T.S. Elliot’s “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock tells the story of a the transition of an individual throughout life. Although everyone will inevitably make these transitions for themselves, it is difficult to explain to another person how these experiences manifest within the individual. By this, it is meant that no two people will experience any portion of life in the exact same way as another individual. Life is individualized and personal. However, on of the most important things that separate mankind from other species is the ability to communicate and relate to one another in reference to the experience of life. How, then, with so many differences among the experiences can one individual understand life through the viewpoint of another individual? How can one make another understand the feeling of isolation or the need for love if the feelings are not of the same format to both individuals? T.S. Elliot efficiently did so in “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock” by utilizing recognizable symbolism and imagery so that the reader could relate to the experiences portrayed within the poem.
The first understanding of the life portrayed by Elliot appears as “ a patient etherized upon a table” (3). This shows that near death state of numbness that the character is experiencing. This feeling of falling and desperation is continued when Elliot writes “to turn back and descend the stair” (39). Through these images, the reader understands that Prufrock feels numb to emotions and unable to renew full feeling as he descends further into this state. The stairs show that there may be other options but that the main character had made choices that continued to pull him downward.
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Another area of symbolism that is used in the poem is that of nature. This shows that the only thing that separates mankind from the rest of nature is the ability to communicate with one another and that if this attempt fails and the understanding of one another does not occur, then Elliot warns that “Till human voices wake us, and we drown” (131). These images appear as the waves, the fog and the sky. All of these symbols are easily recognizable by the reader and therefore lend to the connection between Elliot, Prufrock, and the reader in reference to the experience of life and the need for communication between mankind in order to maintain superiority in the scheme of nature.
Yet another manner in which Elliot utilized symbolism and imagery is through the references to literary images throughout the poem. Prufrock tells the reader how he feels and who he feels like in a way that the readers can recognize in the images. At one point, “Prufrock envisions himself as Lazarus, who rose from the dead” (Pagnattaro). Yet at another instance, he connects by saying who he is not as he explains that he is not Hamlet. However, the reader is to recognize that, “like Hamlet, Prufrock wrestles with a paradigm of indecision (“To be or not to be…”), but Prufrock lacks the ability to act” (Pagnattaro). Through who he feels like and who he knows that he is not the same as, Prufrock gives the reader another way to understand how he feels and how he has been effected by life’s experiences.
Imagery and symbolism are found throughout the poem and can be analyzed through numerous different approaches. However, when considering that the main character, Prufrock, is unable to truly connect with anyone in the story and it seems he also struggles with connecting with himself. Being able to explain his life through symbolism gives the impression that he has tried every other method and has finally recognized that this is the connecting factor of life. Perhaps taking the time to truly explain one’s position to another through the use of imagery and symbolism that the other party can relate to could ultimately solve a lot of internal and communication conflicts. This would result in alleviating many of the negative life experiences that have plagued J. Alfred Prufrock.
- Elliot, T.S. “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock.” 1915. Web. 19. Nov. 2014.
- Pagnattaro, Marisa. “An overview of “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock”.” Poetry for Students. Detroit: Gale. Literature Resource Center. Web. 19 Nov. 2014
