What does the begining of The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock mean?

Question

I think that this may be in Latin but:
S’io credesse che mia risposta fosse
A persona che mai tornasse al mondo,
Questa fiamma staria senza piu scosse.
Ma perciocche giammai di questo fondo
Non torno vivo alcun, s’i’odo il vero,
Senza tema d’infamia ti rispondo.

Answer 1

It means

If I believed that my answer would be
To someone who would ever return to earth,
This flame would move no more,
But because no one from this gulf
Has ever returned alive, if what I hear is true,
I can reply with no fear of infamy.

Answer 2

{The poem begins with a quotation from Dante's Inferno (XXVII, 61-66), which reads:

S`io credesse che mia risposta fosse
A persona che mai tornasse al mondo,
Questa fiamma staria senza piu scosse.
Ma perciocche giammai di questo fondo
Non torno vivo alcun, s'i'odo il vero,
Senza tema d'infamia ti rispondo.
Which translates as:

If I believed that my answer would be
To someone who would ever return to earth,
This flame would move no more,
But because no one from this gulf
Has ever returned alive, if what I hear is true,
I can reply with no fear of infamy.

This introduction may be viewed as a criticism of English society at the beginning of the 20th century}

Eliot wrote Prufrock at about the point where the US was entering WWI. Even though he is criticising English soceity, Eliot was an American.

A lot of artists and theorists began questioning European society and sensibilities as they grew disillusioned by the horrors of WWI. The bit about the dog is a reference to mustard gas.

Answer 3

The passages means:

If I thought that that I was replying to someone who would ever return to the world, this flame would cease to flicker. But since no one ever returns from these depths alive, if what I've heard is true, I will answer you without fear of infamy.

It is taken from Dante Alighieri's Inferno. These words are spoken by Guido da Montefeltro in response to the questions of Dante, and that Guido dude is under the impression that Dante is dead since he is in Hell...

There are numerous sources that will explain that particular quote on line, but this happens to be one of my favorite poems and the information I have on it is actually from a college paper that I did on it. The interpretation of the quote is fairly standard, but my source is the Norton Anthology of American Literature.

Answer 4

i grow old, i grow old., shall i wear my trousers rolled? dare i eat a peach? alas, i'm beginning to understand these lines as well