Compassion And Empathy In Jane Higgins's 'The Bridge'

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A character will always face many difficulties and challenges throughout their journey’s. The journey’s and hardships they face, generates emotions within a reader such as compassion and empathy. Written by Jane Higgins, The Bridge (2011) is based on a dystopian world, facing continuous war, death and conflict. Higgins has used a range of literary devices to convey Nik and Fyffe’s journey across the bridge. Nik and Fyffe, together face a lot of journey’s comprising of negative and positive difficulties and obstacles. Which triggers the reader to feel compassion and empathy towards the characters.
Journeys are portrayed as one of the central ideas perpetually shown throughout the novel. Nik and Fyffe’s journey’s and challenges, enables the reader to relate to the novel understanding the characters and the situations that occur. In the …show more content…

This event creates chaos between Nik and his friends, resulting in their separation. This is a key part in one of Fyffe and Niks’ journey’s. Higgins’ use of alliteration and visual imagery in, “In the dark, a blast blew the bones of the building apart,” emphasis on the keywords, blast, blew, bones, building. Physically destroying the building, the blast causes death and injuries within the citizens. Thus, it creates compassion and empathy within the reader, as we are able to understand how the characters would feel. The utilization of vigorous, emotional words, plays a role in the empathy and compassion shown by the reader. Personification is also used in this quote, to help the readers visualise the situation. As stated in the novel, the ‘bones’ of the building get destroyed and effectively crumble just as the citizens do. Both the Nik and Fyffe, concur journey’s together, such as the crossing of the bridge. Living in Cityside, they must cross the bridge to reach Southside and find Sol. Higgins uses