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The influence of families
The influence of families
Influence of family on children
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Each and everyday we are forced to make decisions and most of the time we have no idea how they will alter the course of our lives. And no matter how big or small, the effect of our choices cannot be predicted by even the genie himself. In the coming of age novel, “The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime” written by Mark Haddon, Chris’s parents make decisions that they have no clue how the impact will be. Both of his parents make choices that are jeopardizing and hasty, but which one is the better parent? At the beginning of the book the reader learns that Christopher's mother died of a heart attack. The details his father told him were vague and didn’t add up. So, being his meticulous self Chris decided to further investigate his …show more content…
Although both parents thought they were making quintessential decisions, they instead ended up contributing to Chris’s emotional chaos. Which parent caused Chris less pain is hard to asses. For example, Chris’s dad didn’t try to make up for his mistakes. Instead, he only apologized and accepted that he had been wrong, but he didn’t try to make it better. Not once after he finally told the truth did his Dad try to find a solution to help overcome the tsunami flooding Chris’s emotions. His father tried to gain his trust back by purchasing a dog. “Then he came back through and gave me the dog.” (219) He knew the dog wouldn’t fix the problem. His mother, on the other hand, wrote letters to Chris after she left, despite knowing he was angry and probably wouldn’t respond. But, the most significant decision she made was to come home and help raise Chris. “But then everything was OK because mother got a job on the till in the garden center and the doctors gave her pills to take every morning…” (216) Even though mother makes a selfish decision in leaving, she does change, and that’s all anyone can ever hope for when someone hurts
Chris refused to confront his mother and father and instead repressed his emotions. Krakauer shows his influence with this comment, “Children can be harsh judges when it comes to their parents, disinclined to grant clemency, and this was especially true in Chris’s case” (Krakauer 122). He makes it very clear that Chris is really just a kid, and therefore, liable to make decisions that are rash or immature. Krakauer makes it clear that he thinks Chris’ opinions on his parents might have changed over time, had he lived. Chris was simply a kid who had been wronged by those who were supposed to protect him. All of Chris’ repressed emotions eventually came to the surface, “Chris kept careful score. And over time he worked himself into a choler of self-righteous indignation that was impossible to keep bottles up” (Krakauer 122). Chris eventually lashed out in the way that lots of children do, he ran away. His options were limited, he could either talk to his parents or a therapist about it or flee. His choice of fleeing shows that he really was working through something. By running away Chris broadcasts his youth and also makes the reader curious as to if he might have come back and worked out his issues eventually. The contradictions in Chris’ severe opinions of those around him show his youth, and inspire’s readers to be more
"In the end that was the choice you made, and it doesn't matter how hard it was to make it. It matters that you did." (Cassandra Clare) In the novel Tangerine by Edward Bloor, Paul's parents make many decisions that affected Paul's life. From moving to Tangerine, being inattentive towards Paul, and to having secrets kept from him, you could tell Paul Fisher has a pretty crazy life. Those decisions were made by his parents. However, those decisions that his parents made has molded Paul into a stronger person.
Seeing that Chris did not have a sturdy relationship with his father, he was driven by anger to go out to the Alaskan wilderness, he may have survived this adventure, or ev...
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
Chris met three important people during his adventure these people were Jan Burres, Ronald Franz, and Wayne Westerberg. Out of everyone who he had met it was only these three important people who he decided to stay in contact with, why? McCandless had a great childhood from the looks of it, all the photos of his childhood were him hiking or out on vacation or a happy family portrait, but those were just pictures. Chris’s father was a smart man he got paid a good salary, owned a nice home, had a wife and children of his own, but that was only the tip of the iceberg. He was abusive to his wife and made his children watch, this hurt Chris deeply. Chris’s mom would often tell them she is sorry, that she got pregnant with Chris and can't leave. It hurt Chris so much he decided to leave,
There, Chris discovers that his father lives a double life with his ex-stepmother, Marcia. Chris rages about, “ divorcing them as my parents once and for all and never speak to either of those idiots again as long as I live" (64). With an untrustworthy family, he feels outcast and useless. He then only can relate to other outcasts for the remainder of the novel. When he gets a chance at conversing with ‘everyday’ people Chris rants about how ‘fake’ they are. Maybe his trip was his final destination because he eventually realizes he has nothing to come back to. He never plans for the future, just the present scenarios, like sending away $24,000 to charity. When the trip was coming to an end, it overwhelmed him, remembering all the things he still angers him. The trip to El Segundo, California, also arose a very dark: “Two years after Chris’s birth, Walt McCandless fathered another child with Marcia” (64). Chris feels tremendous rage and hurt by this secret. He feels his life is a lie because unveiling this unpublished mystery brings skepticism to everything else surrounding his inner circle and family. Lastly, Chris is extremely heart-broken that his father wasn’t satisfied enough by him. Chris is the type of personality that will go over the edge of sanity if no one is there to stop him. When he leaves his family for good, he was out in the
