Ts Eliot Prufrock
In what ways is Eliot’s ‘The Lovesong of J. Alfred Prufrock’, an example of modernist writing? Discuss this in relationship to form as well as content.
Although TS Eliot’s The Lovesong of J. Alfred Prufrock contains many of the stylistic conventions that are now associated with modernist poetry, TS Eliot’s position on the established art forms and religious hierarchy that many writers of his generation rejected, and how this influenced Eliot’s composition of Prufrock, is highly debatable. In Modernism: The New Critical Idiom Peter Childs of the University of Gloucestershire writes that these stylistic conventions were: ‘moves to break from the iambic pentameter as the basic unit of verse, to introduce Vers Libre, symbolism, and other new forms of writing’ (Childs, 2008, pg. 3).
In the composition of Prufrock TS Eliot utilized a form of symbolism ostensibly very similar to that outlined by the Imagist movement in the Imagists Manifesto (Imagists, 1915, pg. 269). Instead of simply telling the reader Prufrock’s emotions, Eliot relied on the ‘objects’ within the poem to convey Prufrock’s thoughts and feelings. The most vivid example of imagist inspired symbolism within The Lovesong of J. Alfred Prufrock is the image of the yellow smoke which occurs several times throughout the poem:
The yellow fog that rubs its back upon the window-panes
The yellow smoke that rubs its muzzle on the window-panes
(Eliot, 1915, line 16-17)
Here the yellow fog, evocative of the smog that was common to most industrial cities, is the personification of Death in ‘Prufrock. Death takes the form of a cat like predator, a carefree and yet malicious animal than can appear none-threatening, even playful. By saying that the yellow fog rubs its back and muzzle on the window panes is implying that it cannot leave the confines of the city streets and that it cannot enter houses or places of business. This indicates that Prufrock feels in most danger when he’s out in the city streets.
Although TS Eliot’s The Lovesong of J. Alfred Prufrock contains many of the stylistic conventions that are now associated with modernist poetry, TS Eliot’s position on the established art forms and religious hierarchy that many writers of his generation rejected, and how this influenced Eliot’s composition of Prufrock, is highly debatable. In Modernism: The New Critical Idiom Peter Childs of the University of Gloucestershire writes that these stylistic conventions were: ‘moves to break from the iambic pentameter as the basic unit of verse, to introduce Vers Libre, symbolism, and other new forms of writing’ (Childs, 2008, pg. 3).
In the composition of Prufrock TS Eliot utilized a form of symbolism ostensibly very similar to that outlined by the Imagist movement in the Imagists Manifesto (Imagists, 1915, pg. 269). Instead of simply telling the reader Prufrock’s emotions, Eliot relied on the ‘objects’ within the poem to convey Prufrock’s thoughts and feelings. The most vivid example of imagist inspired symbolism within The Lovesong of J. Alfred Prufrock is the image of the yellow smoke which occurs several times throughout the poem:
The yellow fog that rubs its back upon the window-panes
The yellow smoke that rubs its muzzle on the window-panes
(Eliot, 1915, line 16-17)
Here the yellow fog, evocative of the smog that was common to most industrial cities, is the personification of Death in ‘Prufrock. Death takes the form of a cat like predator, a carefree and yet malicious animal than can appear none-threatening, even playful. By saying that the yellow fog rubs its back and muzzle on the window panes is implying that it cannot leave the confines of the city streets and that it cannot enter houses or places of business. This indicates that Prufrock feels in most danger when he’s out in the city streets.
Bibliography: Childs, P., 2008. Modernism the New Critical Idiom. 2nd Edition. Cornwall: Routledge. Cuddon, JA., Year. Dictionary of Literary Terms and Literary Theory Eliot, TS. 1915. The Lovesong of J. Alfred Prufrock. [poem on webpage]. Available at: http://people.virginia.edu/~sfr/enam312/prufrock.html [Accessed on 12th April 2012]. Eliot, TS Eliot, TS. 1919. From ‘Tradition and the Individual Talent’ In: Kolocotroni V, Goldman J, Taxidou O eds. 1998. Modernism An Anthology of Sources and Documents. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press. 366-375. Eliot, TS, 1923. ULYSSES, ORDER, AND MYTH. [Web Essay] Available at: http://people.virginia.edu/~jdk3t/eliotulysses.htm [Accessed on 3rd May 2012]. Imagism Moore M. 1926. New Poetry Since 1912 In: Kolocotroni V, Goldman J, Taxidou O eds. 1998. Modernism An Anthology of Sources and Documents. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University 429-433. Whitman W, 1855. From preface to Leaves of Grass In: Kolocotroni V, Goldman J, Taxidou O eds. 1998. Modernism An Anthology of Sources and Documents. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press.