Quotes from The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock and Other Poems

“For I have known them all already, known them all—
Have known the evenings, mornings, afternoons,
I have measured out my life with coffee spoons.”
― T.S. Eliot, quote from The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock and Other Poems

“We have lingered in the chambers of the sea
By sea-girls wreathed with seaweed red and brown
Till human voices wake us... and we drown.”
― T.S. Eliot, quote from The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock and Other Poems

“And would it have been worth it, after all,
Would it have been worth while,
After the sunsets and the dooryards and the sprinkled streets,
After the novels, after the teacups, after the skirts that trail along the floor -
And this, and so much more? -”
― T.S. Eliot, quote from The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock and Other Poems

“I have seen the moment of my greatness flicker, and I have seen the eternal Footman hold my coat, and snicker, and in short, I was afraid.”
― T.S. Eliot, quote from The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock and Other Poems

“I grow old … I grow old …
I shall wear the bottoms of my trousers rolled.”
― T.S. Eliot, quote from The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock and Other Poems

“I should have been a pair of ragged claws/ Scuttling across the floors of silent seas.”
― T.S. Eliot, quote from The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock and Other Poems

“I have measured out my life in coffee spoons.”
― T.S. Eliot, quote from The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock and Other Poems

“Should I, after tea and cakes and ices,
Have the strength to force the moment to its crisis?
But though I have wept and fasted, wept and prayed,
Though I have seen my head (grown slightly bald) brought in upon a platter,
I am no prophet--and here's no great matter;
I have seen the moment of my greatness flicker,
I have seen the eternal Footman hold my coat, and snicker,
And in short, I was afraid. ”
― T.S. Eliot, quote from The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock and Other Poems

“Would it have been worth while,
To have bitten off the matter with a smile,
To have squeezed the universe into a ball
To roll it towards some overwhelming question”
― T.S. Eliot, quote from The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock and Other Poems

“It is impossible to say just what I mean!”
― T.S. Eliot, quote from The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock and Other Poems

“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”
― T.S. Eliot, quote from The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock and Other Poems

“Shall I part my hair behind? Do I dare to eat a peach?”
― T.S. Eliot, quote from The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock and Other Poems

“Now that lilacs are in bloom
She has a bowl of lilacs in her room
And twists one in her fingers while she talks.
"Ah, my friend, you do not know, you do not know
What life is, you who hold it in your hands";
(slowly twisting the lilac stalks)
"You let it flow from you, you let it flow,
And youth is cruel, and has no remorse
And smiles at situations which it cannot see."
I smile, of course,
And go on drinking tea.”
― T.S. Eliot, quote from The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock and Other Poems

“Oh, do not ask, 'What is it?'/Let us go and make our visit.”
― T.S. Eliot, quote from The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock and Other Poems

“I am no prophet—and here’s no great matter;
I have seen the moment of my greatness flicker,
And I have seen the eternal Footman hold my coat, and snicker,
And in short, I was afraid.”
― T.S. Eliot, quote from The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock and Other Poems

“And through the spaces of the dark
Midnight shakes the memory
As a madman shakes a dead geranium.”
― T.S. Eliot, quote from The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock and Other Poems

“Every street lamp that I pass
Beats like a fatalistic drum,
And through the spaces of the dark
Midnight shakes the memory
As a madman shakes a dead geranium.”
― T.S. Eliot, quote from The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock and Other Poems

“And I must borrow every changing shape
To find expression ... dance, dance
Like a dancing bear,
Cry like a parrot, chatter like an ape.
Let us take the air, in a tobacco trance”
― T.S. Eliot, quote from The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock and Other Poems

“And indeed there will be time
To wonder, "Do I dare?" and, "Do I dare?"
Time to turn back and descend the stair,
With a bald spot in the middle of my hair—
(They will say: "How his hair is growing thin!")
My morning coat, my collar mounting firmly to the chin,
My necktie rich and modest, but asserted by a simple pin—
(They will say: "But how his arms and legs are thin!")
Do I dare
Disturb the universe?
In a minute there is time
For decisions and revisions which a minute will reverse”
― T.S. Eliot, quote from The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock and Other Poems

