Introduction
Literature is often referred to as the mirror of the society because it depicts the on-going situations in the society using various characters. Fictional characters such as J. Alfred Prufrock and Nick Adams have been used in various works so that they can represent some characters in the Society.
Thesis Statement: J. Alfred Prufrock and Nick Adams have various similarities and differences as characters as well as some ways to which they represent the ‘modern man' that lives in the current society.
The two characters are used in different works by different authors and they unintentionally represent many things that happen in the society. Nick Adams is a fictional character who appears in Ernest Hemmingway's short stories of the 1920s and 1930s. Some of the short stories include The Indian Camp, Three Shorts and much more. J. Alfred Prufrock is also another fictional character that has been used by T. S. Elliot in the poem known as the “Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock”.
Similarities
There are similarities in character traits that are noticeable in the two fictional characters. Even though they have been used by different authors and in different pieces of literature, both Nick Adams and J. Alfred Prufrock have been portrayed as naïve and nervous. In the ‘Indian Camp’, Nick’s father who is a doctor insists that Nick as to watch as he performs a surgical procedure on a patient. But Nick keeps avoids paying attention to that and perhaps he may be considered premature to engage in such exercise (Shmoop Para 1). Likewise, J. Alfred Prufrock is also considered a shy, nervous or even a naïve man. In the "Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock," J. Alfred Prufrock is depicted as someone who fears engaging women on seduction because he has had adverse experiences where women talk ill about his looks. He is, therefore, leading a reserved kind of life perhaps because he fears rejection (Isbell Para 2). Another similarity is that the two characters have some sort of inferiority complex within them. Nick Adams has the perception what his father requires of him is somewhat too complex for him and he is not ready for it but his father, George, wants him to learn. J. Alfred Prufrock, on the other hand, has inferiority and that is why he avoids women.
Differences
However much there are similarities in the character traits of the two selected characters, there are also other myriad differences in thoughts, feelings, environment and even the anticipated perceptions that the characters are likely to have. The first line of difference can be derived from the fact that the two people belong to different ages and that is why they may behave in some way. Nick Adams is a young man who is about to end his teenage. J. Alfred Prufrock, on the other hand, is a mature man who is in the right age for dating and marriage but he has social interaction problem. J. Alfred Prufrock is worried about his environment especially with women scrutinizing his look. He has the feeling that the world is against him and such explains the origin of his precautionary behavior to social interactions with women (Isbell Para4). Nick Adams, on the other hand, has a supportive environment and he does not view the environment as hostile hence he can interact with anyone. The only problem is that his behavior is limited to age. It can, therefore, be derived that exhibit contrasting worldviews. As Nick Adams views the world in normal perspective, J. Alfred Prufrock views it as a biased one.
How they represent the “Modern man”
In these various works, the two characters have been used to depict the current situations that the ‘modern' man is going through. Nick Adams is thrown into confusion as he blossoms and approaches adulthood. It is not doubted that he is perplexed at the life choices and the demands of his father. These are circumstances that many young people often find themselves in at the same age. He is also developing the fear of adulthood and marriage. Young mostly get confused and anxious when they reach the age of transitioning to adulthood (Hemingway Para 8). Also, J. Alfred Prufrock is a man who has reached the age where he is required to marry but he is unlikely to sanction such a move because of his fearful nature. He has an inferiority complex and he considers women to be against him in many ways. He is a person that has high self-consciousness and may also be described as overly paranoid (Mandal and Modak 5). This kind of behavior is exhibited by many young men who find it cumbersome or even too complicated to ask women out or to date them. They both represent the ‘modern’ man living in the current society.
Conclusion
The two chosen characters have exhibited various similarities and differences in their traits. These happen because they have various roles that they need to fulfill in the works of literature that they have been slotted in. With literature being used as the yardstick of what goes on in the society; the two characters have also satisfactorily shown some of the circumstances that the modern men have to undergo.
Work Cited
Hemingway, Ernest. "In Our Time. 1925." New York: Scribners (1996).
Isbell, Lea. "Apprehensive Alfred: A Character Analysis of J. Alfred Prufrock".Liloving. 2017. Available at: https://litlovinglea.wordpress.com/2012/10/21/apprehensive-alfred-a-character-analysis-of-j-alfred-prufrock/
Mandal, Annesha, and Arindam Modak. "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock: A Postmodern Poem with a Postmodern Hero." The Criterion: An International Journal in English 12 (2013): 1-6.
Shmoop. “Nick Adams”. Shmoop University. 2017. Available at: http://www.shmoop.com/indian-camp/nick-adams.html
