Paste your essay in here…Introduction (half of it, and a very rough draft of it):
Within both of their lifetimes, Stephen King and Anthony Burgess wrote numerous fictional books, both often revolving around dystopian societies reflecting the flaws of our own. Although Burgess has a very broad range of literary genres, Stephen remained mostly within the realm of science fiction and horror, yet both writers had a talent in manipulating readers. They both gave their narrators incredibly persuasive voices, and were maticulous in their writing. However, I wondered, what the merit is of looking at a voice? Voices are vital in aiding a reader to take a stance on the characters. The skill an author has in manipulating voices can have such a grand effect that readers can be convinced the antagonist may be a protagonist after all. In my essay, I will be analysing a voice and it’s perspective and role in manipulating the audience towards feelings of sympathy for the antagonist of the two novels Misery by Stephen King and A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess. A voice, in the context of my essay, is a specific and often unique characteristic speech and thought patterns of the narrator of a work, often being fiction. In the two works I will be analysing, the main voices I will focus on are those of Alex, in A Clockwork Orange and Paul Sheldon in Misery. Interestingly, although Alex is the narrator and main character, there seems to be a highly significant difference between his present self, who is the narrator, and the character’s life he is narrating, which was his own several years ago leading up to the present. Paul Sheldon on the other hand, narrates his story as he lives it. Although we realize in both novels fairly quickly who the ill-wisher is, (Annie in Misery and the younguer Alex in A Clockwork Orange), both authors write so convincingly that the reader manages to develop an almost parental empathy for both antagonists, viewing them and their crimes as infantile and innocent. Burgess writes about the most gruesome events with the least elegance, making horrid acts seem casual, and easy to embrace for the reader. Through their writting, both authors have produced supposedly thoroughly unlikeable people, however, the reader adopts a view the view of believing that nobody is wholy good or wholy bad, and give way for the characters “mistakes” (which is an understatement for both Alex and Annie) to be acceptable.
To add in Intro: 6 arguments, and criticism, and noteworthy writing techniques – metafiction for instance, metaphores, and shifts in writing style – which were highly significant and why they more significant than other techniques in terms of their impact)
6 arguments:
Body paragraphs: 1-3 → A Clockwork Orange:
Scope and Scale: Past vs. Persent – How there are different writing styles for different events in the book (mention music and Beethoven and how Ludovico experiment changed his love for classical music into disgust). Mention that Alex tells his story to the readers, whom he repeatedly addresses as you, "o my brothers (p.1)." The function of this personal address is to implicate the readers. Alex assumes that we will understand him and his actions sympathetically and identify with him because we are like him–we're brothers. Key point about first-person narration–it creates sympathy for the teller. In this case, first-person narration creates sympathy for the devil when he tells his side of the story. Which is one reason why Alex's evil actions don't simply repel us.
Narrative Structre:
→ The structure of the story is symmetrical: the three sections with seven chapters in each section for a total of twenty-one, symbolic meaning: the age of adulthood.
→ Part 1 (page 1-74): Alex the Bad (mainly violent, killing of Cat Lady and the betrayal of his Droogie)
→ Part 2: (page 75-129): Rehabilitation of Alex and his transition from “bad Alex” to “Good Alex”. Idea of “True Christian” (someone who who turns the other cheek, a good-dooer, non-violent) in Ludovico treatment, his 2 year prison experience, his ultimate true christian performance before his release
→ Part 3 (page 130-192): Alex's adventures in Goodness. Returns to “Alex the Bad”. Mention Alex's experience as Good and his attempted suicide, cure and return to his former self.
Philosophy behind A clockwork Orange, especislly the significance of the language Nadsat: how it helps the reader see that Alex is insightful, witty and most of all has a very deep and peculiar intellectual capacity. Include theme of drugs and drinking, beethoven and Mozart, ludovico experiment, Dim becoming a police officer and alex’s return to the home of the writer of a clockwork orange).
→ What's it going to be then, eh? How this sentence changes meaning in each part, (Part 1: uses it to ask his droogs what violent crime to perform. Part 2: question posed by Prison Charlie. This time, it’s a moral question addressed to the prisoners: What will you choose, good or evil? And Part 3, on page 130, Alex is addressing the question to himself after his "reclamation" and subsequent release. For the first time he is forced to think about his actions! However it is repeated again when he asks his droogs what to do in the very last chapter of the book, page 180. This is a repition of the opening of the novel in part 1. The last appearance of this crucial sentence is when Alex finally asks it to the readers on page 191.
→ Ending of the novel: closes with Alex contemplating changing and giving up his life of violence, finding and wife and settling down. Beginning a new chapter of a different life.
→ Importance of Alex revisiting the key places and people of Part 1 in part 3. Home, Music store, Korova Milkbar. The teacher, the drunk, Dim and Billy Boy and HOME.
His present self, the author, his other works and criticism (it’s good to fnd sources who disagreee with you so you can counter argue to strengthen your points).
Body paragraphs 4-6 → Misery
Paul and Annies relationship, how Stephen King made it intimate → NOVRIL Drug! How his addiction laid the building blocks for an incredibly complex relationship, the literary significance of Sheldon going back for Novril after Annie was injured rather than escaping, and foreshadowing in the book, and how King use Foreshading a lot
Critism of his works, as well as my own (mention 3 books I read critiquing his works, and counter argue or agree!)
Find another main argument! Focus on literary aspect of book!!!
Body paragraph 7:
How it all ties in together, why those two books, their links, and the similarities between burgess and king, and how it was reflected in their writing.
Conclusion:
In “A Clockwork Orange”: Alex’s perspective seemingly does manipulate the audience towards feelings of sympathy despite all his atrocities, because we see the suffering he goes through whilst undergoing the Ludovico experiment, and many literary techniques — prose, diction, (shifts in) writing style, allegory, euphemisms, irony, symbolism, imagery, dark humour, genre, tone, but most importantly, the NARRATIVE STRUCTURE — aid the reader in ultimately feeling immense pain and sympathy for this violent and cruel teenager.
Recap points, mention quote from Burgess
In “Misery”: Although written through the eyes of Paul, we see Annie’s never ending hope to hear the end of the book series. The techniques King uses (metafiction, his sparing use of punctuation, his incorporation of italics for emphasis on specific moments, the tone, setting, incorporation of the protagonists novel, and his structuring of sentences which carry on like a continuing realm of unconscious thought) allow us to see to what extent Annie is willing to go, so much so that the reader almost pitties her. Mention quote by King (from Nightshift):
Overall interpretation of the phylosophy behind a C.O., what “digging deeper” has led me to understand literarily in Misery, and mention the critism found on JSTORE