The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time: Themes (WJEC Eduqas GCSE English Literature)
Revision Note
Themes
Examiners are looking for responses that thoroughly examine the way the writer presents a theme. This means that your answer should explore the way themes have been introduced and developed in The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time using references from the play to support your ideas. It is important that your answer focuses on themes, even (or, perhaps, especially) in a question that asks you to explore a character.
Below you will find sections on:
Family
Independence
Communication
Order and disorder
Family
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time examines the disruption caused in a family as a result of confusing emotions and misunderstandings. The play’s hopeful ending suggests that communication and humility can reconcile turbulent relationships.
Knowledge and evidence:
The protagonist, Christopher, a fifteen-year-old boy, presents his perspective on family life through narration, read by Siobhan, Christopher’s teacher and mentor
The play explores the emotional challenges facing both children and parents:
Christopher’s family has been separated and for the duration of the play he lives with his father, then his mother and Mr Shears, and then again with his mother
The parents’ arguments, and conflict between Ed and Christopher, causes much suffering
Judy leaves the home, believing she is a bad mother
Ed kills Mrs Shears’s dog because he is heartbroken and feels disappointed
During this chaotic time, Christopher seeks support from outside of the family, and even asks to live with Siobhan
Through Christopher’s parents, Stephens illustrates the dichotomies of parenthood:
Judy’s letters and her reaction to Christopher’s arrival in London show how much she loves her son despite her decision to leave
Ed is an understanding and supportive father, but lies to his son
Audiences are shown the toll his single parenthood takes on him when he asks Christopher, "Could you please, just, give it a bit of a break, mate. Please."
Through the protagonist’s perspective, audiences see a child’s struggles with his father:
Ed could be considered the antagonist of the play because his lies and violence send Christopher, alone and vulnerable, on a train journey to London
However, the parents are presented sympathetically:
They are humble and admit their mistakes
Christopher's mother hopes Christopher does not "stay angry” with her “forever”
Ed tells Christopher, “I know I lose my rag occasionally. And I know I shouldn’t. But I only do it because I worry about you"
Stephens illustrates the importance of family support:
Ed arrives when his son is in trouble, despite Christopher’s distrust of him
He pays Christopher close attention and makes many attempts to engage
Ed and Judy ensure Christopher is able to take his mathematics exam
This helps to build his confidence and encourages his natural talent
What is Stephens’s intention?
Stephens presents the importance of tolerance and forgiveness in families
Stephens emphasises the significance of family support and understanding, particularly regarding autism spectrum disorder or Asperger's syndrome
The play examines family pressures that lead to estrangement and suffering
Examiner Tips and Tricks
Examiner reports emphasise the importance of understanding the play’s themes and writing about the way the writer has presented these ideas. Therefore, make sure your answer explores the theme in the question thoroughly, and use any reference to events, characterisation and stage directions as support or evidence for the way a theme has been conveyed.
Independence
As a coming of age play, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time can be seen as a bildungsroman. Stephens illustrates the significance of bravery, resilience and support in the teenage protagonist’s development towards self-awareness and confidence.
Knowledge and evidence:
Wellington’s death is the inciting incident that leads Christopher on a lone investigation
In this way, Stephens presents Christopher’s condition positively:
Christopher’s strong values and the courage of his convictions show his maturity
When he disobeys his father’s instructions he challenges his boundaries
He defies advice from Siobhan, his teacher and mentor, and this helps him grow
Christopher bravely takes on uncomfortable situations, and this gives him confidence:
His courage may be highlighted by the dark street setting when he faces adult neighbours and questions them at their door
Here, he rejects Mrs Alexander’s offer to stay and goes to find his mother instead
Stephens illustrates the challenges of a teenager with an autism spectrum disorder:
Christopher negotiates the London Underground and interacts with people who do not understand his condition
He highlights how challenging this is, telling Siobhan, “I find people confusing”
The dramatic depiction of the journey emphasises differences between Christopher and other teenagers who easily navigate similar daily challenges
Notably, Stephens shows Christopher’s determination and ability regarding his mathematics A Level exam, which he is taking ahead of time:
This contradicts other characters’ perceptions, for example, on the train the police officer and the “punk girl” are shocked at his unstable behaviour
Stephens illustrates the significance of support in order to survive and grow:
His father Ed and teacher, Siobhan, reassure him and offer guidance
By the end of the play, Christopher’s confidence and pride in his accomplishments is emphasised as he lists the ways he has been brave:
The last line of the play asks the audience, “Does that mean I can do anything?”
What is Stephens’s intention?
Stephens illustrates Christopher’s brave actions towards independence and autonomy and rewards the protagonist for the risks he has taken
The play draws attention to pervasive ignorance surrounding autism spectrum disorder with a sympathetic depiction of its protagonist
The play presents the particular challenges towards independence that a teenager with autism spectrum disorder faces
Stephens presents ideas about resilience; in particular, he suggests that facing fears can overcome problems
Communication
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time examines the protagonist’s thoughts and feelings as his words are read aloud by his teacher and acted out on stage. In this way, the play presents concerns about meaningful communication and, especially, the importance of honesty.
