Analysis Of The Poem ' The Love Song Of J.alfred Prufrock '

J. Alfred Prufrock constantly lived in fear, in fear of life and death. T. S. Eliot divided his classic poem into three equally important sections. Each division provided the reader with insight into the mental structure of J. Alfred Prufrock. In actuality, Prufrock maintained a good heart and a worthy instinct, but he never seemed to truly exist. A false shadow hung over his existence. Prufrock never allowed himself to actually live. He had no ambitions that would drive him to succeed. The poem is a silent cry for help from Prufrock. In each section, T. S. Eliot provided his audience with vague attempts to understand J. Alfred Prufrock. Each individual reader can only interpret these

Poetry can sometimes allow one to explore the unknown. However, in some works of poetry, one can realise that some known ideas or values remain relevant to current society. This is certainly applicable to T.S. Eliot’s poems, The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock and Rhapsody on a Windy Night. Eliot’s manipulation of poetic techniques in both these poems allows the responder to realise that some ideas prevail in both modern and post-modern society. These poems explore the unknown phenomena of the obscurity regarding the purpose and meaning of life. This unknown phenomena causes the persona in both texts to resort to a sense of isolation or alienation. Eliot uses poetic techniques such as metaphors and personification to convey his ideas.

The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock by T.S. Elliot begins with a quote isolated from the poem, and extracted from Dante’s Inferno, “If I thought my answer were to one who could to return to the world, I would not reply at all, but as none ever did return alive from this depth, without fear of infamy I did answer thee” This quote acts a preface to the poem, it clearly outlines the author’s intention in writing. From this quote we can interpret Elliot’s poem as a letter from Alfred to his deceased lover. Based on the assumption that this poem is written to sooth Alfred’s conscious as he grieves, without the regard of unintended readers, we can then label the piece as a soliloquy. The beginning of Alfred’s soliloquy is marked by his statement, “when the evening is spread out against the sky, like a patient etherized upon a table” (lines 2-3). Alfred suggests that he is “etherized,” or anesthetized in a state similar to that of his lover. His lover is on the other side, and he is detached in a state of grief. Throughout the remainder of the poem, Alfred reflects on their relationship.

T.S. Eliot’s poem, “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock,” illustrates the fear of the fragmentation of society today. In the poem, Eliot creates the persona of Prufrock. Prufrock is speaking to an unknown listener. The persona of Prufrock is Eliot’s interpretation of Western society and its impotency. His views on society is seen as a modernistic point of view, which idolizes the ideas to regress back to a classicist era. Eliot illustrates his contempt for the modern society by illustrating fragmentation with synecdoche, characterization of Prufrock, and allusions to literary traditions throughout the narrative. In his poem, Eliot clings to the idea of a classical society in which he is witnessing fall apart.

The five-line interlude ending on "the floors of silent seas" forms an encapsulated version of the remainder of the poem, in which the frustrated effort to establish purposive discourse leads once again to withdrawal downward and inward to a silent world of instinctual being. A return to images of distension and distracting sensuality provokes a final impulse toward violent imposition of the will--"to force the moment to its crisis"--which ends, like previous thoughts of disturbing the universe, in ruthless self-mockery. The image of decapitation parodies the theme of disconnected being and provides for at least a negative definition of the self: "I am no prophet."

American born poet, T.S. Eliot reflects modernistic ideas of isolation, individual perception and human consciousness in his many poems. His poems express the disillusionment of the post–World War I generation with both literary and social values and traditions. In one of Eliot’s most famous poems, “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock,” which was published in 1915, a speaker who is very unhappy with his life takes readers on a journey through the hell he is living in. In this journey, Prufrock criticizes the well-dressed, upstanding citizens who love their material pleasures more than they love other people, while explaining he feels ostracized from the society of women. Eliot’s use of isolation, human consciousness and individual perception is quite evident in his dramatic monologue within the story of J. Alfred Prufrock. Prufrock wants to be seen as a normal citizen who can find friends or a lover, but his anxiety-driven isolation forces him to live a life that relates more to Hell than paradise. In over examining every fine detail of his life, Prufrock perceives himself as useless and even a waste of life. By using many poetic devices including repetition, personification, and imagery Eliot drives readers to feel the painful reality of Prufrock’s life. In “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock,” T.S Eliot uses modernistic ideas and poetic devices to portray how Prufrock’s life relates to Hell while simultaneously criticizing social aspects of the younger post–World War I generation.

