alfred prufrock

The poem analysis of Z. Quinn Weber
8-24-08
English 11 AP

The love song of J. Alfred Prufrock
I believe this poem depicts a middle aged man, weary of many dates because sometime long ago he met his loved one, but instead of proposing, he missed his shot at love and she was eternally lost to him. Now he not only mourns because he has lost his true love, but because he is growing old and fears he will never find another as right as his first love. Because he has found only one suitable woman so far, he tends to compare the other women he’s met to his dream girl, making them far inferior and stupid. He tells his story as he prepares for another party; envision him pacing back and forth in front of the mirror, dreading another miserable party. He has also become self conscious; he fears that even if he can find a woman to love again, she will find him too old, too grey, and too thin to satisfy her.
As the class has discovered several details in them poem that would lead to this man going to a party, I will reveal two pieces of the poem that support my theory that he a. has loved a woman before, and b. is nervous and doubtful about meeting another perfect woman.
In lines 50-65 Alfred describes his past relationships with women, he says he has known them all, known the eyes already, and known the arms already, which would indicate that he has dated many girls before. Lines 80-86 have such select phrases as “should I have strength after teas and cakes and ices, Have the strength to force the moment of crisis?” also especially important was “I have seen the moment of my greatness flicker And I have seen the eternal Footman hold my coat, and snicker, And in short, I was afraid.” The first quote shows his fear of again being too scared and wishy-washy to act upon his love and save his relationship, the second I believe proves he ahs loved before. He watched as his great love flickered, and then died.
To make clear my second point, that he is extremely nervous to go to the party, and doubtful of meeting another perfect woman, I take lines 38-45. These lines plainly state how he is wondering if he is even physically capable of attending a party. He acts out in his head every negative scenario in a desperate plight to convince himself not to attend this festivity. I also agree with the conclusion drawn in class. “In the rooms women come and go, talking of Michelangelo” talking is too vague of a word, it does not have the elegance that the rest of the poem does. Coincidently it is one of the few times he is describing women, this would tend to suggest he has a pessimistic view of women. He portrays them as stupid and subordinate to men.
Clearly, Alfred Prufrock is a miserably lonely man, constantly mourning the one that got away. The poem gives great discriptions of how it would be to be aging and hopelessly out of love.