The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock
The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock is a poem that was published by American-born British poet T.S. Eliot in 1915. The principal theme in the poetry is the alienation and loneliness of Prufrock, the main person in the poem who talks about himself and the things missed in life. Loneliness is evident from the way he repeatedly asks himself questions. That “us” in the first line is referring to his self and is clear evidence of loneliness in the poem indicating that he is accustomed to staying or living alone. Prufrock asks why he should spit out all the butt-ends of his days and ways. Who should he presume, and how to begin, are many of the questions he keeps asking himself. The silent streets and the quiet floors show that there was no one else around to keep him lively.
There is the use of imagery in most parts of the poem to display Prufrock’s character and desires, which shows old age and decay. In the first part of the poem, Eliot describes how the evening is spread out against the sky, showing extended passage of time, hence old age. He continues to say that it is like a patient or sick person etherized upon a table, indication of how fragile, vulnerable, and condition he is in, decaying. There is no power or strength that is left anymore in the body. The old restaurants with sawdust, the cheap hotels, the yellow smoke and soot falling from the chimneys, indicates decay and tiredness. The sentence in which Prufrock says he grows old is repeated and emphasized to show that time is really gone. The bottoms of his pants have worn off, meaning they have been worn for an extended time, and have become old to start wearing off.
The poem shows a passing of time that cannot be retrieved by the chances missed. It is impossible to turn back and restart again; “Time to turn back and descend the stairs,” showing that already Prufrock is old and cannot go back to younger years. There is a bald spot in the center of his hair, the hair itself is growing thinner, an indication of wearing out, old age, and fragile state. It is a shame he is afraid to show to the world, which is mixed with anxiety and lacking courage. Prufrock says that in a minute, there is the time in which he can dare disturb the universe, and it is only that single minute that can reverse these decisions and revisions of the life lived.
Prufrock has little contact with the physical world, as he goes out to walk in the streets, they are half-deserted. He also goes to a party and talks to nobody, and the poem just shows how Prufrock is engulfed in his thoughts of the mind. The person in the poem Prufrock wants to love, although it seems complicated for him to get it. Putting on his flannel trousers and walking down the beach, he hears the mermaids singing each to each, showing his desires of getting a lover who could sing for him, and him to her. Only dreams of staying with the mermaids are what Prufrock thinks, yet in reality, it is just an imaginary scene of beautiful creatures in love. Wanting to go and live with the mermaids is not even possible thing to do and try. No one can live in the chambers of the sea with fish, mermaids, and other water creatures. There is no attempt that he makes to find love and is afraid to take a step to get it. Hence, Prufrock ends up staying alone, scared, tired, and ashamed of himself.
What is the principal theme of Eliot’s poem “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock?” analyze three to four scenes of the poem and demonstrate how Eliot’s imagery reinforces his theme.