Miss Lonelyhearts Literary Elements

A novel

The story takes place in New York of the 1830s. An advice columnist experiences a crisis of faith, which develops into a life crisis.

The story is told from the third-person point of view by an omniscient narrator.

Because of the worrying events described in the story, the tone is gloomy and the mood is uneasy.

Miss Lonelyhearts is the protagonist of the story. His hysteria is the antagonist of the story.

The major conflict is man vs. self. Ms. Lonelyhearts has to fight his own anxiety and come through a crisis of faith.

Betty’s pregnancy and their decision to start a family was the climax of the story.

“The Kingdom of Heaven would arrive. He would sit on the right hand of the Lamb.” Later on, he had a dream in which he killed the Lamb. That foreshadowed the events of the story, for it became clear that there was no chance for him to return to a life he used to lead before he became Ms. Lonelyhearts.

Then someone started a train of stories by suggesting that what they all needed was a good rape.
The men spoke about a rape as if it was something pleasant and not illegal at all.

The novel alludes to the Bible, Back, Beethoven, Matisse, Picasso, Titian, Brahms and the Brothers Karamazov.

There is an imagery of hysteria.

The Miss Lonelyhearts of The New York Post – Dispatch (Are-you-in-trouble? – Do-you-need-advice? – Write – to – Miss – Lonelyhearts – and – she – will – help – you) sat at his desk and stared at a piece of white cardboard.

Christ, Christ, Jesus Christ. Christ, Christ, Jesus Christ.

He welcomes the job, for it might lead to a gossip column, and anyway he’s tired of being a leg man. (A leg man is metonymy that represents a reporter that gathers information by visiting news.)
The first thing she put on the table was a quart bottle of guinea red. (Guinea red is synecdoche that represents wine.)

This time his bed was surely taking him somewhere, and with great speed.