Ap English Poetry Comparative Essay
Comparative Essay
By Meggen Anderson
Most people expect that all poetry should be close to the same thing if we were to have the same theme, but in fact, although there are many similarities, there can also be many differences too. Upon comparison of The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock by T.S Eliot and Afternoons and Coffee Spoons by Crash Test Dummies we see just this. These two poems share similarities in theme, and reference to time but do not have similar tones.
The Love Song of J Alfred Prufrock and Afternoons and Coffee Spoons share the same theme of illness. This is seen in Afternoons and Coffee Spoons when the narrator says, “I gave the doctor my descriptions, and I tried to stick to my prescriptions.” And “What is it that makes me queasy” both prove he is sick, and the narrator has separated himself from society due to an unknown illness. The Love Song also portrays this when the lyrics say “like a patient etherized upon a table” stating that he is a patient at a hospital. “With a bald spot in the middle of my hair-they will say: “how his hair is going thin” which also states that he is sick and …show more content…
losing his hair. As a result both characters in these poems share the same theme of illness.
Conversely, both poems differ in tone.
The Love Song of J Alfred Prufrock’s tone is sadness. This is proven when Eliot describes the setting in lines 4-9 as half deserted streets, muttering retreats, one night cheap hotels and streets like a tedious argument of insidious intent. Words like half deserted, muttering, restless, tedious and insidious portray this tone. However in Afternoons and Coffee Spoons the tone is more fearful. It’s as though the writer is having these health problems, and is seeing his life being measured out as he gets older. In lines 16-17 we see “Maybe if I could do a play by playback I could change the test results that I will get back” the lyrics display that he demonstrates fear of the future and fear of getting older. He hopes to go back and change the results for a better future. Therefore the tone in these poems
differentiates.
These poems also refer to time considerable that they both measure out life with coffee spoons meaning little measures of time. Scoops of each life event and methodically analyzes life in bits and pieces. Each event is a coffee spoon. In the Love Song of J A Prufrock shows the inability to make decisions in this time of his life as he is getting older and weaker, displayed in lines 45-48 “do I dare disturb the universe? In a minute there is time for decisions and revisions which in a minute will reverse.” The poem demonstrates Prufrocks inability to make decisions in the amount of time his life is being measured out. However in Afternoons and Coffee Spoons the lyrics describe his problem to the doctor and trying to stick to his prescriptions. Also the lines refer to a time in the future when he will have a disappearing hairline and will wear pyjamas in the day time. The narrator wants more time before he starts losing hair and before his illness starts to worsen. Prufrock describes things the future and past not worrying about time now, he thinks of the times in a day as sections, to him there is no difference between morning, afternoon and evening. Reference to time is very contrasting in these two poems.
In conclusion both poems share similarities and differences in which one makes reference to the other. The Love Song of J Alfred Prufrock and Afternoons and Coffee Spoons share the same theme, and use reference to time, but do not have similar tones.
Comparative Essay- ENG 3U
Mrs. Drost
Due- Monday April 7th
By Meggen A
By Meggen Anderson
Most people expect that all poetry should be close to the same thing if we were to have the same theme, but in fact, although there are many similarities, there can also be many differences too. Upon comparison of The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock by T.S Eliot and Afternoons and Coffee Spoons by Crash Test Dummies we see just this. These two poems share similarities in theme, and reference to time but do not have similar tones.
The Love Song of J Alfred Prufrock and Afternoons and Coffee Spoons share the same theme of illness. This is seen in Afternoons and Coffee Spoons when the narrator says, “I gave the doctor my descriptions, and I tried to stick to my prescriptions.” And “What is it that makes me queasy” both prove he is sick, and the narrator has separated himself from society due to an unknown illness. The Love Song also portrays this when the lyrics say “like a patient etherized upon a table” stating that he is a patient at a hospital. “With a bald spot in the middle of my hair-they will say: “how his hair is going thin” which also states that he is sick and …show more content…
losing his hair. As a result both characters in these poems share the same theme of illness.
Conversely, both poems differ in tone.
The Love Song of J Alfred Prufrock’s tone is sadness. This is proven when Eliot describes the setting in lines 4-9 as half deserted streets, muttering retreats, one night cheap hotels and streets like a tedious argument of insidious intent. Words like half deserted, muttering, restless, tedious and insidious portray this tone. However in Afternoons and Coffee Spoons the tone is more fearful. It’s as though the writer is having these health problems, and is seeing his life being measured out as he gets older. In lines 16-17 we see “Maybe if I could do a play by playback I could change the test results that I will get back” the lyrics display that he demonstrates fear of the future and fear of getting older. He hopes to go back and change the results for a better future. Therefore the tone in these poems
differentiates.
These poems also refer to time considerable that they both measure out life with coffee spoons meaning little measures of time. Scoops of each life event and methodically analyzes life in bits and pieces. Each event is a coffee spoon. In the Love Song of J A Prufrock shows the inability to make decisions in this time of his life as he is getting older and weaker, displayed in lines 45-48 “do I dare disturb the universe? In a minute there is time for decisions and revisions which in a minute will reverse.” The poem demonstrates Prufrocks inability to make decisions in the amount of time his life is being measured out. However in Afternoons and Coffee Spoons the lyrics describe his problem to the doctor and trying to stick to his prescriptions. Also the lines refer to a time in the future when he will have a disappearing hairline and will wear pyjamas in the day time. The narrator wants more time before he starts losing hair and before his illness starts to worsen. Prufrock describes things the future and past not worrying about time now, he thinks of the times in a day as sections, to him there is no difference between morning, afternoon and evening. Reference to time is very contrasting in these two poems.
In conclusion both poems share similarities and differences in which one makes reference to the other. The Love Song of J Alfred Prufrock and Afternoons and Coffee Spoons share the same theme, and use reference to time, but do not have similar tones.
Comparative Essay- ENG 3U
Mrs. Drost
Due- Monday April 7th
By Meggen A