Free Prufrock Essays: Poem Analysis

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When analyzing poetry, it is important to consider the form, content, and historical moment the poem was written during, in order to develop a working interpretation of the specific poem. In particular, the poem, The Lovesong of J. Alfred Prufrock, is very open to interpretation as it delves into themes such as loneliness, inadequacy, and the inevitable consequences of time. Prufrock is a very dark, depressing character and throughout the poem, the audience is taken deeper into his thoughts and is shown the existential crisis that Prufrock is trying to work through in the poem. While the poem is essentially supposed to be for a potential lover, it is obvious that the poem is more about Prufrock himself than an actual lover. The reason behind …show more content…
This is evident in the imagery of the lifeless and dull city and sky. For example, the images of “half-deserted streets” (l.4), and the sky spread out, “Like a patient etherised upon a table” (l.3), show not only how Prufrock views his Hell on Earth but also reflect his own personality. The images of the empty streets mirror his own feelings of loneliness and alienation, while the image of the patient being immobile, mirrors Prufrock’s own inability to act. Prufrock, in a sense, is paralyzed by his inability to make decisions and act on them. He is clearly aware that everything in his life is stopped, or paralyzed, except for time. He has a growing concern of the fact time isn’t staying still and he is weary about the future and knows that he is getting older. Even at this point he still examines and questions his future, even with all the negative effects that have been caused by his indecisive nature. Prufrock uses Lazarus, who came back from the dead, as a way to show his own crisis that he is in and how he urgently wants to “come from the dead”(l. 94), since his life is so dull and lifeless because of his inability to make decisions and talk to women. Prufrock has become a reclusive and lonely middle-aged man who badly wants to go out and in a sense become alive

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