While reading this extended passaged I could not help thinking of the Herman Hesse's novel, Steppenwolf. The way Eliot phrases things in this deleted section bring forth the images of a modern city that has some dark mystery behind it. In Steppenwolf you cannot help but feel the same way towards the city (as it is described by the character), but you also can't help feeling the narrator is insane.
Also, this section made me picture a modern-esque setting which contrasts the time period I originally thought Prufrock was set in. The way Eliot uses the language and describes things, it has a very modern feel to it. Without the deleted section I thought Prufrock could take place from the late Victorian period on. Yet with the deleted section, I feel that it has to occur from the 1920s on. It is very strange how different one little part changes everything. |
