The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock by TS Eliot The love song is the life of laments which an old man remembers, which consist of the his past failures. He then places them in the context of his now meaningless life to try to understand their meaning and compensate for his loneliness. Through Eliot's rich imagery and excellent use of poetic language, Prufrock's explanation of his memories, his experiences, and, above all, his feelings (most of which are doubtful) come to life in this poem. Prufrock's dichotomy lies not only in his fear of socialization but also the underlying misconception that he can change the SORDID state his life is in. On the one hand, Prufrock says "And in fact there will be time...for a hundred more indecisions and for a hundred visions and revisions..." which means that he has the impression that he still has the possibility to make his life as it was in his dreams. The unfinished statement “I am Lazarus, you come from the dead/ I come back to tell you everything, I will tell you everything…” explains this. Some of his dreams/"illusions of grandeur" (Solo, 104) are of the type containing "bandaged, white, naked arms..." (women) while others are of a more general kind, simply desires to belong to modern society" I have already known the eyes, I have known them all: --..." On the other hand, what drags him back to reality and his current state of loneliness also reflects his self-consciousness and the "dark[er] side" (Vader, 226) of his fear of succeeding in life with the possibility of failure looming in the background, so much so that his life has little time left "I saw the eternal footman holding my coat and chuckling/ And soon, I was afraid " Prufrock is also afraid of comparison between himself and others, especially women who, ironically, he is constantly searching for ("dare I? Dare I?"). The formulaic use of irony and imagery is prevalent throughout the poem, as well as Pass' (Eliot's) minor symbolism convey Prufrock's point of view but more importantly his way of thinking. When he talks about his "head on a plate" he juxtaposes himself to John the Baptist, almost pathetically. The images are not as literal as they tend to be, but it is more the lyrical and supernatural descriptions that create the mood of this poem..