《西游记》虽然是一本讲述精灵鬼怪的小说，但是文辞间都体现着人性和人心，值得反复品读。不管是救苦救难的菩萨，还是一心想要修成正果的精灵鬼怪，作者从服饰、外貌和诗歌等多个维度展现出女性角色的张力美。
还是二十三回，作者对黎山老母的变的寡妇的衣着做了非常细腻的描写：
穿一件织金官绿纻丝袄，上罩着浅红比甲；系一条结彩鹅黄锦绣裙，下映着高底花鞋。时样鬘髻皂纱漫，相衬着二色盘龙发；宫样牙梳朱翠晃，斜簪着两股赤金钗。云鬓半苍飞凤翅，耳环双坠宝珠排。脂粉不施犹自美，风流还似少年才。
She wore a green silk gown, and over it a pale red jacket, a skirt of yellow brocade, below which showed thick-soled shoes. Her fashionable coiffure was veiled in black, which suited her greying locks, coiled like a dragon; palace-style ivory combs shone with red and green, and two golden pins adorned her hair. Her half-grey tresses soared like a phoenix in flight, two rows of powder and paint, her beauty was natural. She was as attractive as a younger girl.
这一小节主要描述的是黎山老母的衣着，译文用 “silk”, “jacket”, “brocade” 等词描写了一个衣着华丽的夫人形象，以此暗示出其家境殷实，以钱财来试探师徒四人的佛心，而猪八戒最后动了贪念，被四位菩萨好好地教训了一顿。而同时原文“脂粉不施犹自美，风流还似少年才”和译文“her beauty was natural. She was as attractive as a younger girl” 对应，刻画了一个虽然年纪大，但是风韵犹存的妇人形象。
在第二十七回，作者对白骨夫人幻化成的小姑娘的外貌有非常生动的刻画：
好妖精，停下阴风，在那山凹里，摇身一变，变做个月貌花容的女儿，说不尽那眉清目秀，齿白唇红，左手提着一个青砂罐儿，右手提着一个绿磁瓶儿，……翠袖轻摇笼玉笋，湘裙斜拽显金莲。知汗流粉面花含露，尘拂峨眉柳带烟。
The splendid evil spirit stopped its negative wind in a hollow and changed itself into a girl with a face as round as the moon and as pretty as a flower. Her brow was clear and her eyes beautiful; her teeth were white and her lips red. In her left hand she held a blue earthenware pot and in her right a green porcelain jar. ……the green sleeves over her jade fingers lightly billowed; Golden lotus feet peeped under her trailing skirt. The beads of sweat on her powdered face were dew on a flower, her dusty brow was a willow in a mist.
译文用明喻将原文中的“月貌花容”用“as round as the moon and as pretty as a flower”表现出来，生动形象地刻画了一个如花似月的小姑娘形象，之后又用“white teeth, red lips”，在近距离的视觉下，对女孩的牙齿和嘴唇进行描写，在读者脑海中描摹了一个唇红齿白、如花似月的女孩形象，最后又将她的头上的汗珠比作花上的露水，把她的眉毛比作是薄雾中的垂柳。从视觉上看，花上的露水是近距离的观察，暮霭中的垂柳是远距离的透视，既有形象美，又有朦胧美。从外貌上，表现出女性妖魔的张力美。