'We are not encouraged to find much sympathy with the characters in A Clockwork Orange

'We are not encouraged to find much sympathy for any of the characters'. Explore the methods Burgess uses to develop sympathy in 'A Clockwork Orange'. Anthony Burgess uses a number of devices to evoke both sympathy and empathy from the reader, most notably in the direction of the novella's protagonist. Alex's first person narrative thrusts the reader into the dystopian world Burgess creates and the twisted actions he undertakes as a part of his drug-fuelled 'ultra-violence'. Despite this, the reader is also forced into grasping the understanding of the morally disturbed character and Burgess cleverly manipulates Alex as a representation of the young and troubled generation. The plot itself equally contributes to the readers feeling towards Alex as he additionally becomes a government subject; torturing his mind to remove any capacity of evil and the subsequent downward spiral his life takes. But Burgess continually begs the question: is it possible to feel sympathy for a character capable of the most disgraceful crimes? Structurally, Burgess uses the formation of the novella itself and the division of the parts as a method of finding empathy for Alex. Each part begins with the same question to the reader: "What's it going to be then, eh?" which at the start appears innocuous as they decide on their night's dwellings. But this is repeated in the beginning of the second part

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  • Word count: 1216
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: English
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