Curious Incident- Victoria Vance

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The Curious Incident really opened up my eyes as to what a person who has the same type of capabilities as Christopher Boone reacts to both specific and general settings; and what he and others who share the same qualities goes through on a daily basis. Even though this book is not a mold for everyone who is considered to be on the "Autistic Spectrum" it does highlight a specific person's experience through a multitude of events that anyone can endure. Prior to reading this novel, I was unable to truly grasp what people with any form of Autism had to go through (as this book is the only exposure that I have ever really had). But this book has made me more aware of people like Christopher, and it has exposed appropriate ways and inappropriate ways to learn how to interact with. The biggest take away (apart from the understanding of exceptional people) is how incredibly  honest Christopher is.

Christopher immediately states that, "I cannot tell lies. Mother used to say that was because I was a good person. But it is not because I am a good person. It is because I cannot tell lies," (19). This blatant disregard for morality creates a minuscule sense of humor for the reader. This is because he never denies attempting to lie, he just says that he cannot tell them. But he wouldn't have known that he was a bad liar unless he had attempted it. Therefore negating his mother's claim immediately because he never says that it's because he doesn't LIKE to tell lies, it's inferred it's because he cannot because it challenges his personality rather than morality. 

My next favorite instance that exhibits Christopher's exuberant honesty is when he is talking to the cop in the train station about his father being arrested and the cop responds with, "Arrested him? What for?" and Christopher just blurts out, "He killed a dog. With a garden fork. The dog was called Wellington." (159). To me, I thought was interesting because his honesty at this point was challenging his logic; which was strange because he had been proven to be extremely logical up to his decision to run away. I personally believe that honesty from Christopher plays a pretty big role in this novel as he begins to grow more as a person and establish his newfound relationship with his mother and father (after his father had destroyed it by dishonestly obviously). I just thought that the theme, if you will, of honesty was pretty interesting; and prior to this blog post I didn't even give it much thought. But it plays a huge role throughout the entirety of this novel and is one of my favorite aspects because it inspires changes in each of the characters.


Comments

  1. UnknownSeptember 26, 2017 at 3:46 PM

    I agree. This book really allowed me to experience life in a different way. Very eye opening. I think that you chose very good supporting quotes for your blog. Good job!

    ReplyDelete

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