant. Also, the combination of opposite forces, “shade” and “ray”, create balance in this woman. Byron implies that the convergence of light and dark within this woman creates a ‘new thing’ that is greater than the sum of the two. The darkness of her hair and the lightness of her skin create a well-rounded whole that is great enough to hold contrasting elements.

Face is the Index of Mind:

In this poem, Byron uses different literary techniques to prove that beauty is spawned from an interior source. The dark colour of her hair heightens the brightness of her face, where one can find the serene thoughts. Face and eyes are usually associated with external beauty; however, they also express the inner mind or soul of an individual. The innocent face of the woman shows that she is beautiful not only outwardly but also inwardly. In fact, her outer beauty is the expression of her soul’s beauty.

Philosophy of Life:

The face of the woman expresses the idea that the woman is so good and she spends all her days doing only good things. Therefore, her mind always enjoys the peace of life. It certainly shows that the woman is so innocent. With this innocence and peace of mind she radiates the entire human kind with the teachings of Gospel and the idea of accepting both ‘good and adversity’ equally in our life. Like the lady’s ‘fair face and dark hair’, the night has ‘brightness and darkness’, which tell the philosophy of life – life is the mixture of happiness and sadness. If one understands the effect of sadness then it is easy for him to glorify the happiness of life.

Conclusion:

Thus, Byron in this poem glories the beauty of night which reflects the teachings of Gospel. If one is like lady, then he/ she can experience the happiness of life with peace of mind.