Seen as simply the romantic agonizing of a young man (Eliot was eighteen when he began the poem) over a woman he loves, “The Love Song of Prufrock’s doubt that he deserves the answer he desires from this woman transforms the poem into a kind of interior monologue or soliloquy in which “To be or not to be?” is for Prufrock “To be what?” and “What or who am I to ask this woman to marry me?” This establishes a connection with Hamlet’s famous soliloquy (‘To be or not to be?-That is the question”). Indeed, over the course of the poem, he sets up analogies between himself and various familiar cultural figures, among them Hamlet.
The poem is composed of Prufrock’s own neurotic-if lyrical-associations. In fact, in this poem he never arrives at tea, let alone sings to the woman. Alfred Prufrock, as he walks to meet a woman for tea and considers a question he feels compelled to ask her (something along the lines of “Will you marry me?”). The poem centers on the feelings and thoughts of the persona, J. It was included in Prufrock and Other Observations, Eliot’s first book of poetry, in 1917.Įliot’s interest in music is made evident in the title, but the term “love song” is used loosely here. He later read the poem to Ezra Pound in England and Pound arranged to have it published in the prestigious American journal Poetry in June 1915. Alfred Prufrock,” often called “the first Modernist poem,” appeared in the Harvard Advocate in 1906 while Eliot was an undergraduate. The last line of the poem suggests that in his personal isolation, Prufrock will "drown" (130), as the mermaids, or woman, will live on unaffected by his death.Segments of “The Love Song of J. Prufrock sees the mermaid, a symbol for all of woman, as epitomizing female perfection and always in the distance, out of his reach. I do not think that they will sing to me" (124-125). Prufrock says, "I have heard the mermaids singing, each to each. The poem closes with abstract imagery centering upon the idea of the mermaid. He calls himself "an attendant lord" (112) who is content to live life as a follower of those who are great and not worthy of the woman he desires. Prufrock sees himself as a common and ordinary person. Alfred Prufrock" begins with Prufrock's exclamatory remark that "No! I am not Prince Hamlet, nor was meant to be" (111). This unwillingness of the speaker to take risks and his tendency to downplay his importance intensifies in the closing lines. However, he soon remembers how he has seen his "head … brought in upon a platter" (82) and like before, returns to the belief that in making an advance on the woman he would be castigated by society.
Later, Prufrock returns to this idea when he questions whether or not he would have the "strength to force the moment" (80) or to further his relationship with the woman. He first sees an attempt as being futile because of his middle-aged "bald spot" (40) and average appearance, which would cause him to be viewed as unappealing. Prufrock's obsessing and eventual decision not to approach the woman indicates a great deal about his character. Amidst this group of people, Prufrock has identified a woman who he takes interest in, but does not approach the woman, rather doubting himself and wondering "do I dare?" (38) and "how should I begin?" (69). He is an elevated gathering of people, perhaps a restaurant, where "the woman come and go / talking of Michelangelo" (13-14). Alfred Prufrock" seems as though Prufrock, the speaker, privately struggles with the decision of whether or not to speak with a woman. The situation of Eliot's "The Love Song of J.