Novel as a Stimulant in Instilling Empathy and Sympathy in Character Education: A Case Study of Arah Langkah, a Novel by Fiersa Besari Dyah Prabaningrum 1 , Rahayu Pristiwati 2 , Sumartini 3 , Sheila Zairoturaudloh 4 Department of Indonesian Language and Literature, Faculty of Languages and Arts, Universitas Negeri Semarang, Indonesia 1,2,3,4 {dyahprabaningrum@mail.unnes.ac.id 1 } Abstract. Among the forms of communication is intercultural communication. Intercultural communication aims to share information between individuals or groups with different cultural backgrounds. This type of communication is used by both parties to understand each other and accept the differences in society. However, cultural intolerance in society often hinders intercultural communication. Such an issue can be minimized by promoting empathy and sympathy between communicators and communicants, thus resulting in a harmonious life, which resonates with the third principle of Pancasila. In this regard, sympathy and empathy are defined as a psychological condition representing tolerance acts to others. Each of these terms has their interpretations. Empathy [2] is described as a person's attitude when thinking about other people’s feelings without losing self-identity, meaning that the person is neutral when responding to something. Sympathy, on the other hand, is how a person thinks about others or to take part in someone else’s feelings with less self-identity attached to this process. At this point, the person or observer is no longer neutral. Many people are running out of sympathy and empathy. According to the data by Suara.com[1], 65 percent of people in today’s modern society are losing their empathy. They argue that having too much empathy means that a person disregards rationality. Nevertheless, losing empathy signifies the loss of feeling or motivation to help one another. A recent study at Pennsylvania State University [1] reveals that the majority of people believe that being empathetic only drains their mental energy. Sympathy and empathy are a condition that forms the quality of being humane in oneself. Considering this, cultivating empathy and sympathy is necessary. Among the approaches to conceptualize this is character education. Learning literary work is one of the overarching and adaptive approaches in character education to cultivate the two attitudes for people who expect flexibility in learning and enjoyable experiences. In the present study, a novel entitled Arah Langkah by Fiersa Besari was selected to be the medium for instilling empathy and sympathy. The objective of the present work was to explore, through psychological criticism, the qualities of the two attitudes in the novel as a medium of character education. In this narrative research,the data were discussed using a hermeneutic approach. The result finds several qualities of ICONS 2020, November 30, Tegal, Indonesia Copyright © 2021 EAI DOI 10.4108/eai.30-11-2020.2303708