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Thesis on the curious incident of the dog in night time
Thesis on the curious incident of the dog in night time
The curious incident of the dog in the nightime analyzation
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The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon is a novel about an adolescent diagnosed with Asperger's syndrome. Christopher solves the mystery concerning Mrs. Shear’s dog’s death. This boy, Christopher Boone, has a preternatural ability in mathematics, but is emotionally blind due to his autistic qualities. Christopher also has other qualities: he hates being touched, he hates the color yellow, and does not like being lied to. Truth affects many situations in the novel, because Christopher is sensitive to lying. Mark Haddon portrays truth in the Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time to show that lack of truth can lead to the destruction of families.
Truth is shown in this novel because Christopher is kept from
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knowing the truth about his mother. As Christopher is looking for the book that he wrote about Wellington's death, he finds letters addressed to him in his father’s clothes cupboard. The letters surprise him because Christopher never receives letters, so decides to read the letters after he greets his father downstairs. As he briefly starts reading the fourth letter: “Then I stopped reading the letter because I felt sick. Mother had not had a heart attack. Mother had not died. Mother had been alive all this time. And Father had lied about this” (Haddon 112). This is the first time Christopher realizes that “Father had lied about this”. Christopher “felt sick” because he cannot understand lies. All this time his “mother had not had a heart attack” and he did not know. Christopher had been lied to about his mother. This discovery is the first step into the destruction of Christopher’s family. Mark Haddon demonstrates more examples of truth in The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time.
Christopher discovers the truth about his mother, however there is more that has not been discovered about the incident. After his father gives him a bath, he walks back into Christopher’s bedroom and commences explaining himself for his deceiving lies. As he explains, he says that it is hard to tell the truth all the time, and sometimes it is impossible. Then his father tells Christopher the truth: “And he said, ‘I killed Wellington, Christopher.’ I wondered if this was a joke, because I don’t understand jokes, and when people tell jokes they don’t mean what they say... Then he held up his right hand and spread his fingers out in a fan. But I screamed and pushed him backward so that he fell off the bed and onto the floor” (Haddon 120, 122). After his father tells him the shocking truth about the dog’s murder, Christopher “wondered if this was a joke”. He could not believe what he was hearing from his father. He was lied to about his mother and now, the death of Wellington. Christopher even “screamed and pushed” his father off the bed as he is trying to apologize to Christopher because he hates him for lying to him. This new discovery puts Christopher in a situation where he has to choose whether if he can trust his father or not, which adds a gigantic crack in the family’s
stability. Now that Christopher was lied to about his mother and his father killing Wellington, he does not have anymore tolerance for lying. He is weary of all the lying from his father; he does not want to deal with any more pain and misery. After his father leaves the room he sits on his bed and stares at the floor for a long time. Christopher then makes a shocking decision: “I had to get out of the house. Father had murdered Wellington. That meant he could murder me, because I couldn’t trust him, even though he said ‘Trust me,’ because he had told a lie about a big thing... Which meant that I had to go to London to live with Mother” (Haddon 122, 131). Christopher loses complete trust in this father. His father had “murdered Wellington”, which then gave Christopher the impression that his father could murder him, too. Not only that, but Christopher decides to “get out of the house”, while his father was sleeping. Christopher decides to “go to London” to live with his mother. After this decision, Christopher and his father lose the trust bond. Christopher’s father had lied about his mother and the murder of Wellington. His father should have been more honest with Christopher about life-changing news or information. The outcome would have resulted differently and prevented the family’s destruction. Being kept from the truth about a certain family member and/or a murder can lead the wrong way, especially if the person if you are lying to is sensitive to lies. Christopher didn’t react well to the truth about his mother and Wellington’s murder. Telling someone the truth will build trust among people, instead of ruining relationships among people.
