ck’s pathology perfectly when he asserts: “Prufrock” treats the disease in the only way Eliot acknowledged it could be treated: ‘the only cure for Romanticism is to analyze it.’ Rhetoric is pathological, in Eliot’s view, when it becomes vehicle for evading feeling [and] for creating self-satisfying illusions. This is exactly what Prufrock does. His over-analysis of every minute detail is a vain attempt to shirk the “question.” “Surely the “overwhelming question” is there in the poem…” (Dyson, 184) “In his absurd and pointless life the encounter with this question is likely to be the only significant thing to happen to Prufrock… The point of the intersection between time and eternity… So far his life has been far from remarkable and he knows that… Prufrock needs something that is infinite.” (Bagshee, 192) The fear of being accountable for a wasted, superficial life is the reason he has difficulty confronting the ultimate question. T.S. Eliot’s poem, “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock”, has challenged me to explore the frontiers of my emotions. With delight I consumed each line in hope of a deeper discovery. I am thankful to have had the opportunity to study such a profound poet. This process will better equip me with essential ...
