Remembering Judy & "Fight" Scene

Christopher Remembers his Mother

While telling Siobhan about what he has learned from Mrs Alexander, Christopher begins to tell her of what he remembers about his mother, Judy.

Judy appears on stage

During the flashback to his memory of a day at the beach, the audience sees Judy, his mother, on stage for the first time.
Christopher’s first memory of his mother is bathed in sunlight and paints a vivid picture of a fun-loving and vibrant individual, playing in the water (“she jumped backwards and disappeared”) and encouraging Christopher to join her (“Over here love. Christopher! Look it’s lovely”).

Reassuring Christoper

After Judy scares Christopher in the water (“I thought a shark had eaten her and I screamed”), there is a touching moment of intimacy where Judy reassures her son (“It’s OK Christopher”) and spreads her fingers out in the shape of a fan.
- This gesture mirrors the moment of intimacy between Christopher and his father when we are first introduced to Ed.

Regret and disappointment

Even in this short flashback, there are hints of regret and disappointment from Judy.
This foreshadows the breakdown of her marriage to Ed, as she imagines an alternative life (and an alternative relationship) with a “local handyman” in the South of France.

In the previous flashback/Judy scene, the audience could see, on a different part of the stage, Ed finding and reading Christopher’s notebook. When Christopher returns home, Ed confronts him about the investigation.

Violence

In direct contrast to the gentle intimacy of the previous scene, this scene quickly becomes violent, signalled in Stephens’ stage directions.
Ed “throws” Christopher’s notebook in anger and then “grabs” Christopher’s arm. The struggle escalates into a “fight” in which Ed “shakes Christopher hard”.
The power of these verbs (“throws… grabs… fight.. shakes”) indicates the intensity of this scene and its potential to shock an audience.

Christopher falls unconscious

Ed shakes his son so hard that Christopher falls unconscious “for a few seconds”.
The brief lull (pause) in the action gives the audience time to process what they have just seen and allows Ed to cool off.
He leaves the house (“I need a drink”) and apologises to Christopher on his return.

Gesture of reconciliation

The scene ends with a gesture of reconciliation as Ed and Christopher fan out their fingers and touch each other’s hands.
But the dialogue undermines the apparent reconciliation: Christopher asks his father where his notebook is, signalling to the audience that he has not decided to obey his father and end his investigation.

1Introduction & Context

1.1Novel & Play

1.1.1Mark Haddon's Novel (2003)

1.1.2Simon Stephens' Adaptions (2012)

1.2Christopher's Autism

1.2.1Christopher's Autism

1.2.2End of Topic Test - Introduction & Context

2Form, Structure & Language

2.1Dramatic Devices

2.1.1Writing About the Text as a Playscript

2.1.2Dramatic Devices

2.2Genre & Structure

2.2.1Genre

2.2.2Structure

2.3Language

2.3.1Language

2.3.2End of Topic Test - Form, Structure & Language

3Text Summary & Analysis

3.1Part One

3.1.1Discovering the Dead Dog & Christopher's Autism

3.1.2The Policeman & Siobhan

3.1.3The Police Station & Ed's Entry

3.1.4Mother's Death & Beginning the Investigation

3.1.5Ed's Frustrations & Revisiting Mrs Alexander

3.1.6Remembering Judy & "Fight" Scene

3.1.7Judy's Letters

3.1.8Ed's Confession

3.1.9End of Topic Test - Part One

3.1.10End of Topic Test - Part One 2

3.2Part Two

3.2.1Preparing to Run Away & Train Station

3.2.2On the Train & Arriving in London

3.2.3On the Tube & Arriving at Judy's House

3.2.4Policeman, Ed Visits & Tensions

3.2.5Back in Swindon & New Beginnings

3.2.6The End & Maths Appendix

3.2.7End of Topic Test - Part Two

3.2.8End of Topic Test - Part Two cont....

4Themes

4.1Themes

4.1.1Independence

4.1.2Parenting

4.1.3Order & Disorder

4.1.4End of Topic Test - Themes

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