Because he never backs down from anything he starts, Christopher’s pursuit to solve Wellington’s murder remains his primary focus, although Christopher experiences problems throughout the book that affect his resolve. His father affects Christopher negatively from his lies; as a result, the dishonesties turn out to be the central focus in the story. His father made him leave the house to go find Christopher’s mother who he did not know existed. His mom tried to hug Christopher when he got there and he blatantly describes how he hates being touched by his own family members. Christopher’s mom goes in for a hug but he shoves her away so hard that he falls over. Christopher states, “And I pushed her away because she was grabbing me and I didn’t like it, and I pushed really hard and I fell over” (Haddon 191). Christopher feels awful about the incident with his mother and ends up getting along exceedingly sound. Family disputes led to most of the problems in the novel, however, the issues made the book more interesting. Every time Christopher’s dad would mess up with him, his father would come running back to Christopher apologizing for what he did or the way he acted. Christopher’s father was good at taking care of him most of the time but then again was not an straightforward family member all the time. Christopher did not consider his
The investigation was inspired by Sherlock Holmes. Mrs. Shears gets out of her house to see Christopher next to her dead dog, leading her to think that Christopher killed her dog. The police arrive at the house and they take Christopher to the station. Later the Christopher’s father comes to take him home. Christopher goes to neighbors houses and then asks them about Wellington to try and find out who killed Wellington. Christopher’s father forbids him to go around to neighbors but Christopher ignores his father. Christopher goes to a neighbor and asks about Wellington she unfolded that Mr. Shears and his mother had an affair. Christopher’s father finds his book in which he is writing all of this and takes it away from him. Later when Christopher’s father is at work Christopher goes to look for his boom in his father's room only to find letters addressed to him from his very own mother. Christopher finds out that his father has been lying to him. His father comes home and sees that Christopher found the letters and immediately apologizes to Christopher. This is when Christopher’s father tells Christopher that he was the one who had killed Wellington. The reason he killed Wellington is because he and Mrs. Shears had a relationship after Christopher’s mom left but Mrs.Shears ended it so out of anger Christopher’s father kills Wellington. Christopher was fearful that his father killed Wellington so
At first glance, Ed seems very protective of Christopher, claiming to his son, “I did it for your own good, Christopher. Honestly I did. I never meant to lie. I just thought . . . I just thought it was better if you didn’t know” (Haddon 114). Ed doesn’t want his son to have to live with the feeling of his mother leaving him; he doesn’t want his son to feel like it is his fault. Furthermore, Ed is trying to protect his son from the negative influence of Christopher’s mother. In the letters to Christopher, Judy confesses that “I’m not like your father. Your father is a much more pacient [sic] person. He just gets on with things and if things upset him he doesn’t let it show. But that’s not the way I am and there's nothing I can do to change that” (Haddon 106). Because of his autism, Christopher needs to be treated the best he can be. However, Judy admits that she cannot handle troublesome situations as well as Ed. Therefore, it is best for Christopher if he is shielded from his mother's hurtful behaviors, showing the positive motivation. By first accepting that the action is based on good intentions, it allows Ed’s lie to be seen as morally
Christopher is a fifteen-year old boy with Aspergers Autism whose life is full of uncanny surprises. His main focus is on school, and his ability to take the maths A level exams. Unfortunately, that was his focus until he finds Wellington dead on Mrs. Shears’ lawn. Christopher wants to know who killed Wellington and why. He investigates and finds out not only who killed Wellington, but he discovers secrets about his mother and father. In the book “The Curious Incident of the dog in the night-time”, the author, Mark Haddon, shows us how courageous Christopher is throughout his journey. According to Aristotle, a man is courageous when he sets himself free from his fears, pain, and poverty instead of running away from it. According to Aristotle’s theory, Christopher profusely shows courage when he investigates Wellington’s murder and travels to London to find his mom.
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time is best known for its narration from an autistic boy, how it could be changed by a different character, and the impact that a non-autistic narrator could have on the novel. For Curious Incident point of view is one of the most important aspects as it hooks readers from the very beginning. The point of view immediately sets readers for what they can expect. Curious Incident changes how readers feel about first person point of view forever.
