Coming Of Age In “The Curious Incident Of The Dog In The Night-time”

Mark Haddon’s Curious Incident: The Dog in the Dark-time tells the story of Christopher John Francis Boone and his adventures. Christopher, the protagonist, wrote the book to solve a mystery about the murder of Wellington, Mrs. Shears’s dog. As he tells his tale, the reader can get a better idea of Christopher’s past, including his mother’s secrets and his family. Boone is prone to mental and behavioral problems. He struggles with his own issues throughout the text. Mark Haddon explores themes of bravery and growing up through The Curious Incident of the Dog at Night-time.

Christopher John Francis Boone, a Swindon native, is an innocent, genuine, honest, and sincere individual. He clearly suffers from a mental and behavioral disorder that causes him many oddities. His behavioral issues include not speaking to people for long periods of time, not wanting to eat or drink for long periods of time, screaming when he is angry or confused, not liking being touched and not liking yellow or brown foods. He was uncharacteristic for his age, screaming at the police officer to take off his watch (13). He said he “doesn’t like hugging people” (16), including his parents. He feels uncomfortable and uneasy. These are unusual behaviors for a 15-year-old boy. He doesn’t respond well to questions and never replies to any statements. He is unable to read facial expressions of people and can therefore be confused. He “cannot understand what people are saying” and will ask them questions or walk away. This is a strange, but not unusual, behavior for him. He sometimes has difficulty understanding the emotions of his father, preferring to understand only himself. Christopher’s dad was “sitting in front of the TV watching snooker and sipping scotch. There were tears coming from his eyes” (21). After picking up his son at the station, the protagonist is unable to comprehend his father’s pain. Christopher ultimately decides to let his father be, because he doesn’t want to be disturbed when he is sad. Boone makes an observation that while one may think in private, it would never be made public. For instance, he says that Jason’s school smells like his poor family (38). He doesn’t realize that such a comment is wrong socially. Finally, he doesn’t lie because he says he “cannot tell lies” (19). This is something that most children don’t have. Christopher clearly has disabilities, but he refuses to let them stop him. Christopher can see every detail down to the very last detail. Christopher can see details that are invisible to others. Christopher likens Christopher’s memory to a film.

People often ask me how I remember things. To get back to something from a long past time, I simply use Rewind, Fast Forward and Pause. This is more like a VCR than a player. It’s happening in my head, so there aren’t any buttons. (76)

The protagonist describes a unique photographic memory. He has a different way of seeing the world than others and creates creative comparisons. He claims that he doesn’t know anything and “just [notices] what things are.” (25). He has also shown some exceptional talents. He knows all of the capital cities in all countries as well as all prime numbers up until 7,057. He is clearly gifted in math, and is even planning to take the math A-level exam. He later earns an “A” grade. When examining a problem or issue, he uses logic and math to solve it. Christopher comments on how sometimes it is impossible for us to predict the future, but we only have to follow very simple rules (102), when discussing how animals can be decoded. His readers comment that when theta goes above 3.57, it causes chaos in the population. This shows that people can simply die from no reason. Christopher is able to see the simplicity in some things that might seem very complicated to an average person because he draws on his mathematical background and logic to reach conclusions, which highlights his intelligence.

Mark Haddon’s text is a series about coming of ages, maturation, and the theme of Mark Haddon. Christopher must live with his disability and sometimes those issues can hinder him. Through the text, Christopher shows maturity and a greater ability to manage his mental and behavioral disabilities. Christopher is confronted with his fears and idiosyncrasies at the beginning. He realizes that he does have a disability and he talks to the officer about it. He tells his cop that he cannot touch him because he was given a warning for hitting the policeman. However, if he hits again, i’ll get into more trouble. He is well aware that if the officer grabs his arm, he will feel overwhelmed and react negatively. He recognizes his weaknesses and warns the officer. This is a sign that he is mature. Christopher admits that he relies on others a lot and is insecure about communicating with others. Although he acknowledges his insecurity, he states that it is difficult for him to adjust to people he doesn’t know.

It is important to recognize his mistakes and learn how to deal with them better. Christopher does everything himself when he wants his mother to come to London. He is a strong independent man who manages to make it all the way to London. Christopher also has emotional difficulties. It is hard for him to feel sadness. Boone remarks that it is difficult to feel sad when his mother is gone. Later, he discovers that his mother is still alive and has been for many years. “[He] feels sick,” (112). His father’s actions made him extremely upset. Christopher is maturing due to the disability he has overcome. Christopher appears to have more self-confidence than ever and is confident in his abilities. He states, “I traveled alone to London, and because I solved Who Killed Wellington’s mystery.” I found my mom and was brave, so I wrote a novel and that’s how I can accomplish anything. (221). Over the course the text, Haddon’s protagonist gained independence, maturity, and self-confidence. Haddon’s book clearly highlights the theme of growing up.

Mark Haddon’s novel also features Bravery. Christopher Boone’s disability means that many people don’t understand him and have little patience. He’s sometimes known as “mad like a fucking haber” (184). It can be hard to depend on oneself, so it takes courage. He was worried about his father’s murder of Wellington after he found out. “[He] had no choice but to leave the house and to find a way to travel alone to London, something he’d never done before. For a normal teenager, this would be difficult. He said he had never traveled to London on his own, and that was a big feat. He thought it was scary to travel alone. It took courage to bravely venture into unknown territory. Christopher described the experience as “like walking off a cliff and taking deep breaths”. His mother was aware of the feat and commented to him, “You are very brave.” (193) He overcomes all his fears to reach London and is brave, a theme that Haddon’s book emphasizes.

Mark Haddon explores the themes of courage and growing up through The Curious Incident of the Dog at Night-time. The story tells the adventures of Christopher John Francis Boone. Christopher, the protagonist, wrote the book to solve a mystery about the murder of Wellington, Mrs. Shears’ dog. He tells his story to give the reader a glimpse into his life and reveal his mother and other secrets. Christopher Boone is prone to mental and behavioral problems. He struggles with his own problems as he investigates and seeks his mother’s murder. The protagonist overcomes his obstacles and by the final text realizes that anyone can achieve anything if they put their minds to it.