(2003) Mark Haddon
Finished Reading: 12.2009
Autism is a disorder of neural development that is characterized by impaired social interaction and communication, and by restrictive and repetitive behavior. -Wikipedia
That is about as much as I knew before reading this fictional narration by a 15 year old autistic boy named Christopher (assumed to have Asperger syndrome). The boy discovers that his neighbor's dog Wellington has been murdered and he sets out to discover the reasons and who is the killer. In his murder mystery adventure, we are inserted into a mind that sees the world very differently than most people. Often autistic people are perceived in certain ways, perhaps as unable to comprehend ideas and what others are trying to say, but here we see from Christopher's own point of view that his world really does make the most sense and everyone else is absolutely incomprehensible.
Christopher lives in England with his father on an ordinary suburban street, and has a very ordered life, maintaining an unchanging daily schedule. He lives in the details that most people ignore, not understanding vague concepts and implied meanings. He doesn't like metaphors because they don't mean anything, and are not at all like the thing they are supposed to be like. He insists that the furniture in a room not be moved, or he will be afraid of the new uncertainty. He doesn't want to be touched by anyone, and avoids eye contact. For the most part, he only talks to his father and his teacher, and definitely not to strangers. Additionally, he has a photographic memory, remembering everything like it is playback on a tape, and loves science and logic. He has superior skills in mathematics, scoring well above his age group on tests.
Christopher has named the chapters of the book by prime numbers rather than the usual counting numbers, because it is more interesting. Thus, in this 226 page book there is a Chapter 233, though there is no Chapter 1 or 4.
Given his difficulty in understanding the world around him, his purposeful investigation of the dog's death leads Christopher to learn more about himself through new interactions with neighbors and new visits to places he has never been to before. He finds himself overloaded with information (since he notices every detail and remembers every detail) and has difficulty continuing his investigation as new details surface. Continually, he comes across adults who do not understand him and don't know how to communicate properly with a boy who doesn't speak or socialize in the way they are accustom to. If they would only take the time to listen to him, rather than quickly deciding he is loony and walking away, a lot of pain and misunderstanding could be avoided.
The boy's view of the world is much simpler than my own view; mine being clouded by occasional grand illusion. I feel this book is a clearer lens for things I've looked at for years and yet have never really seen. Often things really are as simple as they appear, and a unknown explanation may not exist. Even my frequent use of the word things in this very paragraph would not be tolerated by Christopher, as he would like to know more detail about what these vauge things are, which makes for better writing anyway. I will now try to assume less, notice more, and hopefully better understand people like Christopher who are not dumber than the rest of us, only a little different.
No comments:
Post a Comment