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浅析T.S.艾略特早期诗歌中的现代人形象 |
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时间：2009-8-8 16:56:54 来源：不详
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red Prufrock is so overcautious, hesitant and also be afraid of failure. It is also the very reason why he gets such pain of psyche. T.S. Eliot once said that: “When one wants to do something, if he considers too much that could only make him hesitant and dare not to move forward. Frock means the long loose gown with sleeves worn by monks.[9] This word reflects Prufrock’s status in the society and it also implies that the emotional condition of a coward is the common phenomenon in the middle and upper class in modern society.
2.1.3 Puritanism and J. Alfred Prufrock
(ⅰ) Puritanism
Puritanism refers to the beliefs and practices characteristic of Puritans, while puritan refers to the person who is extremely strict in morals and who tends to regard pleasure as sinful.[10] Puritanism emphasizes strictness and austerity in conduct and religion. Most men held ideas in the mainstream of Calvinistic thought. In addition to believing in the absolute sovereignty of God, the total depravity of man, and the complete dependence of human beings on divine grace for salvation, they stressed the importance of personal religious experience. These Puritans insisted that they, as God's elect, had the duty to direct national affairs according to God's will as revealed in the Bible. In the 19th century its influence was indirect, but it can still be seen at work stressing the importance of education in religious leadership and demanding that religious motivations be tested by applying them to practical situations.
(ⅱ) J. Alfred Prufrock—the victim of Puritanism
Prufrock is a victim of the Puritanism. The Prufrocks are the people who T.S. Eliot is familiar with. On one hand, these kinds of people are timid and sensitive intellectuals in western society. They might come from the upper class. They are well dressed and self-conscious, longing for love; on the other hand, they are afraid of that absurdity would spoil their fame. This is the typical case of the people who have always been born-shortcoming troubled by stirring desire and hope. He is trapped by Puritanism. Though he is longing for love, he dares not to speak it out. It is the belief in Puritanism that Prufrock thinks the sexual relationship between male and female is sin. The over depression of themselves leads them to disorder in spirit, and at last they suffer from serious mental illness. Prufrock is an archetype of modern western people.
Puritanism makes him depressed and hesitate to move forward. On one side, as a believer of Puritanism, just like the characters described in Henry James’ novels, Prufrock is eager to gain experience, which is reflected in puritan culture. He cherishes the illusion of romantic love, dreaming of getting a gentle lover. However, he cannot put his mind into action till the end. On the other side, Prufrock is a person who also has certain life experiences. He knows something about the upper class in Boston: “And I have known all already, known them all---”(line49) in spite of this, he does take further action to long for his ideal lover. “I have measured out my life with coffee spoons”(line51) reflects Prufrock’s detest and his feeling of uneasiness towards the genteel society and the boring life. He also tries his best to escape from it, but his attempt is in vain.
2.1.4 The features of the modern image reflected in this poem
(ⅰ)Timidity--- the very root of Prufrock’s pain leading to his hesitation
To Prufrock, his pain is caused by love and his own timidity. Traditionally, the love song is based on the convincing arguments, complaining about the cruelty and indifference of the lovers, expressing the very pain between the lovers. As usual, when a man wants to pursue a woman, he often tries to persuade her with his vigorous speech, and persuades his lover to cherish the time and to enjoy the happy time with him for the time is so limited and waits for no one.[11] In traditional love poems, though the heroes in the poems may be extremely miserable and also complain about it all the time, he is often confident and never gives up. However, in T.S. Eliot’s poem “Prufrock” the case is completely opposite. J. Alfred Prufrock is timid, shy and lack of confidence. He is a failure figure, a tragic character with certain odd personality. When he faces the pain, he neither outcries loudly to the common people nor tears sadly. However, he prefers to hinder his pain, his desire in his deep heart. This seems to be his merit, but this is just his very reason he fails in the end. He is so depressed that he cannot control his own feeling any more.
In his interior monologue, “Let us go then, you and I, (line1) /When the evening is spread out against the sky (line2)”, Prufrock divides himself into a you and an I---a public outward personality and a thinking, inert sensitive self. The dissociation is continually ascribed to the failure of nerve, an essential timidity. Prufrock does not dare to make his visit to his lover, just as上一页 [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] 下一页
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