Escaping the Social Alienation

20122 Shin Seung Bin

T.S. Eliot’s early work, “The Love Song of Alfred Prufrock”, shows the doubts and uncertainties that the people of the time had, as well as the void and boredom of the contemporary life. Alfred Prufrock, the narrator of this poem is a very timid middle-aged single man with a bald head. He is a kind of person who imagines all the things about hitting on ladies but can never have the courage to actually speak up. The prospect of conversation is constantly lost for Alfred Prufrock as he is only immersed in the contemplation of spiritual exchange with others, but ironically such only ends up functioning as an interruption to an actual interaction. This also implies that the loss of conversation could be seen as a result of Alfred’s self-centered life.

Prufrock’s Love Song is not written in praise of the joy of love. The title of the poem raises certain expectation to its readers; that the poem would portray a lover laying his bare heart at the feet of his beloved. Unlike the common preconception that the title instills, this poem actually is a close examination of a typical modern man’s disturbed consciousness. A man who is overeducated, powerful, yet anxious. “Let us go then, you and I” (7). Here, the phrase “You and I” does not mean a woman and himself, but rather the narrator is pointing to the different sides of divided self. Therefore, we can reach to the conclusion that the identity of the speaker is fundamentally fragmented to multiple parts. In other words, this phrase signifies that there is a disparity between the reality and Prufrock’s desire. The ideal woman who Prufrock regards as a target to approach and fulfill his desire with is the result of his fantasy. Nevertheless, admitting that this ideal woman does not exist in his reality would make his life futile and evanescent. Therefore, Prufrock decides to turn away from the reality, considering the ideal woman as his reality albeit her being mere illusion made in his head.

‘Love Song’ can be properly interpreted in the consideration of Prufrock’s personal sense of alienation and despair. It is a love story of a middle-aged gentleman named Prufrock who is obsessed with defeatist idealism and suffering due to his unquenched desire.

The notion of “annual love” raises curiosity about who is the subject of this love is. On the surface, the subject that Prufrock gives his most attention to is an “overwhelming problem”. This is also closely related to the narrator’s perception of reality. The speaker meets empty women who talk about Michelangelo in search for the “overwhelming problems”. This, in turn, implies that the “overwhelming problem” is related to these women. However, inferring from the aforementioned analyses, it does not seem adequate to simplify Prufrock’s concern with women in regards to mere sexual relations. Rather, these “overwhelming problems” are more related to the pursuit of meaningful lives, and can be seen as the speaker’s desperate attempt in trying to escape the alienation of reality through real mental exchange.

Prufrock seems to be on the stairs of a room with women, but in fact, everything is done in his own consciousness and has reached the final stage of his determination to fulfill his desire. As soon as this decision is imminent, he repeats “Do I dare?” (44), as if he himself is prompting the final determination. He is skeptical about his ability; hence it emphasizes that Prufrock is now in an extremely imminent condition as there is plenty of time to retract his decision in front of the room where the women are. He fears that he would be ridiculed by women. He doubts his ability and asks himself, “Do I dare disturb the universe?” (51). Prufrock, trapped in his own helplessness and frustration, sees the problem of confronting reality as he realizes that he cannot make the decision. As he perceives his frail body and inner timidity as a big problem, the capacity to overcome the feeling of alienation, and to fulfill his love with a woman is deemed as the solution to save himself from the alienated state. Therefore, Prufrock regards the love with a woman as a tremendous agenda that shakes the entire universe.

For Prufrock, approaching women and declaring his love is the most important thing of his life. This implies that he can justify his indecisive behavior and blame the impatience of time. Prufrock, who never can let go of the idea of loving the ideal woman, never can cease his desire for woman. However, this “woman” in the context of the poem is actually a different part of his fragmented ego seeking to revive his long-lost life opportunities and lack of spiritual progress. Prufrock’s unfulfilled desire is constantly searching for the right objects, but only to revolve in an endless circle of seeking alternatives, unable to find the closure he needs.