Ed's Confession
English Lit: Edexcel IGCSE The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, topic 3.1.8
Ed's Confession
The final scene of Part One sees Ed attempt to explain his behaviour to his son. However, Christopher, shell-shocked and terrified of his father, resolves to run away to London to find his mother.
Monologue form
- Ed’s confession is in the form of a long monologue in which he attempts to tell the truth about “everything”.
- He confesses to killing Wellington after a bitter argument with Mrs Shears, who he had turned to after his wife had left him.
Christopher's lack of trust
- Christopher’s silence throughout Ed’s monologue reveals his lack of trust in his father.
- He also “ignores” Ed’s attempt to touch fingers.
- After a spell of groaning and counting in an attempt to calm himself down, he decides to find his mother in London.
Voicing Christopher's thoughts
- Stephens uses the actors playing Siobhan, Uncle Terry, Mrs Alexander and Judy to voice Christopher’s thoughts as he works out the practicalities of how he can run away.
- This dramatic device will be used extensively in Part Two as Christopher travels to London.
Judy's address
- Part One ends with Judy’s address repeated four times, telling the audience where Christopher intends to end up in Part Two.
Test yourself on Ed's Confession
What form does Ed's confession take?
How does Christopher respond to Ed's confession?