The novel The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time explores the concept of truth and lies through the eyes of Christopher, the main character, who has autism. His narrative perspective only allows the reader to understand what his own mind is capable of understanding such as his views on lying, facial
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time exhibits real life situations experienced by an autistic, 15-year-old boy, from his own panorama. Christopher’s use of first person perspective ensures that his view on events are explained with accurate, detailed description, enhancing the responders understanding of how the mind of one with Asperger’s syndrome functions. This concept is elaborated on in Christopher’s struggle to become independent as the responder is able to grasp Christopher’s defensive mechanisms to dealing with stressful situations. Christopher narration “so I groaned to make the time pass quicker and not think” during a fit where his tendency to shut down and curl himself into a ball is essentially revealed substantiates his struggle to become independent as his
Nothing hurts more than being betrayed by a loved one, Christopher’s father has no trust in Christopher and tells him that his “Mother died 2 years ago”(22) and Christopher thinks his mother died of a heart attack. When Christopher finds out his father lied, he runs away to live with his mother and his father despritally looks for him and while looking for him realizes the importance of telling the truth. When someone betrays one’s trust, they can feel morally violated. Once Christopher finds his mother, she begins to realize how unfit her living conditions are for Christopher and brings him back to his father, bring him “[..] home in Swindon”(207) Christopher feels incredibly hurt and distressed he does not want to see his father. Whether a relationship can be repaired depends entirely on whether trust can or cannot be restored. Christopher’s father works very hard to regain his trust, he tells his son “[..] I don’t know about you, but this...this just hurts too much”, Christopher’s father is dealing with the result of being dishonest with his son and himself.
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time is told through the eyes of a fifteen year old boy named Christopher Boone. Christopher has a highly-functioning form of autism which allows him to understand complex mathematical problems, but also leaves him unable to comprehend many simple human emotions. His inability to understand metaphors, distinguish emotions, and his lack of imagination makes it possible to consider Christopher as functioning like a computer rather than functioning as a human being. Throughout the story, Christopher is faced with many challenges which he conquers using the stable and never changing system of mathematics. All of these factors suggest that Christopher does, in fact, function like a computer, but it is apparent early in the story that Christopher, regardless of anything else, is capable of independent thought which separates him from the programmed, dependent world of computers.
In conclusion, the most evident theme in this story is that everyone have problems mentally, that they need to overcome. Christopher, the mother, and the father are examples supporting this theme. Although, Christopher finds it difficult to recognize emotions, follow instructions, talk to strangers etc. he tries hard to overcome it. His behavioral problems, and care for others has improved over time proving that overtime his problems can be fixed. Ed Boone, the father has problem managing his emotions and often gets out of control but tries to control them for his son's sake. The mother, Judy Boone, faces problems with impatience but after parting with Christopher, shows significant improvement in her patience levels. Overall, no matter how bad a psychological problem is, there is always a way out if given time.
The curious incident of the dog in the night time was narrated in first person by Christopher Boone however If it was narrated in third person the audience would not have understood the way Christopher was feeling. Communication, Social Interactions, Relationship’s and Christopher’s Autism spectrum disorder were some of the main areas expressed in the novel.
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time chronicles of Christopher Boone of Swindon, England. The book is written by Mark Haddon, who formerly worked with autistic individuals, describes the world through the eyes of Christopher, who is self-proclaimed “special needs”. The novel never explicitly says what Christopher’s diagnosis is, but from the text it is apparent that he would fall on the higher functioning end of the Autism Spectrum.
‘The curious incident of the dog in the night-time’ by Mark Haddon is about 15 year old Christopher Boone. Christopher is an extremely gifted boy with autism, he is gifted in the subjects math and science but is considered ‘stupid’ for not understanding things like metaphors (which he takes very literally). He does not like the color brown or yellow and hates it when people try to touch him. Although he does not understand human emotion, he relates to animals quite well. But when he discovers that his neighbor's dog, Wellington, has been killed he is determined to find the killer. During his adventures, Christopher experiences negative short term effects but positive long term effects.
The Curious Incident of the dog in the night-time will take you on a ride of emotions as Christopher John Francis Boone fights through his autism to prove his innocence to everyone and himself as well. A story of a young boy on a mission to find out who killed his neighbor's dog, but while on the journey he reveals secrets about his family that was kept from him all these years. Mark Haddon did an amazing job on showing how the truth can affect someone in the text, not only the main character Christopher, but the others as well utilizing Characterization.
The novel “The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time” by Mark Haddon is an inspiring story about Christopher Boone, the main character, and the protagonist. Christopher tries to investigate the mysterious death of the neighbor’s dog and learns some things along the way such as her mother’s “death”. A theme is a central idea that is not so universal that it can be applied to practically any book. This theme is expressed through Christopher’s ability to understand emotions, his intelligence, and persistence. The theme seen in this novel is that autism and disabilities cause fear, but he doesn’t let it affect him or hold him back