The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock by T.S. Eliot Essay

The “eyes” (55) and “arms” (62) that Prufrock claims to “have known” are synecdoches for women; since he does not say he is familiar with their hearts, which would metaphorically imply experience with their love, Prufrock only knows women physically. He gives one explanation for this by noting the “perfume” and “dress” (65) that make him “digress” (66) from presumably his goal: instead of fostering relationships, Prufrock focuses on sexual/sensual aspects. In spite of this, Eliot provides insight to Prufrock desiring more than physical intimacy through the repeated mention of meals: “toast and tea” (34), “tea and cakes and ices” (79), “marmalade” (88), “tea cups” (102); these references indicate a wish to no longer dine alone, and Prufrock saying, “Among the porcelain, among some talk of you and me” exemplifies his aspiration for domestic life.

In the next few stanzas, Prufrock describes himself- balding, middle-aged, and plain- in order to draw in the reader to the point-of-view of the society. As detailed as Prufrock scrutinizes his physical appearance, he feels the

In T.S. Eliot’s “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock”, the speaker, Prufrock feels alienated

Detail 2: As can be deduced from the poem, Prufrock spends all of his time pondering how to behave, and to act in society, as he wants to become a man of action. Prufrock imagines himself achieving great things for himself and having everything he desires. Nonetheless, he cannot find a way to realize his wishes. Prufrock is well aware of his tragedy, and he makes sure the audience understands that he is a flawed man full of fears, whims and self-fancies. Again, just as we find in Hamlet’s character, Prufrock’s personality makes him cautious of acting towards any goal he might have, and his over-analytic persona makes him incapable of taking control of any situation. Prufrock explains his problems through a simple example from one of his failures. He recounts that he was incapable of asking a girl to date him, and despite his loving for her, he did nothing to make his love count.

He also says such things as the of his thinning hair and his resulting bald spot in order to indicate the passage of age and the importance he feels now that he is past his prime: "Time to turn back and descend the stair,/ With a bald spot in the middle of my hair--/ (They will say: 'How his hair is growing thin')"(39) This shows Prufrock's fear of being laughed at.

T.S. Eliot’s “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock” is an ironic depiction of a man’s inability to take decisive action in a modern society that is void of meaningful human connection. The poem reinforces its central idea through the techniques of fragmentation, and through the use of Eliot’s commentary about Prufrock’s social world. Using a series of natural images, Eliot uses fragmentation to show Prufrock’s inability to act, as well as his fear of society. Eliot’s commentary about Prufrock’s social world is also evident throughout. At no point in the poem did Prufrock confess his love, even though it is called “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock”, but through this poem, T.S. Eliot voices his social commentary about the world that

T.S Eliot's The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock is an examination of human insecurity and folly, embodied in the title's J. Alfred Prufrock. Eliot's story of a man's "overwhelming question", his inability to ask it, and consequently, his mental rejection plays off the poem's many ambiguities, both structural and literal. Eliot uses these uncertainties to develop both the plot of the poem and the character of J. Alfred Prufrock.

He feels if he can gain the courage to ask the question, he may at last find value in his life: "would it have been worth while/ To have bitten off the matter with a smile,? To have squeezed the universe into a ball."(89) Ultimately, he fails at both tasks. Throughout the poem, the themes of time's passage and age continue to illustrate the unhappiness of Prufrock's life. Prufrock reveals the measured out portions of life he has lived: "I have measured out my life in coffee spoons."(51) This phrase shows Prufrock's inability to seize the day. He also says such things as the of his thinning hair and his resulting bald spot in order to indicate the passage of age and the importance he feels now that he is past his prime: "Time to turn back and descend the stair,/ With a bald spot in the middle of my hair--/ (They will say: 'How his hair is growing thin')"(39) This shows Prufrock's fear of being laughed at.

Unfortunately, his lack of confidence isn't limited to his looks. He's indecisive and unsuccessful in his attempts to communicate with other people, repeating "visions and revisions"(33) and "decisions and revisions..."(48). Eliot uses repetition here to emphasize Prufrock's alterations in behavior to please those around him. He wants to speak out and share his thoughts but doesn't have the courage saying, "'Do I dare?' and, 'Do I dare?'"(38). Possibly, he's asking if he should dare "and drop a question on your plate."(30) He wants to ask a lady out but again he can't get up the nerve to take that step. He is a bit melodramatic but he realizes the enormity of the odds stacked against him and he drones, "Do I dare/ Disturb the universe?"(45-46). In this case Eliot uses hyperbole to show the reader extent of Prufrock's insecurities. They are his whole "universe." Once again, Eliot uses the device of ambiguity to reflect the internal struggle in Prufrock and lead the reader to ask himself or herself, "What is the 'overwhelming question' that Prufrock is asking?" Unfortunately even Prufrock himself doesn't exactly have the answer.

“The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock” Paper Assignment – Close Reading In T.S. Eliot’s 1915 modernist poem “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock”, the overall mood and tone in the poem reflect the speaker’s opinions of the time it was written in. An interesting way to look at this poem is to assume that the author used the character of Alfred Prufrock to explore his own attempt of trying to make sense of the rapidly changing, confusing, and gloomy world in which he lived. So, we can safely assume that trying to make sense of the outside world is a recurring motif in this poem. This can be seen by looking at both the poem as a whole, as well as the quote chosen for analysis.

'I have measured out my life with coffee spoons'; (line 51), shows how Prufrock thinks of his own life, unexciting and unheroic. In his mind he has nothing to offer these women. He returns to wrestling with his thoughts that allow him to desire the love the women have to offer but talk himself out of the task by gentile reminders of the risk. He tells the reader that he knows these women and even begins to rehearse an opening remark, 'Shall I say, I have gone at dusk through narrow streets / And watched the smoke that rises from the pipes'; (lines 70-71). This thought is quickly lost however as Prufrock imagines how easy it would be to be a creature that had no need for love, 'I should have been a pair of ragged claws / Scuttling across the floors of silent seas'; (lines 73-74).

Prufrock is attempting to ground himself in reality when he says the he is “not Prince Hamlet, nor was meant to be”. He doesn’t have to “prepare a face” whenever he goes into society or interacts with women in general, because he accepts the fact that he has “seen the moment of [his] greatness flicker”. Prufrock is overcoming his constant paranoia that whatever he does is never enough. But all of his self-reassurance is torn down when he starts to overcompensate and become “full of high sentence”. Prufrock realizes that his job is to be an “easy tool” and that anybody

The poem “The Love Song of J.Alfred Prufrock” by T.S Eliot is one extended metaphor depicting the trials the character must go through in his attempt to achieve his quest for the ideal. In this case, the ideal is the world inhabited by the ladies he wants to talk to. The perils the character, Prufrock, has to contend with are low self-esteem and his fear of rejection. The poet illustrates his character’s low self-esteem with the image that Prufrock paints of himself as a man “With a bald spot in the middle of my hair” (39). Prufrock’s poor self-image is also evident in his

The Story of Prufrock starts out with him deciphering with himself if he should make this “change” in his life; he has always been a loner who only observes the world, instead of joining it, but

T.S. Eliot was an outstanding author and an exemplary representation of the ideas of modernism. "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock," despite being one of T.S Eliot's earliest publications, still manages to remain one of the most famous. He uses this poem to not only draw out the psychological aspect of members of modern society, but also to draw out the aspect of the time that he lived in. The speaker of this poem is a modern man who feels alone, isolated, and incapable of making decisive actions for himself. Prufrock desires to speak to a woman about his love for her, but he continuously hesitates while attempting to do so. This poem demonstrates a theme of fragmentation, which is a theme that we can see throughout the entire