The Thoughts of a Closed Mind

If nothing else, I have learned this semester that writing is one of, if not the most, effective way to convey one’s thoughts. Not only does it allow creativity, but it also gives a writer a way to be freely expressive and completely passionate about what they are trying to convey, with no fear. I am not trying to suggest that writers “hide” behind their words. I see the words on the page as more of a tool. They are a device for conveying an idea. And by conveying that idea through the ink on a page, rather than simply by speaking the idea to a listener, the idea itself becomes sort of its own being. It becomes a separate entity from the writer. Suddenly a brilliant thought turns in to something concrete. It can be preserved this way. Just like Keats expressed in his poem “When I Have Fears That I May Cease to Be”, there is a fear that our thoughts are not permanent, and that they can be lost. Writing gives us a way to preserve these thoughts, whether for ourselves or in order to share with others. In the same way that I personally enjoy writing for this reason, I also love reading for the same reason. Reading the work of another allows me to dive into their thoughts, and sometimes even maybe get a better grasp of what exactly their thoughts were on a matter than if they were to try to describe them to me in person. After reading “The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime”, by Mark Haddon, I can say I was not only completely engrossed in the novel as I read, but that I was also constantly fascinated by the mind of the author.

            In this novel, it is immediately obvious that this is not an ordinary fiction novel (although I don’t know that it is fair to say that there is an “ordinary” fiction novel). The diction was like nothing I have read before. While I have not read this novel before, I did know a little background on the novel. I knew the narrator of the novel has Autism, so I was very intrigued to see what the book would be like. I don’t know what my expectations were (it is hard to look back now after reading the book), but I can safely say whatever I expected, I was far off. The mind of this narrator is purely amazing. I have always had a keen interest in Autism and actually almost joined a lab working with people with Autism instead of the lab I currently work in. However, I think I would have not enjoyed the book nearly as much had I done so. Every sentence was a mystery. Every sentence was unpredictable. Yet not. It was as if with every word, I garnered a slightly better understanding of the mind of one who had no desire to open up to anyone.

            According to the secondary reading from the Medical Encyclopedia, Autism “affects the brain’s normal development of social and communication skills.” Its causes remain unknown. It has no cure, and while theories have been made about the cause (these include theories involving diet, mercury poisoning, vaccine sensitivity, etc.), none have been proven. Essentially these children have mind of mystery. The most interesting part is the fact that one of the biggest symptoms and signs of autism is a lack of social skills and a tendency to be closed off to the world. Many kids with autism will even treat other people more as objects. They have a very hard time understanding feelings. I found the pictures of facial expressions that the narrator included, which he was taught in order to  help him try to understand feelings, pointed to this. As the book progresses, it is obvious that the narrator  suffers from Autism. “I could see him touching me, like I was watching a film of what was happening in the room, but I could hardly feel his hand at all. It was just like the wind blowing against me” (p. 114). This exhibits one of the main characteristics of Autism, which is the inability to process other’s feelings and to relate to people in a social way. Furthermore, this quote also displays the narrator’s general intelligence. He is by no means unintelligent. In fact, the fact that he knows every prime number up to 7,057 would strongly suggest otherwise. But why is this Autistic individual, who clearly does not have what we would consider to be a “normal” grasp of human communication and general social interaction, want to write a novel? And furthermore, what can we learn from it?

            I believe that this novel offers an exceptional view on Autism, and it allows people who do not have a distinct understanding of Autism to reach in to the mind of a person who suffers from the disorder. We learn from experience, and this novel only gets me more curious about the inter workings of the mind of individuals with Autism. How do they react to situations differently than people without Autism? What is going through their mind as they go about life in general? How does their thought process unfold when they are solving a problem, even as simple as something like tying your shoes? Haddon offers a very interesting take on the answers to these questions.