- “There will be time to murder and create, And time for all the works and days of hands” “Do I dare Disturb the universe? In a minute there is time For decisions and revisions which a minute will reverse. ” — The Main character, Prufrock, belongs to a group of young people who are very common in contemporary society (at that time). They are sensitive; they have their own ideals and aspirations; they are dissatisfied with the increasingly indifferent industrial cities, but they do not have power to change. Thus, He live in anger and pain at the same time, therefore, he can only choose to endure the reality of cowardice.
- “There will be time to murder and create,
And time for all the works and days of hands”（line 28-29） My interpretation to these lines is: The poet put “Murder” and “Create” side by side, in order to bring readers a strong impact. The poet wants use such a strong contrast to connect the early twentieth century capitalist society is full of confusion and contradictions. On the one hand, people create modern industrial civilization, on the other hand, they stifle the rich tradition of value. From these two words the reader can clearly feel the situation of capitalist society at that time. - Question 1. Whats the connection between the opening part and the rest of the poem? Question 2. For what purpose does the poet compose this poem? Question 3. Why do the women talking of Michelangelo?
2 thoughts on “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock – Nan Jiang”
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Question 1. Whats the connection between the opening part and the rest of the poem?
– The reference to the Italian verse of Dante’s “Inferno” represents the ordeal that Prufrock is undergoing. He feels as if he is trapped into an everlasting cycle of emptiness. He is unsatisfied because the burden of a materialistic society makes him too afraid to try new things. The translation of a section from “Inferno” is: “…but since never from this deep place has anyone returned alive.” Prufrock “drowns” at the end of the poem, signalizing that his mind is unable to escape from this confinement – hence, he does not return alive.
Question 2. For what purpose does the poet compose this poem?
– I personally believe that the character Prufrock is the embodiment of the fears that individuals have during the process of growing up. His psychological state shows us the emotions that we go through; however, it is emphasized in a particularly solemn way. The poet is trying to convey, ironically, the significance of the pointlessness that Prufrock convinces himself of. This relates to individuals because most do not try to change anything because “it is pointless”, but also dread growing old without amounting to anything.
Nan,
Going back to your first comment about “There will be time to murder and create,” I think that you are right to remind us that Eliot is writing this poem in the early years of the 20th century, during a time of tremendous change in the world. I’m not sure that the poem is directly commenting on capitalism or urban industrialism, but they are certainly the backdrop for Eliot. The repetition of “there will be time” is actually a reference to a poem by Andrew Marvell that laments how little time we have. Prufrock takes the opposite position, using the idea “there will be time” to justfiy procrastinating, letting himself off the hook for his inability to approach the women.
The fact that the women are talking about Michelangelo lets us know that these are “cultured” women who are discussing art.
JS