Mark Haddon’s "The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time": Coping With Loss and Control
The Curious Incident of the Dog in The Night-Time written by Mark Haddon portrays the ideas of coping with loss through human relationships and the need for control in humanity, which is represented throughout the Boone family. Coping with loss and control are both depicted through the Boone family and to a larger extent Christopher, the protagonist who is a 15-year-old Autistic boy. Haddon creates a unique perspective through the characterisation and the disproportionate level of control throughout the Boone Family.
In The Curious Incident of the Dog in The Night-Time, the protagonist Christopher Boone copes with the loss of his mothers supposed death through the relationship he continues with his father. Christopher moves on with life very easily after his mother’s death by saying that “when mother died she didn’t go to heaven because heaven doesn’t exist”. Christopher’s approach to the allusion of Heaven is too realistic which causes him to view the situation in a much too logical way and thus enables him to accept the loss because it is presented in a way in which he understands. Furthermore the loss of his mother causes Christopher to become more dependent on his father and by doing this it creates a stronger relationship with his father that is built on trust. This relationship is maintained in the first half of the novel with Ed respecting Christopher in ways in which his mother didn’t such as being patient with him. Christopher’s character allows his order of thinking to help him cope under situations of loss and move on with ease.
Control throughout humanity is necessary for Christopher Boone as it allows him to lead and feel as sense of security in the autistic life he lives. In The Curious Incident of the Dog in The Night-Time, it is evident that Christopher Boone maintains a high level of control in his life through the entire novel; this is depicted through his manipulation of instructions and commands from his father. His father says “you are to
In The Curious Incident of the Dog in The Night-Time, the protagonist Christopher Boone copes with the loss of his mothers supposed death through the relationship he continues with his father. Christopher moves on with life very easily after his mother’s death by saying that “when mother died she didn’t go to heaven because heaven doesn’t exist”. Christopher’s approach to the allusion of Heaven is too realistic which causes him to view the situation in a much too logical way and thus enables him to accept the loss because it is presented in a way in which he understands. Furthermore the loss of his mother causes Christopher to become more dependent on his father and by doing this it creates a stronger relationship with his father that is built on trust. This relationship is maintained in the first half of the novel with Ed respecting Christopher in ways in which his mother didn’t such as being patient with him. Christopher’s character allows his order of thinking to help him cope under situations of loss and move on with ease.
Control throughout humanity is necessary for Christopher Boone as it allows him to lead and feel as sense of security in the autistic life he lives. In The Curious Incident of the Dog in The Night-Time, it is evident that Christopher Boone maintains a high level of control in his life through the entire novel; this is depicted through his manipulation of instructions and commands from his father. His father says “you are to