Prufrock and Other Observations

The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock is an ode to being on the outside, looking in, and not being sure about what you see there. Prufrock (the narrator of the poem) thinks himself a fool, a prince, a messenger, he contemplates an overwhelming question, he dares to eat a peach, and part his hair from behind, and even when he grows old (and wears the ends of his trousers rolled), he does this all alone.