“You are invulnerable, you have no Achilles’ heel.
You will go on, and when you have prevailed
You can say: at this point many a one has failed.
But what have I, but what have I, my friend,
To give you, what can you receive from me?
Only the friendship and the sympathy
Of one about to reach her journey’s end.”
― T.S. Eliot, quote from The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock and Other Poems

“For I have known them all already,known them all.
Have known the evenings, mornings, afternoons,
I have measured out my life with coffee spoons;
I know the voices dying with a dying fall,
Beneath the music from a farther room. So how should I presume?”
― T.S. Eliot, quote from The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock and Other Poems

“Sovegna vos.
Here are the years that walk between, bearing
Away the fiddles and the flutes, restoring
One who moves in the time between sleep and waking, wearing
White light folded, sheathed about her, folded.
The new years walk, restoring
Through a bright cloud of tears, the years, restoring
With a new verse the ancient rhyme. Redeem
The time. Redeem
The unread vision in the higher dream
While jewelled unicorns draw by the gilded hearse.”
― T.S. Eliot, quote from The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock and Other Poems

“Streets that follow like a tedious argument
Of insidious intent
To lead you to an overwhelming question...”
― T.S. Eliot, quote from The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock and Other Poems

“I have seen the eternal Footman snicker hold my coat, and snicker. And in short I was afraid...”
― T.S. Eliot, quote from The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock and Other Poems

“I have measured out my life with coffee spoons”
― T.S. Eliot, quote from The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock and Other Poems

“And indeed there will be time
To wonder, “Do I dare?” and, “Do I dare?”
Time to turn back and descend the stair,”
― T.S. Eliot, quote from The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock and Other Poems

“And when all the world came back And the light crept up between the shutters, And you heard the sparrows in the gutters, You had such a vision of the street As the street hardly understands;”
― T.S. Eliot, quote from The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock and Other Poems

“Let us take the air, in a tobacco trance,
Admire the moments
Discuss the late events,
Correct our watches by the public clocks.
Then sit for half an hour and drink our bocks.”
― T.S. Eliot, quote from The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock and Other Poems

“I have measured out my life with coffee spoons;
I know the voices dying with a dying fall
Beneath the music from a farther room.
So how should I presume?”
― T.S. Eliot, quote from The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock and Other Poems

“I grow old … I grow old …I shall wear the bottoms of my trousers rolled.
Shall I part my hair behind?
Do I dare to eat a peach?
I shall wear white flannel trousers, and walk upon the beach.
I have heard the mermaids singing, each to each.
I do not think that they will sing to me.”
― T.S. Eliot, quote from The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock and Other Poems

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BookQuoters is a community of passionate readers who enjoy sharing the most meaningful, memorable and interesting quotes from great books. As the world communicates more and more via texts, memes and sound bytes, short but profound quotes from books have become more relevant and important. For some of us a quote becomes a mantra, a goal or a philosophy by which we live. For all of us, quotes are a great way to remember a book and to carry with us the author’s best ideas.

We thoughtfully gather quotes from our favorite books, both classic and current, and choose the ones that are most thought-provoking. Each quote represents a book that is interesting, well written and has potential to enhance the reader’s life. We also accept submissions from our visitors and will select the quotes we feel are most appealing to the BookQuoters community.

Founded in 2023, BookQuoters has quickly become a large and vibrant community of people who share an affinity for books. Books are seen by some as a throwback to a previous world; conversely, gleaning the main ideas of a book via a quote or a quick summary is typical of the Information Age but is a habit disdained by some diehard readers. We feel that we have the best of both worlds at BookQuoters; we read books cover-to-cover but offer you some of the highlights. We hope you’ll join us.