McCandless had been accused of abandoning his family and loved ones. Chris had always felt like his parents were holding him back, they had a different vision of Chris’ future than Chris had. Even though Chris left his family it was in his best intentions and for the best intentions, if he had never left him he would never have been able to find himself. He did not mean to harm anyone, he was just trying to discover the larger meaning of his life and fulfill his dream. In the end of the novel Chris was able to discover himself when he realized that ‘ Happiness only real when shared’. This was Chris’ realization that life really mattered most when he was with others, it implied that Chris was ready to go back to his parents and
The world is plagued with an inseparable mix of good and evil. People make mistakes, but often start out with good intentions. Often times actions live in the grey zone, a combination of good intentions but bad outcomes. In Mark Haddon’s novel, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time there are many decisions that could be considered morally ambiguous. The story is told from the perspective of an autistic fifteen-year-old, Christopher Boone, who is investigating the death of his neighbor’s dog. His mother, Judy Boone supposedly died two years back, when in actuality she ran off to London with another man and, in turn, has been shut out of Christopher’s life. His father, Ed Boone hides the truth involving Christopher’s mother, pretending
Not only did Chris not want to call his parents, he did not want to see, speak or even come in contact with them. After Chris discovered his father’s affair he had no desire to even have parents at all. He was so angry at everything they have done. In a letter to his sister, Chris explained that their parents were being irrational and he had passed his breaking point: ‘“’I’m going to divorce them as my parents once and for all and never speak to either of those idiots again as long as I live’” (64). Chris believes his parents have caused so many thing to go wrong in his life that they do not even deserve to have him anymore. To come to this statement and the conclusion of divorcing his parents, Chris had to have been emotionally hurt to a crippling point. He cannot see that they are only trying to protect him and give him a happy, secure future. Chris lived thinking that his parents were horrible people and did not feel loved or cared for, and that led him to rebel. Not caring about what his parents’ feelings crippled Chris with anger and led him to, ultimately, his
When Chris left for his journey he wasn’t crazy or stupid as many would say. “McCandless went into the wilderness not primarily to ponder nature or the world at large, but rather to explore the inner country of his own soul” pg. 183. The fact that Chris never bother to discuss his Alaskan walk about with his anyone especially his parents wasn’t intentional. However throughout the whole book it was made very clear that he was at odds with his parents in some way to go off on his journey but he didn’t want to hurt them, which I think Walt and Billie finally realized visiting the bus where Chris had passed. I think Chris just wanted to get away from his everyday life, clear his mind, a mind that didn’t involve the worries of expectations and the thoughts of his parents hanging on his shoulders.
Whilst the concept of autism and what it means to be autistic is still widely unrecognised by many, Mark Haddon’s use of conventions of prose fiction and language amplifies the distinctive qualities of the text. Haddon exemplifies key themes such as the struggle to become independent, the nature of difference and the disorder of life through the strategic placement of literary devices.
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 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.
Chris McCandless’ relationship with his father was not ideal. Built up resentment caused by unfaithfulness to his mother caused Chris to cut ties with his father. For most of Chris’ life, his father played
In Mark Haddon's contemporary novel, "The curious incident of the dog in the Night-Time", the protagonist, Christopher Boone, does seem completely unsuited to narrating a novel, as he takes on his authorial voice, thus demonstrating symptoms of his disability, 'Asperger's Syndrome.' This is a syndrome that enables him to see the world only through his limited perspective, which is closed, frightened and disorientated - which results in his fear of, and inability to understand the perplexing world of people's emotions. His description of events can be somewhat unreliable as he is unable to see the real truths that lie before him. As he narrates, readers are confronted with his peculiarities - whether it is not liking to be touched, his fear of germs, strangers and crowds to his inability to eat foods with particular colors. However, through Christopher's authorial voice, his description of events in his life, and in particular, his description of his oddities those seem completely 'normal' to him, make him an interesting and fascinating narrator. As he can be proven to be an unreliable narrator as he is incapable of lying (and understanding lies) and this limits his ability to perceive the full reality of the world, thus providing him with a strange combination of credibility and unbelievability. Again, this is what makes him a wonderful narrator - at times readers can mistrust his interpretation of such events, or they can believe him.