Who is Binx in The Moviegoer?

Binx, or Binx Bolling, to give him his full name, is the protagonist of the story. He's a stock-broker who lives a dull, ordinary existence in a drab suburb of post-war New Orleans. A troubled young man, Binx finds it difficult to establish meaningful, fulfilling relationships with other people. He finds it so much easier to remain in a world of fantasy, fueled by his avid reading and regular visits to the movies.
In a heroic effort to break out of his ordinary workaday existence, Binx embarks upon a spiritual quest to find God. It is this central feature of the book's narrative that has drawn comparison with Dante's Divine Comedy. Unlike Dante, however, Binx never achieves anything vaguely resembling beatitude. And his suicidal cousin Kate, to whom he eventually proposes marriage, is certainly no Beatrice.