18 pages 36 minutes read

Lord George Gordon Byron (Lord Byron)

She Walks in Beauty

Fiction | Poem | Adult | Published in 1814

A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.

Themes

Beauty and Its Multiple, Conflicting Layers

The central theme of the poem is the idea of beauty. Within that one abstract word, there are multiple ideas to unpack. The theme suggests a woman isn’t beautiful but aligns with beauty or “walks in beauty” (Line 1). Beauty and the woman in the poem are separate. The speaker doesn’t directly call the woman beautiful but says she moves within its sphere. The nameless woman and beauty aren’t the same. At this moment, the woman can keep up with beauty, but there may come a time when beauty and the woman don’t walk together any longer. The careful wording that distinguishes between beauty and the woman indicates that the theme of beauty is ephemeral—it’s not a permanent, everlasting trait.

In the lyric, beauty has its haunting qualities. The speaker compares it to a “night” (Line 1) of “starry skies” (Line 2) and suggests beauty brings together all that’s “dark and bright” (Line 3). Here, the theme of beauty is somewhat odious or, better put, not altogether positive. The poem subverts the notion that beauty is a bright, wholesome condition. There is something dark or shadowy about beauty. The woman’s “raven tress” (Line 9) or black hair confirms the link between beauty and mystery.

Related Titles

By Lord George Gordon Byron (Lord Byron)

Plot Summary

logo

Childe Harold's Pilgrimage

Lord George Gordon Byron (Lord Byron)

Childe Harold's Pilgrimage

Lord George Gordon Byron (Lord Byron)

Plot Summary

logo

Don Juan

Lord George Gordon Byron (Lord Byron)

Don Juan

Lord George Gordon Byron (Lord Byron)

Study Guide

logo

Manfred

Lord George Gordon Byron (Lord Byron)

Manfred

Lord George Gordon Byron (Lord Byron)

Study Guide

logo

Prometheus

Lord George Gordon Byron (Lord Byron)

Prometheus

Lord George Gordon Byron (Lord Byron)

Study Guide

logo

When We Two Parted

Lord George Gordon Byron (Lord Byron)

When We Two Parted

Lord George Gordon Byron (Lord Byron)