In the novel, ‘The Incident Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time’ written by Mark Haddon, the protagonist is a 15-year-old named Christopher Boone who lives with Autism. Detailing from his point of view, Haddon uses different literary devices to explore Christopher’s life challenges and triumphs as he uncovers more about his own life. By writing the novel using a first-person perspective, including many illustrations, and through the use of changes in sentence structures, Haddon explores the complexities of autism in a way that adds understanding of the problems faced by those living with Asperger’s.
To convey to the reader what every individual on the Autism spectrum must deal with, Haddon utilises a first-person perspective. With
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Though for Christopher’s character, it does more than that. With Christopher’s inability to process and absorb information normally, understanding what he is thinking could be difficult for the readers. Therefore, by giving visual cues in the novel, Haddon effectively gives insight into Christopher’s intriguing mind and how he is able to organise his feelings inside his mind. This is particularly useful when he has to face a big decision but is unsure of how to face it. An example of this would be when Christopher was deciding on where he was going to stay after he ran away from home, “And then I realised that there was nothing I could do which felt safe. And I made a picture of it in my head.” (Chapter 179 p.162) A diagram is then shown underneath with his options of the places he could live in and adds, “And then I imagined crossing out all the possibilities which were impossible… And it was like this.” (Chapter 179 p.162) Haddon proceeds to show the same illustration with all the possibilities crossed out except one, which was to live with his mother. In having Christopher illustrate his thoughts, the reader can experience what is happening inside Christopher’s head and the process he thinks about before he makes a decision on his