Is Christopher Boone a Reliable Source?
Christopher’s autism means he views the world in different ways to other people and although this can sometimes lead to him not understanding social situations his condition can also make him more reliable than someone without autism.
The complexity of Christopher’s personality cannot be overlooked when looking at his reliability. Sometimes he is extremely logical and finds it difficult to understand parts of society that aren’t based on logic, for example jokes, whereas other times he bases his decisions on random things that have no relation, whether he is going to have a good or bad day. This could be considered as unreliable because it seems extremely random.
Although many times it is obvious Christopher doesn’t understand others and the differences between him and society, on more than one occasion in the book he explains about how he is different. On page 106 and 107 he realises that not liking yellow and brown is ‘silly’ but then he also likens this to society saying that lots of people are similar for example, Christopher says when you go to a restaurant you eat meals you know you like because you don’t know if you will like the other meals. This could be classed as reliable as it shows his understanding of some parts of society. Another occasion where is tells us how he is different is on page 59 and 60 where he is explaining his behavioural problems. The fact he can tell people about what is wrong with him shows trust and also, once again, understanding of his differences. However trust seems to be a problem with Christopher and will not let people touch him. If he cannot trust then he could miss out on information they could give him.
On page 24 Christopher quite clearly states that he doesn’t tell lies which would lead you to expect him to be a reliable narrator, if he doesn’t lie then everything he is saying must be the truth. However society is full of white lies, for example, if someone asks you if they look alright just before
The complexity of Christopher’s personality cannot be overlooked when looking at his reliability. Sometimes he is extremely logical and finds it difficult to understand parts of society that aren’t based on logic, for example jokes, whereas other times he bases his decisions on random things that have no relation, whether he is going to have a good or bad day. This could be considered as unreliable because it seems extremely random.
Although many times it is obvious Christopher doesn’t understand others and the differences between him and society, on more than one occasion in the book he explains about how he is different. On page 106 and 107 he realises that not liking yellow and brown is ‘silly’ but then he also likens this to society saying that lots of people are similar for example, Christopher says when you go to a restaurant you eat meals you know you like because you don’t know if you will like the other meals. This could be classed as reliable as it shows his understanding of some parts of society. Another occasion where is tells us how he is different is on page 59 and 60 where he is explaining his behavioural problems. The fact he can tell people about what is wrong with him shows trust and also, once again, understanding of his differences. However trust seems to be a problem with Christopher and will not let people touch him. If he cannot trust then he could miss out on information they could give him.
On page 24 Christopher quite clearly states that he doesn’t tell lies which would lead you to expect him to be a reliable narrator, if he doesn’t lie then everything he is saying must be the truth. However society is full of white lies, for example, if someone asks you if they look alright just before