The title is the first interesting feature of the poem one can examine; “The Love Song of J Alfred Prufrock.” After reading the poem it appears to be that Prufrock is not in love, but is fascinated by women and the concept of being in love – “Stretched on the floor/here beside you and me.” Here, Prufrock talks about himself and being with “you”. The real identity of this person, however, is not revealed but the lines gives the impression that time “afternoon, the evening, sleeps so peacefully” is not an issue when he is with a woman, even though the concept of time and its expiry is one of the main underlying subjects in the poem – “there will be time.” The subject of time makes us feel pity for Prufrock, as it shows that he is aware that he is growing older and is conscious, if not worried, about the amount of time he has remaining in his life.
It would appear that Prufrock watches women in a voyeuristic fashion with the lines “In the room the women come and go/Talking of Michelangelo” being repeated, almost like a musical chorus, as if Prufrock keeps returning to watch and then think about the women. The lines “In the room the women come and go/Talking of Michelangelo” seem to be of a cynical tone but I think this tone is due to Prufrock’s own self pity, as it appears that he would love to belong to a society which takes “toast and tea”. This longing is shown by his fascination with the concept of polite society. This cynical tone has the ability to make us despise Prufrock, as we feel that he is merely watching and criticising, when he has not tried to appreciate the women or their habits.
Prufrock’s obsession with women continues further when he says “And I have known the eyes already, known them all.” The idea of Prufrock “Knowing women" possesses almost sexual qualities as in earlier literature men would have “known” women. Eliot uses uncomfortable words to try to describe the way in which Prufrock feels trapped by the women that he observes and most of all trapped by himself, which makes us pity Prufrock; “Sprawling”, “Pinned”, “Wriggling”. Eliot continues the next stanza with “I have known the arms already/ known them all – Arms that are braceleted and white and bare/But in the lamplight/downed with light brown hair!”. Prufrock seems to have watched many women and just focused on one body part at a time, which is typical of Eliot’s writing.
Prufrock talks about the women as if they mask their faults but these faults are ultimately revealed; “white and bare/But in the lamplight downed with light brown hair!”. The idea of wearing masks is present in “The Love Song of J Alfred Prufrock” as in the fourth stanza we are presented with the line “To prepare a face to meet the faces that you meet”, where it would seem that Prufrock feels that he must present a different outlook to different people. Prufrock finishes two stanzas with the phrase “How should I presume?” This line suggests the idea that Prufrock cannot understand why he should care what people think of him. This idea makes me despise Prufrock at this particular point in the poem as he seems to be wallowing in his own self pity and does not seem to be able to relinquish his inhibitions and shake off all of the pre- conceptions he holds about women.
Eliot uses rhyme to make large questions seem almost trivial, such as “Do I dare/Disturb the universe?, In a minute there is time, For decisions and revisions which a minute will reverse.” By using rhyme which is often used in children’s poetry, it could be interpreted as if Prufrock is to a certain extent afraid of growing old and having to face the “Overwhelming question(s)” of life. Eliot also uses sibilance with “Slipped by the terrace/ made a sudden leap/ And seeing that it was a soft October night.” The use of sibilance makes for an uneasy atmosphere as the consonant sounds almost hiss with serpentine qualities. Eliot also uses sibilance to make us question Prufrock’s character, as he may have a darker side to him which does not become apparent from just reading the poem. This has the ability to make us despise Prufrock. Eliot uses setting to enhance the mood of the poem at different points in the poem. Eliot uses large, bustling city scenes to emphasis the loneliness of Prufrock, and the dinginess of the life which he leads – “The yellow fog” and “pools that stand in drains.” Later on in the poem the lines suggest that Prufrock is looking in on out of reach images. “I know the voices dying with a dying fall/ Beneath the music from a farther room.” It is as if the voices are untouchable, just like the image of the “evening spread out against the sky/ Like a patient etherised upon a table.” It is as if Prufrock is isolated in his own little world which seems to fail to come into contact with anything but his lonely thoughts and remorse for his unfulfilled life.
We feel a wide range of emotions concerning Prufrock when reading ‘The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock’. I both despise and pity Prufrock at different times in the poem. I despise Prufrock as he is so full of self-pity as he does not seem to be connected to the love which he longs for, and society, which he criticises. It is as if Prufrock feels he needs to criticise society to assure himself that he is not deeply affected by the fact that he is merely a spectator of the high society which he so frequently talks about. On the other hand, I pity Prufrock because he has love for women which, to me, is seemingly unrequited and he seems to be an outcast in a world full of characters just like him. The last line of the poem makes me feel the most pity for Prufrock “Till human voices wake us and we drown”. The dullness of the sound “drown” sums up Prufrock’s life for me. A life which is not sonorous and does not ring with life, just as the word “Drown” does not resonate due to the long vowel sound in it. The line which divides my feelings of pity and despise of Prufrock is a very fine one, as I pity Prufrock for the same reasons that he pities himself, and these feelings of self pity are also why I so despise him in certain parts of the poem.
Becky Harris 12G2
(1,399 words)
