According to the Merriam Webster Dictionary, empathy is defined as, “the ability to understand and share the feelings of another”. For one to be empathetic towards a group that is currently in a state of oppression, one must experience oppression themselves. In the novel The Wall, David, based on the idea that Palestine is the enemy, it sparks David’s interest in fighting and going to war with the Palestinians. Joshua, the protagonist disagrees with David after his experience visiting the other side and getting to know a Palestinian family. Joshua, under oppression in his own house because Liev sees Joshua as a mislead teenager who is unable to see right from wrong, then becomes empathetic towards Palestinians because he relates to Palestine’s disagreements with Israel and Palestine’s oppression from Israel. In The Wall, Sutcliffe portrays the …show more content…
‘“Well, it’s possible,’ he says. ‘I bet there are tunnels. They’ll do anything to blow us up. They’re crazy”’ (Sutcliffe 67). David lives up to the stereotype that Israelis and Palestinians are enemies. David looks forward to the constant war and fighting between the nations and to the oppression he will cause to the Palestinians. Sutcliffe is able to develop Joshua’s empathy for the Palestinians by creating relatable experiences of oppression for him, to enable him to develop an empathetic stance of the other side. First, Joshua is under oppression and the minority from David because of their disagreements over the Palestinians. Secondly, Joshua is under oppression in his own household; his mother does not trust him enough to leave the household, while his step-father thinks of him as an irresponsible teenager who does not follow the rules. These examples allow an empathetic relationship between Joshua and Palestine, causing Joshua to run away from his home and create problems within his