The Love Song Of J. Alfred Prufrock: Analysis

T.S. Eliot is considered one of the most important modernist poets of the time, he was born September 26, 1888, in Missouri, U.S, and died January 4, 1965, in London, England. I.S Eliot is known as an American-English poet, playwright, literary critic, and editor. The poem “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock” by T.S. Eliot is an example of modernist poetry that shares many of the characteristics of modernism, which is a movement that sprouts up among the sea of change, in both literary techniques and in the culture that lasted during and after WWI.

The poem focuses on the frustration and lovesickness of the urban and modern man, Prufrock. He expresses his thoughts about the uneventful life that he has as a result of his feelings of inadequacy. As I read this poem, I could fully agree that men today and Prufrock, a modern man are alike because they are both pull themselves away from people, insecure about their appearance, and let their anxiety make them indecisive.

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People are facing the problem of awkwardness when it comes to facing other people, so they rather are alone than be surrounded by others. In the poem “The Love Song of Alfred Prufrock.” Prufrock regularly pulls himself away from others. Where he tends to walk on his own on the empty street of the abandoned area of town, “Let us go, through certain half-deserted streets, The muttering retreats of restless nights in one-night cheap hotels And sawdust restaurants with oysters-shell.” He finds these moments are calming and doesn’t have to go through these “Streets that follow like a tedious argument of insidious intent to lead you to an overwhelming question.

.”. Which shows he doesn’t want to come in contact with any person. Some men today would be like Prufrock, where they are completely separate themselves from the crowd and just to be alone. As far as I know that most of my friends are like that, wherever we go somewhere they sometimes put their headphones on so that they would not hear or need to talk to other people. They pulled themselves away from people just to be in their comfort zone. They prefer to keep it to themselves since they believe that everyone will reject them, or they would not have to deal with other people.

Prufrock and some men today have gone to great lengths to hide their weaknesses, which leads to insecurities, and affects their lives and relationships. In T.S. Eliot’s poem, “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock” describes himself as having “a bald spot in the middle of his hair” and having thin arms and legs showing that he has been scrutinized for his appearance, and he thinks women would say bad things about him behind his back, but in reality, he has never been talked with these women. Some men today are the same as Prufrock in that they are insecure about their appearance. For example, my friend Logan. He is unhappy with his looks and doesn’t have the confidence to approach women. He worries that other people would find him unattractive and maybe doesn’t want to talk to him. This shows that both men Prufrock in the poem and my friend, don’t have the confidence and let the dough of what others think about them way too much that they don’t feel good about themselves.

Indecision is the source of anxiety that cause Prufrock, and some men today’s minds unraveling. A place they were both indecisive was in love, they doubt if the woman was right for them and don’t have the gut to go talk to them. In the poem, “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock” by T.S. Eliot, where Prufrock said to himself “In a minute there is time”. This phrase is repeated often throughout his poem as if he is trying to convince himself and justify his action. He also said: “Time for you and time for me, / And time yet for a hundred indecisions, / And for a hundred visions and revisions”. Prufrock resists making decisions because of his fear of people judging him, as he avoids taking any action by discussing his lack of decisiveness. Men today are somehow similar to Prufrock in the poem. When a man is indecisive, it can be somehow dangerous. Not indecisive on where to go for dinner or what he wants to drink. But indecision when it comes to relationships could be a problem. I had a conversation with one of my old friends, who recently broke up with his girlfriend because he said he doesn’t know if he is happy in his relationship or not. He is indecisive to the point of staying in a relationship just doesn’t know what he wants, but his girlfriend dumped him because of that. If a man wants a woman to be in their life and be happy, then they should man up and decide and make that woman be a part of his life, not his backup plan.

In conclusion. Many men today face the same problems and face the same failure as Prufrock in the poem, such as their awkwardness and tendency to pull themselves away from other people, feeling insecure about themselves, and indecisiveness of speech whether it comes to dating and in real life situation. Some men today lack empathy and regard for others, that’s why many women love to friend-zone them for Prufrock, in the poem, he talked to himself most of the time and doesn’t seem to talk to anybody. To avoid such a predictable outcome, Prufrock should step out of their comfort zone, as he needs to talk to people and not talk to themselves and have an inner thought that causes them anxiety.