The importance of secrets, lies and truth in 'A Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time'
Explore the themes of Secrets, Lies and the Truth in ‘The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time.’
All throughout the novel, the themes of secrets, lies and the truth consistently occur. Christopher Boone, the main character with Asperger’s Syndrome, admits to the readers that he cannot lie. The whole novel is actually based on secrets; as Christopher is covertly trying to discover Wellington’s murderer. Even though Christopher does not lie, he still manages to keep this secret about him attempting to solve his own mystery.
Chapter 37 in the novel is entirely about how Christopher always tells the truth and that he isn’t dishonest. The opening sentence of Chapter thirty-seven is:
‘I do not tell lies.’
This opening sentence to the chapter is so emphatic because of the short sentence. The readers can tell that Christopher is not lying because he is so abrupt that he cannot possibly be lying as he seems so certain. The certainty of Christopher’s words in this sentence makes it almost impossible for us not to believe him. Christopher actually admits in the novel that ‘[He] can’t tell lies’. This makes us feel more certain that everything we read in the novel is true. This chapter is significant to the whole book because it is now that the readers understand that he doesn’t lie during the novel. Christopher tells the readers that lying makes him feel scared. This fact is important because most of the novel is about Christopher developing as a human. For example he travels to London by himself and he takes his Maths A-Level two years early. This makes the entire theme of ‘the truth’ extremely important.
All throughout the novel, the themes of secrets, lies and the truth consistently occur. Christopher Boone, the main character with Asperger’s Syndrome, admits to the readers that he cannot lie. The whole novel is actually based on secrets; as Christopher is covertly trying to discover Wellington’s murderer. Even though Christopher does not lie, he still manages to keep this secret about him attempting to solve his own mystery.
Chapter 37 in the novel is entirely about how Christopher always tells the truth and that he isn’t dishonest. The opening sentence of Chapter thirty-seven is:
‘I do not tell lies.’
This opening sentence to the chapter is so emphatic because of the short sentence. The readers can tell that Christopher is not lying because he is so abrupt that he cannot possibly be lying as he seems so certain. The certainty of Christopher’s words in this sentence makes it almost impossible for us not to believe him. Christopher actually admits in the novel that ‘[He] can’t tell lies’. This makes us feel more certain that everything we read in the novel is true. This chapter is significant to the whole book because it is now that the readers understand that he doesn’t lie during the novel. Christopher tells the readers that lying makes him feel scared. This fact is important because most of the novel is about Christopher developing as a human. For example he travels to London by himself and he takes his Maths A-Level two years early. This makes the entire theme of ‘the truth’ extremely important.