The Bible’s Influence on Miss Lonelyhearts

王龍艷

Abstract： Nathaniel Wests Miss Lonelyhearts is a novel about an unnamed male newspaper columnist named Miss Lonelyhearts. This paper aims to explore the Bibles influence in this novel， which is reflected not only in some biblical allusions but also in the “Christ complex” in Miss Lonelyhearts.

Key words： Miss Lonelyhearts， Bible， allusion， Christ complex

中圖分類號：I712.074 ? ? ?文獻標識碼：A ? ? ? ?文章編號：1005-5312（2016）33-0284-01

Miss Lonelyhearts is a novel of despair. It mirrors the Christian teachings as well as giving some biblical allusions， both from the Old Testament and the New Testament in many aspects. Besides， the protagonist Miss Lonelyhearts himself has a “Christ complex”， a blind belief in Jesus Christ as a way out of a world devoid of values.

An allusion of the blood and bread in the Last Supper in the New Testament is embodied in the novel in sentences like “‘I am a great saint， the editor Shrike cried， ‘I can walk on my own water. Havent you ever heard of Shrikes Passion in the Luncheonette， or the Agony in the Soda Fountain？”（West 7）. Shrike compares himself to Jesus Christ by alluding to Jesuss walk on the sea and the persecution of Jesus in the last supper. Jesuss walk on the sea is reflected in Gospel of Matthew 14 and Gospel of Mark 6 and Gospel of John 6 as “the Luncheonette” and “the Agony in the Soda Fountain” just symbolizes Jesuss last supper. “Drink from it， all of you. This is my blood of the covenant， which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.” （Matthew， 26：26-29）. Jesus is the sacrifice for all human beings sin， and Shrike is pretending this role by talking big， which implies Shrikes innocence and vulgarity as a false believer. He dares to compare himself to Jesus and imagines having the same experience that Jesus has gone through.

In addition， Miss Lonelyhearts holds a strong sense of “Christ complex”. He dreams to have selected a youngest lamb with friends in the market to sacrifice to God before barbecuing it. Along the way， they sang the song of “Mary had a little lamb”. Similarly， in the Old Testament， the first sacrifice offered up to God is made by Cain and Abel in Genesis 3：5. Abel sacrifices to the Lord with the flesh of the youngest lamb and later it becomes a tradition to sacrifice the lamb to God to show Christians piety. Acts of Miss Lonelyhearts indicate his religious piety towards God in secular life. Besides， the prayer printed by Shrike says： “Soul of Miss L， glorify me. Body of Miss L， nourish me…Miss L， help me， help me. In saecula saeculorum. Amen.”（West 1） In the prayer， Miss Lonelyhearts is supposed to be assuming the role of the Jesus Christ， the God who relieves peoples pain， gives redemption to sinners， and sacrifices his own body， soul， blood， and tears for peoples wellbeing. Miss Lonelyhearts takes the job as a comforter for the poor in spiritual life as well as a sincere lover of God in the worldly life. Faith is just a way out of pain and sorrow for all the desperate readers of the column. They choose Miss Lonelyhearts just as the Jews choose Jesus Christ.

However， taxidermy is not religion， “better a live bird in the jungle of the body than stuffed birds on the library table”. （West 9） It ironizes those hypocrite Christian believers who place their hope and life in God as an omnipotent force to rely on. It is not true but decorative. The disappointment generated from the gap is destined to trigger the sway in faith.

Religion was supposed to be a powerful weapon against the spiritual depression as well as the physical suffering in the depression-stricken 1930s America. That is why the “almighty” protagonist embraces his “Christ complex” all the time. However， once faith is frustrated by reality， darkness remains dark. Religion functions both as salvation and devastation.

參考文獻：

[1]West， Nathaniel. Miss Lonelyhearts&The Day of the Locust. New York： A New Directions Paperbook， 1993. Print.

[2]Widmer， Kingsley. “The Religious Masquerade： Miss Lonelyhearts.” Nathanael West. Boston： Twayne Publishers， 1982. Print.