Essay On Prufrock's Unattainable Desire

Prufrock’s Unattainable Desires T. S. Eliot’s poem “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock” describes the inner feelings of an isolated man whose desire for a loving and communicative relationship with a female is unrelenting. Eliot presents J. Alfred Prufrock as an older man who struggles with knowing how to communicate his feelings toward females in fear of being judged. Prufrock’s fear of alienation and lack of self confidence contribute to his difficulty in fulfilling his need to be understood and loved. Prufrock’s prime desire is to be able to communicate with women. However, Prufrock finds that women are very fragmented; therefore, he feels a strong disconnect from them. Prufrock also feels alienated by women and feels as if their eyes” fix you in a formulated phrase” (l. 56). Therefore, he feels as if he is judged by these women from the beginning. Because he lacks self confidence he is unable to speak or address these women in an attempt to change their
preconceived notions of him. Prufrock’s desires to relate to and love a woman are so strong because he has never wooed a woman and the outcomes with women have all been the same. He feels that women have preconceived notions about him and therefore because he already feels judged, he decides to stick with whatever representation they have of him. Although he desires to change their minds, Prufrock feels that he has already failed and that there is no point in attempting to change their points of view concerning him. Prufrock believes that if he can learn how to communicate with and love others, it will bring him back to life and revitalize him. However, he is unable to commit or provide anything concrete or substantial. Everything that Prufrock states within the poem is hypothetical and he never speaks of taking actions on his wonderings. His inability to take action concerning his desires and his thoughts prevents him from gaining or forming communicative and loving relationships with women. Prufrock’s lack of motivation and relative confusion about everything in his life also prevents him from attaining his desires. His lack of nerve and his persistent and repetitive questions further demonstrate his inability to commit. Prufrock also describes how he feels insignificant and afraid, and how he should have “been a pair of ragged claws/ Scuttling across the floors of silent sees” (l. 73-74). Although his desires to become more open, communicative, and loving are very strong, he somewhat desires to disappear to prevent himself from being hurt or feeling like a failure. Even though Prufrock wants to attain specific goals, he also tries to understand himself objectively and possibly attain some sort of self revelation.
However, the ellipses within the poem serve as a pathway for his return to the mindset he had in the beginning. Prufrock constantly questions his thoughts and decisions which makes it difficult for him to have a revelation that actually changes his mindset and future actions. Therefore, because Prufrock continues to dwindle through this never-ending cycle, he is unable to attain the many desires that he reflects upon. Prufrock attempts to transition into a mindset that would help him in accomplishing his desires when he asks, “Shall I say, I have gone at dusk through narrow streets/And watched the smoke that rises from the pipes/Of lonely men in shirt-sleeves, leaning out of windows?” ( l. 70-73). However, his frame of mind quickly returns to his previous and lonely state, and the possibility of attaining his desires seems even further
away. “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock” essentially describes Prufrock as an older man who is very divided within himself. He clearly struggles with his internal thoughts and desires, and therefore struggles externally because he is never able to accomplish or follow through with his thoughts. Prufrock could have written this love song in an attempt to reach or attain something in his life that he felt had been lost or had disappeared. Although Prufrock might have written this poem in hopes that it would provide some sort of therapy or emotional release, he might also have written it because he desperately wanted to describe to a woman or a lover, his inner thoughts and feelings. Prufrock provided himself with multiple opportunities to attain his desires; however, his lack of self-confidence and his fear of being a failure not only prevented him from being able to communicate with women but being able to communicate at all in the modern world.