Prufrock and Other Observations is the name of the collection The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock belongs to. This song was written in 1917 and has a difficult title because tells about a difficult man. He doesn't dare because he's afraid of the consequences of his act.

The poem opens with an epigraph from La divina commedia by Dante Alighieri in which Guido Da Montefeltro reveals his secret. He does this because he is in the hell so his secret will remain there for all eternity.

In the first stanza of the poem the setting is a city deserted and tedious. J.A. Prufrock speaks with his consciousness and compares the city to a narcotized patient on a table.

The refrain is typical of ballads and songs and gives the poem unity: "In the room the women come and go Talking of Michelangelo." symbolized the vulgarity of Elliot's time. Elliots believes that not all people can talk about a genius as Michelangelo.

In the second stanza the setting is described through the use of past, cat's movements, sight and colors. Great poets can be recognize by how they use their colors.

The concept of time and contemporary life's ritual are central: "There will be time, there will be time" also Prufrock as the protagonist of Eveline by Joyce can't decide, he is paralized. He is afraid to reveal himself. Prufrock's time through his thoughts, feelings, inability to act.

T.S. Elliot render the inconsistency of live and uses a middle-age man as the protagonist of his song.

Other people see only ours appearance.

Prufrock's love song is a failure, he has lost but he asks himself "Would it have been worth while?".