Finding Prufrock

            There are many themes and messages in T. S. Eliot’s “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock.” There is the constant presence of change and industrialization in lines such as “Let fall upon its back the soot that falls from chimneys,” relating the idea that industrialization could be taking more from society than it is giving it. Nathan A. Cervo relates in “Eliot’s The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock” that Eliot himself was ashamed of his own industrialist father, which could have contributed to Prufrock’s apparent resentment of industrialization (although there are likely more reasons behind why Prufrock resents advance.) The narrator also expresses his desire to find love and meaning, and constantly questions the limits which his age has set upon him. However, none of these things are as central as the question, “Do I dare disturb the universe?” This question debates whether one should do something substantial and make a difference in the world during his lifetime, or if this is all just a shout into the void, meaning none of this is worth it. Even so, is it really one’s place to try to make a difference?

            Eliot makes constant references to time which indicate that Prufrock is aware that he is growing old and that he has less and less room for hesitation. He even tries to assure himself, “There will be time, there will be time.” Yet he also doesn’t deny that he is old: “With a bald spot in the middle of my hair—(They will say: “How his hair is growing thin!”)” This constant hesitation and misplaced self-assurance is common in human nature. Eliot is trying to tell us that we must make a choice: to seize the day, or to accept a life of obscurity and nothingness. “In a minute there is time for decisions and revisions which a minute will reverse.” In the next stanza after this line, he says that he has already experienced everything which life repeats. This infers that although he yearns to try something new, he fears that life will just revert back to the same sort of mediocrity. The main subject of this poem is indecision and how people react emotionally to it in our daily lives. In this Prufrock expresses his fear to take action and his grief that he hasn’t.

            To the reader, it is often easier to view Prufrock’s distaste for industrialization in the light that he thinks it isn’t doing society good. “The yellow smoke that rubs its muzzle on the window panes/ Licked its tongue into the corners of the evening.” His specific reasons behind this aren’t clear: does he think that we have a better appreciation for life when we live more simply? Does he prefer nature or the country over people and their progress? The answers to these questions aren’t really answered in the text, but although the idea that Prufrock’s dislike of industrialization comes from its effects on society is true, there is another thing which motivates his feelings which might be more of interest. Prufrock states time and time again how he wants to break out of the monotony of life and try something new or do something bold or move on in some way, but he never does because of his fears and insecurities. “For I have known them all already, known them all:/ Have known the evenings, mornings, afternoons, … So how should I presume?” When he looks upon society and sees such progress as he does, he naturally feels jealous and hostile. The quote I mentioned above saying “The yellow smoke licked its tongue into the corners of the evening,” intones that he feels society’s progress encroaching into his life, where it is unwelcome and shunned, because it reminds him of his own self limitations. Another idea, however, is that industrialization also ties into his question, “Do I dare disturb the universe?” Industrialization makes him see that it isn’t always a good thing to disturb the way things are and make a mark on the world. So he wonders, if he also tries to do something bold and exciting, will it really be for the greater good, or is it selfish to attempt to change a life, even if it is only his own?

            The potential lover in the poem whom Prufrock seems to be addressing doesn’t appear to be someone that he is in love with, but merely the opportunity he is waiting for. He relates that he is no stranger to women, yet also no stranger to loneliness with the lines, “And I have known the arms already, known them all—…And should I then presume? And how should I begin?” He is saying that although he has known the touch of a woman before, he hasn’t in a long time and doesn’t know how to approach one now.  He also feels that he is unattractive and perhaps even undeserving. Nicolas B. Mayer’s “Catalyzing Prufrock”  says that Prufrock identifies himself as a second rate citizen in lines such as “I am not prince Hamlet.” At the end of the poem when he is describing the ocean and beautiful mermaids when he says, “ I do not think they will sing to me,” he is expressing his sorrow that he will not be able to return to life as it was when he was young. All of these examples of Prufrock’s self-consciousness show the reader that when we do not act on our desires or seize opportunities, we grow bitter and stagnant. 

            The refrain of the poem, “In the room women come and go,/ Talking of Michealangelo,” contrasting with Prufrock’s resentment of progress, represents Prufrock’s distaste of idleness. One might wonder, how could he resent both? They are the two things which he is torn between: he wishes to move on, yet he limits himself so he may not. When he sees people talking of trivial things, he is reminded of his own indecision and is aghast at the idea that people would waste their time on trivial things such as mild conversation. However, his resentments run as deep as they do because of the fact that these are women, specifically. He wishes to reach out to a woman and experience things which he hasn’t since when he was young, but he also fears that they will reject him because of his age. When he sees women coming and going and doing nothing of significance, it angers him that they would go on this way instead of going on and doing something meaningful, such as approaching him. The abrupt repetition of this line helps to emphasize his emotion and disjointed logic.

The references at the end of the poem to the ocean and mermaids is also a representation of the narrator’s social isolation. James H. Ledbetter says in “Eliot’s The love song of J. Alfred Prufrock” that the mermaids and the ocean represent Prufrock’s desire to move on into uncharted territory. The mermaids could represent many things such as opportunity, inspiration, or even just lust, but Prufrock never approaches them, instead assuming, “I do not think that they will sing to me.” Eliot is telling us here that even if we do not get the results which we desire when we act in boldness, at least we have attained an experience of more worth than one’s constant self-criticism.

“When I am pinned and wriggling on the wall,/ Then how should I begin/ To spit out all the butt-ends of my days and ways?/ And how should I presume?” Here, Prufrock fears the moment when he will have to relate to products of his achievements and mistakes, because he is afraid that his life has produced nothing special and he will not know where to begin when he attempts to explain. Part of his desire to do something is to show the world that while he may not but Lazarus or Hamlet, he has still done something worthwhile; that he has disturbed the universe. Eliot uses these lines to mimic a common thought among people: “I must leave my mark on society, I must show the world through my achievements that I am worth something.” Prufrock only wants what every human does: to be deemed of worth. He wishes to do show the world his value through his actions, but he doesn’t know how.

            Some might say that the poem itself is the action Prufrock has been striving to do. He has been searching for meaning and substance, and he seems to be looking for that mostly where women are involved, but perhaps his real answer is within himself. The self-expression and release which poetry brings its creator is vastly satisfying and can even affect the rest of the world. However, it is also important to remember that Eliot and Prufrock are separate entities, and while Eliot may have found his release in this lamentation, Prufrock continues to yearn and be idle. He is presented with opportunities, and yet he rejects them because of his multitude of fears.

            So, Prufrock has established that he wishes to move on with his life, and yet he doesn’t, because he second guesses himself and his motivations and possibilities. But again, the big question: “Do I dare disturb the universe?” Do we? Should we? Prufrock’s hesitations (which mimic many people’s who settle for less than what they dream of) are what hold him back. He hesitates because he fears rejection, and because he is not sure that it is his place to change things. But, by demonstrating the characteristics which so many people in society resemble, he shows us that if we do not act on our desires, we will grow old without having accomplished our dreams because we spent our entire lives hesitating and rethinking and considering, just like Prufrock who has grown bitter and resentful because of it. Procrastination is the enemy, because if we wait to make our big decisions, we will grow idle and never accomplish anything. It is true that some changes may be perceived as bad, such as industrialization, but the universe is ever-changing, and what is good to one is always bad to another, and we have no choice but to let things change and move on; so, why not be a part of that change, when that is what the human soul always seems to desire?