Winterbourne and Prufrock

"Winterbourne and Prufrock" When creating his famous poem, "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock", T.S. Eliot was inspired by a character depicted in the novella known as Daisy Miller, written by Henry James. This character, Winterbourne, was intertwined and considered when creating the timid character of Prufrock. It is evident that both men share similar personalities and characteristics that link them together, both being prime examples of emptiness and despair told through theses …

…live in a universe filled with sorrow and despair. The character of Winterbourne can thereafter be thought of as being the beginning of a life that would spiral down into the depths of Prufrock, creating a direct relation between the two. The "self-conscious" writer Henry James created a realistic character, and Eliot took these facts into a deeper consideration to create his "Love Song", describing what he sees as a spiritual death among the living.