Smart and gorgeous
Mr. Shrike, Miss Lonelyhearts’ boss, wasn’t faithful to his wife, neither was she, but still Miss Lonelyhearts found the man disgusting. That evening in a bar wasn’t an exception. Shrike came with a lady whose “great intelligence” and wisdom were highly praised by him. The irony was that he “illustrated the word intelligence by carving two enormous breasts in the air with his hands.” Not to mention that he recommended his companions to look at her “from behind.” Those words showed how little he thought of her and her intelligence.
Money is the reason
Miss Lonelyhearts wasn’t the most diligent worker. One day, when he realized that he was late, the man didn’t run to his office as fast as he could. He “shaved, put a clean shirt and a freshly pressed suit and went out to get something to eat.” When he finished his “second cup of coffee,” it was “too late for him to go to work.” Miss Lonelyhearts wasn’t worried about the work, for Shrike “would never fire him.” Once Miss Lonelyheart “had tried to get fired by recommending suicide in column.” All that Shrike had said to him was: “Remember, please, that your job is to increase the circulation of our paper.” The irony was that his boss had forbidden him to suggest suicide as a possible solution not because he was worried about people, but because he was worried about the sales.
A solution
Since Shrike came to the conclusion that “neither the soil, nor the South Seas, nor Hedonism, nor art, nor suicide, nor drugs” could help them and – eventually – save them from that life they had to lead, he stated that only God was their “escape.” The irony was that both Miss Lonelyhearts and Shrike lost their faith in God long time ago. Shrike couldn’t even speak about it without mocking when Miss Lonelyhearts desperately wanted to rekindle his faith but failed every time. Their “Preventer of Decay” stayed mute to their screams.