Knowledge and evidence:
Christopher’s search for the truth is what drives his investigation
Christopher’s belief that truth can be found in the written word is confirmed in the play:
He discovers the truth about his mother in hidden letters
Miscommunication and dishonesty are contributing factors to the characters’ anxieties:
Ed’s lies cause distress to the family and neighbours
Misunderstandings between Christopher and others on the train journey is depicted as tense and confusing for all concerned
Characters, such as Mr Shears, Ed and the police-officer, lash out with curses when they fail to communicate properly with others:
Taboo language and arguments are used in the play to represent characters’ frustrations, indicating that the adults, too, have difficulties with communication
As well as this, Stephens suggests poor communication can lead to violence:
Christopher hits a police officer when the officer grabs his arm instead of listening, has a physical fight with Ed and threatens him with a pocket-knife
Ed explains the reason he killed Wellington is because a “red mist” came down after a misunderstanding with Mrs Shears
Communication problems are often the result of Christopher’s condition:
Christopher’s formal and literal way of speaking presents his way of thinking
Metaphors are confusing; he sees them as “lies” and prefers literal language
He says, for example, that people never specify for how long he should “be quiet”
This creates comedic irony while drawing attention to deeper themes
Conflicts isolate and marginalise Christopher, almost leading to his arrest
Stephens highlights Christopher’s challenges understanding non-verbal communication as well (such as body language, facial expressions and tone of voice):
He relates how his teacher told him that raising an eyebrow could mean “‘I want to do sex with you’” or “‘I think that what you just said was very stupid’”
Stephens shows how Christopher’s parents and teacher communicate in a particular way with him, illustrating their understanding of his condition:
His father engages in Christopher’s conversation about space, which is far more advanced than Ed is able to comprehend
Siobhan’s specific instructions help Christopher to navigate London
Ed and Judy explain to others that physical communication, such as touching or hugging, should be avoided, and that they show affection by pressing fingers
What is Stephens’s intention?
The play depicts the damaging effects of dishonesty
Stephens presents the damaging results of poor communication, and suggests it can lead to violence
Christopher’s integrity and honesty are rewarded in Stephens’s play
Stephens emphasises the importance of tolerance and understanding in order to avoid discrimination and prejudice
Examiner Tips and Tricks
Examiners stress the importance of focusing your response around interpretations of, and meanings within, the text. Try to take a more exploratory and discursive approach to your reading of the play as the examiner will reward you highly for this approach. For instance, you could begin to develop your own interpretations by using sentence starters such as: ‘Stephens may have characterised Ed as a frustrated father in order to highlight ideas about …’
Order and disorder
The play conveys ideas about society’s standards of normal and abnormal, order and disorder, by presenting the perspectives and experiences of the protagonist: a teenager with an autism spectrum disorder.
Knowledge and evidence:
Due to his condition, Christopher needs logic, strict routine and clear instructions to feel a sense of order in his world:
In this way, the play exposes the often illogical attitudes of others
When a dog is killed and the adults around him dismiss this as a petty crime, Christopher’s world is thrown into disarray:
Stephens reflects the disruption of Christopher’s ordered world by presenting the stage as a grid with constantly shifting settings
The play illustrates how Christopher uses problem-solving to overcome challenges:
He uses practical coping strategies, such as counting his steps and finding his way to the station using an equation of possibilities
He uses deduction strategies, referring to the detective Sherlock Holmes
However, Christopher acknowledges that sometimes there is no explanation for things:
He says: “prime numbers are like life”, they are “logical” but you could never work out the rules
Christopher dislikes the colours yellow and brown, but admits this holds no logic
Nervous and scared commuters convey how Christopher has disrupted the social order
Stephens illustrates how other characters react to Christopher, often perceiving him as imbalanced or “abnormal”:
He jumps onto the London Underground tracks to find his pet rat
He climbs into a luggage rack on the train to avoid passengers
Characters perceive Christopher’s reaction to the dog’s death as extreme
His father tells him to forget about Wellington, saying “it’s a bloody dog”
In contrast, his emotionless reaction to his mother’s “death” is seen as callous
This is ironic as it is a lie, which presents Christopher’s responses as legitimate
By showing Christopher’s perspective, audiences learn that, in fact, he thinks other people are “stupid” and have trivial concerns:
He thinks it is ironic that other people, who are so easily distracted and find it hard to concentrate on one thing, believe their behaviour is “normal”
Stephens highlights how commuters normalise the disordered and chaotic environment:
Loud and meaningless noises on the journey are shown as a sensory overload
What is Stephens’s intention?
Stephens presents the established social order as confusing and frustrating for some individuals and points out its hypocrisies
Stephens’s play raises questions about the concept of normality and suggests it is subjective
Stephens highlights the complexities of relationships that must navigate different systems of order
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