Challenges In The Curious Incident Of The Dog In The Nighttime By Mark Haddon

In the novel, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime, author Mark Haddon tells the tale of a young Christopher Boone, and his journey to uncover the mystery of who killed his neighbor’s dog, Wellington. Christopher narrates this story in a unique way, giving readers a glimpse into the mind of a fifteen year-old boy who has Asperger’s Syndrome, a type of autistic disorder. Christopher uses unconventional quirks, such as his excellence in mathematics, his keen photographic memory, and his perseverance to succeed, to his advantage, which eventually helps him solve the murder mystery. Haddon informs readers that embracing the benefits of one’s mental health disorder, as Christopher does, can help individuals achieve their goals.
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Knowing he has mental challenges, Christopher works hard and perseveres to finish whatever task he undertakes. He is ambitious to succeed, even when his father orders him to stop his investigation. Christopher does not rest until he solves the mystery. Early in the novel, Christopher states, “I decided that I was going to find out who killed Wellington even though Father had told me to stay out of other people’s business. This is because I don’t always do what I am told” (Haddon 59) Christopher’s determination to solve the mystery overrides his desire to follow his father’s rules. Despite his social anxiety and difficulty adjusting to new environments, Christopher’s drive to solve the crime pushes him out of his comfort zone where he finds the ability to talk to new people around his neighborhood in an attempt to gather information and evidence as to who killed his neighbor’s dog. Detective work becomes a big step for Christopher, as he does not enjoy talking to strangers. He admits “it takes me a long time to get used to people I do not know. I just watch them until they are safe. (...) so talking to the people on our street was brave. But if you are going to do detective work you have to be brave, so I had no choice” (Haddon 67). Thus, Christopher’s internal drive to successfully identify the murderer motivates him to continue …show more content…
He does not want to make life harder for those around him, it is just a part of his chemical nature and personality to be quirky and unconventional at times. As a mature 15-year-old boy, Christopher recognizes he is different from others his age, and comes to appreciate he processes emotions and situations differently. Christopher embraces his special qualities, utilizing his keen mathematical skills, vivid photographic memory, and his internal drive to persevere in accomplishing his goals. In the end, Christopher’s limitations became his strengths, which he uses advantageously to help solve the mystery of who killed his neighbor’s