English Standard Year 12 -The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time: Themes & Symbols

Symbols

• Swiss Army Knife For Christopher, the Swiss army knife symbolizes security. He holds it with the saw blade drawn whenever he feels threatened in a crowd or is frightened of being touched: “I opened my Swiss Army Knife in my pocket to make me feel safe and I held on to it tight.” Christopher takes out the knife whenever he senses danger, whether the threat is real or imagined, such as in the crowded train terminal in London, thinking, “if they hit me and if I kill them it will be self-defense and I won’t go to prison.”
• Dogs There are two significant dogs in Christopher’s life: Wellington and Sandy. Wellington’s death symbolizes Christopher’s loss of trust, and therefore Christopher’s lost innocence. Before Wellington’s death, Christopher trusted wholeheartedly in his father.
• Diagrams Diagrams symbolize order in Christopher’s mind. Whenever he feels anxious and worried, he draws a diagram or creates a long list of numbers to calm himself, such as when he plans to run away from home: “I Formulated a Plan. And that made me feel better because … I just had to follow the instructions one after the other.” The many diagrams in The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time give readers tangible insight into this symbolism as they can see on the page exactly what Christopher imagines.
• The Murder Investigation Christopher’s book begins as a mystery novel about the murder of his neighbor’s dog, but as Christopher’s investigation progresses, it comes to represent Christopher’s search for the truth about his mother and father.
• Logic puzzles, maths problems and maps Logic puzzles, math problems, and maps symbolize to Christopher the part of the world that is ordered and logical. Accordingly, Christopher uses these items as tools to organize his thinking, like when he uses the so-called Monty Hall problem to explain why his intuition regarding Mr. Shears has been wrong, and they serve as Christopher’s primary means of achieving a sense of security.
• The A-Level Test in Maths For Christopher, the A-level math test represents a way for him to validate and feel proud of himself. Because of his condition, Christopher is socially inept and attends a school for children with disabilities. But Christopher does not feel that the other children in the school are really his peers. His condition, while a handicap, doesn’t limit him to the extent that the other children’s disabilities limit them.
• Stars Christopher often looks up at the stars, especially in emotionally difficult situations. The stars make him feel small because the universe is so large, and they allow him to imagine that he’s out in space and there aren’t people all around him, which he finds comforting.

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