A Little Lost
"The yellow fog that rubs its back upon the window-panes,
The yellow smoke that rubs its muzzle on the window-panes,
Licked its tongue into the corners of the evening,
Lingered upon the pools that stand in drains,
Let fall upon its back the soot that falls from chimneys,
Slipped by the terrace, made a sudden leap,
And seeing that it was a soft October night,
Curled once about the house, and fell asleep." (The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock)
I think I remember studying this poem once in high school. My favorite part of the poem is the above passage. I like how Eliot described the scene as if the yellow fog and smoke were a dog. I thought this imagery was interesting because through out the poem there are several references and scenes about roaming the streets. The way Eliot describes the yellow smoke and fog allowed me to picture a dog roaming the streets. I found this passage to be the easiest for me to understand. I was really confused on most of the other passages.
0 TrackBacks
Listed below are links to blogs that reference this entry: A Little Lost.
TrackBack URL for this entry: http://blogs.setonhill.edu/mt/mt_tbasiut8dsfh.cgi/12705
Katie, how does the poet's choice to compare the fog/smoke to a dog help you to make sense of the poem? Why does the image of a dog roaming the streets matter to this poem?
You're right, there are several street scenes, though there are also interior scenes and nature scenes.
What does it do to the poem, if the yellow fog is presented to us like a friendly animal? What does fog usually do to our vision? How might foggy vision affect the speaker? Is he more likely to be frustrated that the fog reduces his ability to see, or is he more likely to feel comforted that he can hide in the fog? What evidence from the poem supports either interpretation?
Maybe next time, if there is a passage that you find confusing, you could pick that as your agenda item and you could explain what you find confusing, and hazard a guess at the significance of that the passage. The simple act of formulating a question about a confusing passage, and perhaps the responses your peers leave, will be good practice in literary interpretation.
Don't forget to add a link from this page, back to the course page devoted to this reading.