T.S. Eliot - the Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock and Preludes free essay sample

The urban landscape is employed by Eliot in Preludes to demonstrate the isolated desertion of a modern city. The use of repetition in â€Å"the showers beat on broken blinds† emphasises the polluted, squalid environment and highlights the desolation of the city through the imagery of â€Å"a lonely cab-horse steams and stamps† at the corner of the street. Eliot metaphorically compares the city and lifestyle to a cigarette, â€Å"the burnt-out ends of smoky days† to show the people’s wasting of their lives, slowly burning out and the grime in which they live. Imagery, rhyme and word choice is used by Eliot to portray the overpowering nature of pollution, with even nature and the human spirit being corrupted: â€Å"the light crept up between the shutters and you heard the sparrows in the gutters† and the â€Å"sordid images† of the people’s souls. The metaphor of the morning coming to consciousness â€Å"of faint stale smells of beer† likens the city to an alcoholic, struggling to wake due to a hangover, emphasising the sordid nature of the modern landscape. We will write a custom essay sample on T.S. Eliot the Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock and Preludes or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock also uses the urban landscape to express Eliot’s Modernist concerns of the lack of meaning and the slowly poisoning nature of modern life. Eliot personifies the city and streets of â€Å"muttering retreats† to emphasise the lack of individuality of the people, merging together with the city with no identity of their own. The simile of â€Å"streets that follow like a tedious argument of insidious intent† and the particular word choice employed by Eliot emphasise the â€Å"insidious† nature of the urban environment and the Modernist concern that a modern environment deadens the human spirit. Eliot expresses his Modernist concern of the subtle, harmful nature of the urban landscape through repetition and the metaphor of â€Å"the yellow fog that rubs its back upon the window-panes†. The fog is compared to a stray cat, crafting and cunning, attempting to get into the house, the intrusive nature of pollution is emphasised by this. Prufrock is overwhelmed by the urban environment and society and attempts to escape through his fantasy, â€Å"we have lingered in the chambers of the sea† but the modern landscape proves inescapable and Prufrock is swallowed by the demands and expectations of society, â€Å"till human voices wake us and we drown. The modern society is also used by Eliot to express his Modernist concerns of the lack of meaning and values in life, the superficiality of society and the lack of individuality of the people. In Preludes, fragmentation is used to demonstrate the broken views of the people of modern society who can no longer see themselves in a wholistic way. Fragmentation is shown through enjambment to create broken stanzas to disorientate readers, emphasising the confusions of society. Eliot intentionally refers to the people of the city only as â€Å"eyes† and â€Å"feet† and refers to the people collectively, â€Å"one thinks of all the hand that are raising dingy shades in a thousand furnished rooms† and the people with â€Å"all its muddy feet that press to early coffee stands† giving them a nameless quality, portraying their lack of individual identities. The persona in the third prelude, curling the papers from her hair illustrates Eliot’s concern for the superficiality of society with its expectations of beauty and the importance to conform to society’s requirements and the â€Å"masquerades that time resumes†, morning to morning. The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock also uses the urban society to show Eliot’s Modernist concern for the pretentiousness of modern society. Eliot uses metaphor and repetition of having to prepare a mask, â€Å"to prepare a face to meet the faces that you meet† to highlight the false nature of modern society. The rhyme, â€Å"In the room the women come and go talking of Michelangelo† emphasises the superficiality of the women who pretentiously talk of Michelangelo in order to appear knowledgeable. The women also aspire to achieve the greatness that Michelangelo achieved and are jealous of his abilities but they do not try to understand, emphasising the lack of spirit or conviction in modern society. The rhetorical question, â€Å"Shall I part my hair behind? Do I dare to eat a peach? † emphasises Prufrock’s fear of judgement and criticism from society and the pretentiousness of society, who values only superficial beauty. The personas in Preludes are created by Eliot to illustrate his Modernist concerns through stream of consciousness. Stream of consciousness is employed by Eliot to allow us to view the thoughts and feelings of the personas, showing their inner state of consciousness as they interact within the environment. The personas in Preludes emphasises the lack of a meaningful purpose in life with the repetition of trivial tasks, â€Å"its muddy feet that press to early coffee stands†. Eliot also uses irony and simile as the personas recognize that modern life is pitiful and sad but still remain in the urban city, â€Å"The world revolves like ancient women gathering fuel in vacant lots†. Stream of consciousness is also used in The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock as it shows the interior monologue of Prufrock. This emphasises the satirical tone of Eliot and his concern for the loss of individuality and identity, the loneliness and distance of society. Eliot emphasises Prufrock’s loneliness and his inability to communicate and the lack of meaningful relationship using satire and rhetorical questions to mock Prufrock as he desperately pines after women, â€Å"Is it the perfume from her dress that makes me so digress? † The repetition of â€Å"No, that is not what I meant at all† shows the alienation and distance felt by those in modern society because they have no connections and bonds to others and so find it difficult to communicate. Eliot uses a number of techniques, both Modernist and conventional, in the different aspects of his poem such as the urban landscape, society and personas, in order to express his Modernist concerns. Preludes and The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock employ these various techniques to depict the failures of modern society, particularly our loss of values and meaning in life in a modern landscape, where we are trapped due to the work and pollution of industrialization. Eliot, as a Modernist, reminds us of the importance of individual identity, confidence and faith in the things that we believe in.