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

By looking through a critical lens at T Stearns Eliot’s poetry in light of his 20th century, modernist context, much is revealed about his personal and the rapidly evolving societal beliefs of that era. Through his repeating motif of time and fragmentation throughout his poems, Eliot reveals the prevalent feelings of isolation while in society along with the need to hide one’s feelings and emotions in this degrading society. His exploration of the use of ambiguity and stream of consciousness by Eliot, which is a characteristic of modernist artists, allows his work to resound over decades while being interpreted and differently understood by every audience that encounters them.

To many, the allure of poetry lies in the chance to draw our own understandings and conclusions. In this paper, I will be discussing T.S Eliot 's "The love Song of Alfred Prufrock” in comparison to Allen Ginsberg 's "A Supermarket in California." The first poem, "The Love song of Alfred Prufrock" by T.S Elliot, talks about a man who is quite doubtful and insecure about himself who kept questioning whether or not breaking out of his comfort zone was worth it. The second poem, "A Super market in California" by Allen Ginsberg follows a trip to a supermarket in California that the author takes while addressing his friend with questions. This paper will include an extensive analysis of my own interpretation of these two poems as well as the

1) In the poem “the Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock" Eliot, there is many lines that put forward J. Alfred Prufrock’s loneliness. Alfred is alone, and not only that but he is growing old alone. He has no one to look after him to make sure he is safe, no one to make him happy or bring company into his life, no wife, no children, and Alfred also seems as though he is not happy with himself. In lines 73 and 74 : ““I should have been a pair of ragged claws/ Scuttling across the floors of silent seas”, Alfred is downing himself by mentally and verbally putting himself in that particular setting. He seems to believe that he does not deserve to live a life with everyone else in the world and that he deserves to be in the position that he is. I think this is why he chose the ocean floors also; it is one of the most isolated places you can get. He wants to be far away from where he is because he does not fit in and feels like people are always judging him. Lastly, when he says “ragged claws” he is referring to a crab. Crabs have a protective shell that keeps them safe from the dangers around them. This represents Alfred’s view of the world being a hostile place to live. Also, crabs move sideways and cannot move backwards and forwards. Eliot may have used this as a reference to Alfred not being able to go back and change things even if he might want to.

Loneliness is a feeling that we have all felt here and there. A man in the poem “ The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock” by T.S Eliot feels trapped which caused him to have disorders. Nothing has never changed from living in the same city and not using his time wisely. He tried numerous ways to approach women but his low self esteem stopped him from moving forward. Although Prufrock seems like a miserable person, Prufrock suffers from obsessive compulsive disorder, depression, and paranoia that caused him to feel this way.

Eliot’s poetry is often difficult to decipher or to pinpoint certain themes within a work. Throughout his poems, Eliot strives to reach a higher understanding of “reality” and explores the various perspectives of different people, implying that each individual has

T.S Eliot explores the struggle of individuals through reconciliation of their perspectives on the world and their place within it by displaying the thoughts and emotions of the personas in which embody him in the poems, ‘The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock’ and ‘The Hollow Men.’ The existentialistic view on things coupled with the experiences and discoveries which the personas have already made identifies the internal struggle and disillusionment with society that an individual has whilst undertaking the journey of self realization in fear of being rejected or unable to live a meaningful existence. In ‘The Love Song,’ Prufrocks’ inability to live a meaningful existence in the modern world stems from his humanity (or lack thereof) as his existentialism

The poetry of T.S Elliot portrays the nature of human conditions through the use of experiences such as alienation and how this leads to spiritual vacancy and paralysis which allow his poems to retain an enduring value. In Both the ‘The Love song of J.Alfred Prufrock’ (Prufrock, 1915) and Prelude (1917), poetic language convey the loneliness of humankind in a physical and moral way. Through a study of Eliot’s poetic forms, features and critical reception, we can better understand the message portrayed.

            I think this style of writing is also a reflection of Eliot's feelings about the time.  Eliot was more of a Modernist than Victorian poet and as such held to beliefs like: there is no higher power in the universe, man is alone on this planet to govern his own affairs, everyone is truly alone, there is no unity, no support, for we live in a godless heartless world (Stacey Donohue).  The floating, confusing, jumbled mix of emotions and directions in this poem mirrors the modernist image of society.