She Walks in Beauty Appreciation and Explanation 12th class Maharashtra State Board.
Dear students, She Walks in Beauty is the poem in your Maharashtra State Board syllabus for the 12th class in the second section 2.7. In your examination, you will be asked to write an appreciation of the poem and some stanzas will come to solve the activities. This appreciation and explanation help you to solve the activities in the poem She Walks in Beauty.
Introduction: She Walks in Beauty Appreciation and Explanation
George Gordon Byron (1788 to 1824), known simply as Lord Byron was a famous English Romantic poet and also a satirist. He attended a number of schools, including the famous Public School, Harrow and then went to Trinity College, Cambridge. At the age of 21, he started a tour of Europe and the Orient after which he composed ‘Childe Harold’s Pilgrimage’ which made him immensely popular in England.
‘She Walks in Beauty’ is a short lyrical poem celebrating female beauty. The poem ‘She Walks in Beauty’ is published in 1815. The poet describes an unnamed woman who is exceptionally striking. The poet describes not only her external appearance but also her inner goodness which makes her so captivatingly attractive. Byron compares her to the night sky describing her serene and perfect beauty. Although the poem is generally thought to be a love, the poet never actually declares his love for this lady.
The poem She Walks in Beauty consists of 18 lines. The poem She walks in beauty divided into three sestets (6 lines stanza).
The rhyming scheme of the each stanza – ababab. The poem is written in rhyming couplets.
Poem: She Walks In Beauty
She walks in beauty, like the night
Of cloudless climes and starry skies;
And all that’s best of dark and bright
Meet in her aspect and her eyes;
Thus mellowed to that tender light
Which heaven to gaudy day denies.
One shade the more, one ray the less,
Had half impaired the nameless grace
Which waves in every raven tress,
Or softly lightens o’er her face;
Where thoughts serenely sweet express,
How pure, how dear their dwelling-place.
And on that cheek, and o’er that brow,
So soft, so calm, yet eloquent,
The smiles that win, the tints that glow,
But tell of days in goodness spent,
A mind at peace with all below,
A heart whose love is innocent!
– Lord Byron
Glossary:
climes : climate
aspect : features
mellowed : made smooth and soft
gaudy : bright and showy
raven : a large bird of the crow family with shiny black feathers
eloquent : expressive
Explanation: She Walks in Beauty Appreciation and Explanation
First Stanza:
She walks in beauty, like the night
Of cloudless climes and starry skies;
And all that’s best of dark and bright
Meet in her aspect and her eyes;
Thus mellowed to that tender light
Which heaven to gaudy day denies.
- The poet says that she walks in beauty means the beauty itself walks because she considers here the beauty itself. The poet wants to tell how beautiful the woman is when he sees her at a party. She walks as beauty appears in her presence. Because of her presence, beauty appears everywhere that’s why the poet says she walks in beauty. Further, the poet compares her beauty with a cloudless starry night using a simile figure of speech.
- Her beauty appears as the night appears without clouds and there is a sky studded with stars, such a perfect balance of dark and bright appears in the night and meets in her aspect (features) and her eyes. By showing, her eyes have the perfect balance of dark and bright. Thus the perfect balance of dark and bright night smoothed the light tender and soft which bright and showy day denies offering such a perfect beauty of the night. Thus the woman has such perfect beauty.
Second Stanza:
One shade the more, one ray the less,
Had half impaired the nameless grace
Which waves in every raven tress,
Or softly lightens o’er her face;
Where thoughts serenely sweet express,
How pure, how dear their dwelling-place.
- In the second stanza, the poet tells that such perfectly balanced beauty is the woman. If there is one more shade of dark night or one ray less of starlight and then the perfect balanced will be half impaired but the night has the perfect balance of dark and bright such a perfect beauty the woman meets and this perfect beauty will not express in words.
- The poet says about the woman’s dark black hair (locks). The poet use metaphor by direct comparison of her black shiny hair with a large bird of the crow family with shiny black feathers. The poet says that her hair waves (moves) over her face which is very black and shiny like the raven stress (shiny black feathers) and because of them her face softly lightens.
- The poet tells not only about the external beauty of the woman but also about internal beauty. Her thoughts are so calm and sweet that express over her face because of her beauty and how pure and dear her mind/heart is where they reside (dwelling place).
Third stanza:
And on that cheek, and o’er that brow,
So soft, so calm, yet eloquent,
The smiles that win, the tints that glow,
But tell of days in goodness spent,
A mind at peace with all below,
A heart whose love is innocent!
- In the third stanza, the poet tells how soft her cheek is and her forehead so calm but yet all these things are so expressive (eloquent) whether she is calm and quiet but her beauty is so expressive. Her smiles win the heart of people and her clear tints glow on her face because all these things tell that she has spent her last days in goodness and that’s why she got such extraordinary beauty both external as well as internal. Her mind is very peaceful with all people and her heart whose love is innocent with whom she is in love.
Appreciation: She Walks in Beauty Appreciation and Explanation
- About the Poem, poet, and title
The poem She Walks in Beauty is written by the great romantic poet Lord Byron. The poem is about the external as well as internal beauty of the woman. The title She Walks in Beauty suggests how beautiful the woman is because where she appears the beauty is the presence that is why the title of the poem is very suitable to the poem.
- Theme/summary/gist of the poem
The theme of the poem is the perfect and balance beauty of the woman when he looks at her at a party. In the poem, the poet celebrates the beauty of the woman. The poet compares the beauty of the woman with the cloudless starry sky at night. The woman’s beauty is like the perfect balance of dark and bright as the starry night. The poet tells that in every aspect of beauty the woman belongs. The poet features the beauty of the woman by outer beauty as well as inner beauty by showing her outer look and inner thoughts.
- Poetic style/language, poetic devices
The poet uses simile, metaphor, Alliteration Personification, and Antithesis figures of speech to describe the perfect beauty of the woman. The poem is a short lyrical poem consisting of 18 lines that are divided into three stanzas. Each stanza is sestet (six lines stanza).The rhyming scheme of each stanza – ababab. The poem is written in rhyming couplets.
- Special features/novelties/focusing elements
The special feature of the poem is that generally the day is used to express beauty but the poet uses the starry night to describe the perfectly balanced beauty of the woman.
- Your opinion about the poem:
I am truly inspired by the poet’s perspective on perfect beauty. The poet tells us that beauty should be outer and inner too because then there will be the perfect balance of beauty. With the exceptional beauty of the woman, the poet elaborates on the perfect beauty that should have within a person. I like the poem very much.
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