The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock illustrates the insecurity of Prufrock. . Prufrock is 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. Finally Prufrock has a series of questions giving an open view to his unsuccessful attempts at women. His insecurities keep him from doing the things he wants to do and unable to express his true feelings to women. The poem is comprised of text which is the voice of a neurotic, paranoid modern man, Prufrock, who is obsessed with time, mortality, and social conduct. 'Prufrock' resembles aspects of the Modern world incorporating techniques such as symbolism, repetition, rhetorical questions, allusions or intertextual references, metaphors and similes, rhyme, irony and more. Before even reading the poem we're faced with the symbolic title, particularly the word 'Prufrock'. By this Eliot is implying a characteristic of this persona, that he has a sort of prude-in-a-frock effeminacy. The effeminacy is a part of Prufrock's nature .
so its implication is adding to Eliot's construction of the modern, neurotic individual. But Prufrock knows too much of life to "dare" an approach to the woman: In his mind he hears the comments others make about his inadequacies, and he chides himself for "presuming" emotional interaction could be possible at all.
The design of "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock" is such that, the reader has to draw conclusions from clues given in dramatic monologue adding meaning and rewards the reader. Use of an epigraph heightens the reward and demonstrates that J. Alfred Prufrock cannot speak in life as he does in the poem. Through use of these techniques, poem is both subtle and effective at generalizing the insecurity of Prufrock. The poem is set as a monologue, since the speaker refers to a listener in the opening line as,
"You:" "Let us go then, you and I," (l. 1)
"What is stated is being spoken to another person" will be the basic perception of a reader who does a study of the poem. Since as dramatic speech Prufrock make to him selves typically reveals character traits that the speaker is unaware of,
A keen study of the poem reveals to give the reader a clue about how the poem is read.
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The poem depicts a man with an overwhelming fear and insecurity about his situation, as Prufrock delivers a clue to this in each line
"And indeed there will be time
To wonder, "Do I dare? " and, "Do I dare?"
(ll. 37-40)
Prufrock is consumed by the fear of speaking to the women he sees with a feeling that he will not speak well enough to have them interested in him, and his insecurity will not allow him to overcome this shyness. Feeling insecure while talking to women is the inferior complex in him. The qualities of women are attractive to Prufrock, as they are young, while the reader takes references like "White" and "bare" indicate. Since he has known them already and is taken by their appearance, it seems that he has had this problem before. He talks about confession of his love for her after tea and marmalade that explains the fact of her being a courtesan at Moulin Rouge.
. He convinces himself by the presumption that there is time, so there is no need to rush into action. He asks if he can dare, and then has second thoughts and plans to "turn back" and leave the party. He is concerned with a bald spot and what people will say about it. He desires something very much, yet he is afraid to act.
"Prufrock" displays the two most important characteristics of Eliot's early poetry. First, it is strongly influenced by the French Symbolists, like Mallarme, Rimbaud, and Baudelaire. The second defining characteristic of this poem is its use of fragmentation and juxtaposition.
The last line of the poem suggests that, when the world intrudes, when "human voices wake us," the dream is shattered: "we drown." With this single line, takeapart into its constituent pieces the romantic notion that poetic genius is all that is needed to successful end the struggling over the destructive, impersonal forces of the modern world.
Finally Prufrock has a series of questions giving an open view to his unsuccessful attempts at women. Prufrock ponders, "Should I begin" "Should I then presume", and seems to know what he wants to say, but doesn't have the confidence to put his feelings into words. He constantly self-introspects throughout the poem:" Do I dare?"(38), "So how should I presume?"(54) "Then how should I begin" and the questions further drown him in his depths of isolation elaborates his insecurity in expressing his feeling for girls. Prufrock agonizes over his social actions, worrying over how others will see him. He thinks about women's arms and perfume, but does not know how to act. The day passes at a social engagement but he cannot gather the strength to act, and he admits that he is afraid. With further self torture through the poem. The poem delivers a truthful message to its readers the danger of allowing life to go by and watching it with grief in heart, bearing the suffering caused by not taking a chance of either asking or even giving a try to those challenges that plays a significant role in building an image in the present society.