on beauty-ending

I think that Howard was unhappy with how his life was going towards the beginning of the book, and so he messed everything up to start over.  I've already written this, but Howard seemed miserable about his family and job.  He always talked about his job, but he seemed either bored or extremely unhappy with it.  He also was married to a woman who used to be physically beautiful, but wasn't anymore.  He did not get along with his children either, he almost disliked them from this thoughts about them.  I think that is why he committed the affair.  Maybe he just needed a break from his life, or he wanted a way out.  I think it was one of those two things.  It was why he had an affair with a woman who was opposite of Kiki in every way.  Their race, weight, education; they were different in every way.  Then at the party when Kiki saw him with Claire, they were almost flirting at his household in front of his wife; I do not know what else he would expect to happen other then getting caught.  He then fails at the end of the book when he completely blows his speech in Boston.  I think subconsciously he must have wanted to fail, maybe to start off again somewhere else, almost start a new life.