ection of sexes, and of all human beings in general. The nature of humans to find satisfaction and relief through sexual contact and relationships is expressed The rowdy men at Delehante’s bar often make references to their need for sexual encounters with women. Miss Lonelyhearts’ character also refers to the satisfaction which women can provide him, "What he really needed was a woman. He laughed again, remembering that at college all of his friends had believed intercourse capable of steadying the nerves, relaxing the muscles and clearing the blood." (19) Miss Lonelyhearts’ isolation from others is stressed, not only in his name, but by West’s vivid description. For example, "He lived by himself in a room that was as full of shadows as an old steel engraving." (8) The contrast between the "Desperate, Sick-of-It-All, Disillusioned," writers and Miss Lonelyhearts becomes less pronounced as the novel develops. The pessimistic and absurdist attitude expressed by Nathanael West in Miss Lonelyhearts is similar to that of Camus, and Camus’s outlook indicated by his works: The Myth of Sisyphus and The Stranger. West and Camus illustrate that nothing in our world can provide people with the answers, values or morals which they believe are needed in their lives. West depicts men as isolated beings; men who are unable to assist or love one another. ...
