Essay – Christopher An Unusual Character – The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time

Resource Description

Christopher: A Very Unusual Character in a Very Unusual World
Many adolescents have difficulty dealing with society. One of the few examples of teenagers struggling to be independent is The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time. Throughout the novel, Christopher endures many situations that made him grow as a person. Mark Haddon’s novel is a significant piece of literature for all generations because it allows people to relate or view life in a different perspective as Christopher did with his difficulty reacting to strangers and dealing with change and his autism. In his journey, he comes across misleading and untrusting individuals who play a bad role in his confidence. Autism is Christopher’s major struggle in the novel; this influences his judgment and his overall reaction to society.

Autism is often known as a mental condition that causes difficulty in forming relationships and communicating with others. In Christopher’s case, he is extremely intellectual and excels in logical subjects, such as Math, Science, and English. J. Stephan-Cole once said, “He is smart and very logical though obsessive about order, which serves in part to protect him from the messy emotionalism of other people. Logic, however, does not prevent bad choices that can be dangerous and/or out of sync with the way the rest of the world operates”. Cole explains how intelligent Christopher is, however he still has difficulty making good judgments. Christopher’s autism takes a great toll in his daily life. Although he is very clever, his decision making skills often leads him into problems. His decision to leave home and live with his mother in London was one of the many dangerous situations. When he was stopped by the policeman, he was unable to communicate with the authorities because of his autism. Christopher also has difficulty processing emotions. Christopher once said “I think people believe in heaven because they don’t like the idea of dying, because they want to carry on living and they don’t like the idea that other people will move into their house and put their things into the rubbish.”(Haddon 40). This quote demonstrates Christopher’s thought process. It shows his lack of sympathy toward the deceased and his attitude on life. He views life as if it is repetitive and always moves on. His thought process is inclined to simple details instead of important issues. This supports my statement that individuals view life in different ways because it allows others to witness the thoughts of Christopher and his overall decision process. It presents the reader with the opportunity to witness life in a new perspective and see how the life of an autistic person truly is.

Throughout the book, Christopher struggles to figure out his identity and sense of independence. His strong personality causes him to be stubborn and demanding. His mental condition gets in the way of his self-confidence. As a result, his inner command is to shut down, once Christopher that occurs, he has no capacity of understanding. In the New York Time’s, Michiko Kakutani said, “He has trouble figuring out other people’s feelings, and he doesn’t understand why they use metaphors or why they tell lies. Strangers, noise and unfamiliar situations terrify him, but he is curiously detached about things like illness and death”(Kakutani 1). Kakutani explains that Christopher’s odd reactions cause him to be disconnected with society and viewed strangely. Dealing with a new environment and change is another struggle Christopher endures in his journey toward independence. Christopher says, “Then he asked if I didn’t like things changing. And I said I wouldn’t mind things changing if I became an astronaut, for example, which is one of the biggest changes you can imagine, apart from becoming a girl or dying”(30). This quote illustrates Christopher’s difficulty adjusting to new situations because he explains how the only change he would be willing to accept is becoming an astronaut. In order to cope with difficult situations, Christopher physically and socially isolated himself because he didn’t want to get close to anyone. He felt as if people will always end up hurting him because of his past experiences. He uses math and journal writing as an escape or preferred to keep things to himself. This supports my position that people react differently towards changes and stressors. Some choose to write down their emotions, others use distractions like sports or art. The difficulties of being self-sufficient took an enormous toll in Christopher’s life.