It is an examination of the tortured psyche of the prototypical modern man—overeducated, eloquent, neurotic, and emotionally stilted. Prufrock, the poem's speaker, seems to be addressing a potential lover, with whom he would like to “force the moment to its crisis” by somehow consummating their relationship.
What is the message of Prufrock?
Consequences of inaction Inaction or passivity is the main theme of the poem. All through the poem, we discover a speaker who has desires and dreams, yet fails to act on them because he deems himself inferior, unworthy and a failed person.
Who does Prufrock represent?
McCoy and Harlan wrote "For many readers in the 1920s, Prufrock seemed to epitomize the frustration and impotence of the modern individual. He seemed to represent thwarted desires and modern disillusionment." In general, Eliot uses imagery which is indicative of Prufrock's character, representing aging and decay.
What overwhelming question is Prufrock trying to ask?
In T.S. Eliot's “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock,” I believe Prufrock's overwhelming question is a marriage proposal because of the severity of his indecisiveness and inner debate of whether or not to ask it.
What is Prufrock saying no to?
Prufrock compares himself to Hamlet, and then dismisses his importance ("No! I am not Prince Hamlet") and returns to his usual self-deprecation, announcing that he is not an important person.
Who is Prufrock talking to?
Here Prufrock seems to be alone and talking to himself. Later the “you” is the woman he wants to seduce, possibly propose to. Line 14: The great Italian sculptor and painter (1475 1564).
What is Prufrock trying to say?
Many believe that Prufrock is trying to tell a woman of his romantic interest in her, pointing to the various images of women's arms and clothing and the final few lines in which Prufrock laments that the mermaids will not sing to him.
What is Prufrock predicament?
Second, Prufrock's ideal society cannot be balanced with the society he is living in. He was confined by the real world and had no way to change and flee. Therefore, it was his dilemma that made him could not live in harmony with the real world and then led to him spiritually paralyzed and alienated.
What is Prufrock most afraid?
Prufrock's anxiety about his own baldness, and also about the feebleness of his body, can be related to his obsessive fear regarding aging and death. This theme is again echoed as Prufrock proclaims: “I have seen the Eternal footman hold my coat, and snicker, And in short I was afraid” (lines 85-86).
How is Prufrock characterized?
Prufrock is disillusioned and disassociated with society, yet he is filled with longing for love, comfort, and companionship. He is self-conscious and fearful of his image as viewed through the world's eye, a perspective from which he develops his own feelings of insignificance and disgust. T. S.
Why is Prufrock so insecure?
Alfred Prufrock is afraid of being socially shunned by the women because of his aging and lack of ability to communicate efficiently. Eliot states, “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!)”(667), showing Purfrock's insecurities.