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Asperger's syndrome, also called Asperger's disorder, is a type of [|pervasive development disorder (PDD)]. PDDs are a group of conditions that involve delays in the development of many basic skills, most notably the ability to socialize with others, to communicate and to use imagination. It is closely associated with Autism. In plain English this means they percieve or understand the world differently to other people. They don't instinctively understand huma emotions. They have to be taught how to understand them. They need and ordered and structured life. They don't cope when things turn chaotic. They often find it difficult to understand facial expressionsor body language.

What is Aspergers? The symptoms of Asperger's syndrome vary and can range from mild to severe. Common symptoms include: · ** Problems with social skills: ** Children with Asperger's syndrome generally have difficulty interacting with others and often are awkward in social situations. They generally do not make friends easily. · ** Eccentric or repetitive behaviors: ** Children with this condition may develop odd, repetitive movements, such as hand wringing or finger twisting. · ** Unusual preoccupations or rituals: ** A child with Asperger's syndrome may develop rituals that he or she refuses to alter, such as getting dressed in a specific order. · ** Communication difficulties: ** People with Asperger's syndrome may not make eye contact when speaking with someone. They may have trouble using facial expressions and gestures, and understanding body language. They also tend to have problems understanding language in context. · ** Limited range of interests: ** A child with Asperger's syndrome may develop an intense, almost obsessive, interest in a few areas, such as sports schedules, weather or maps. · ** Coordination problems: ** The movements of children with Asperger's syndrome may seem clumsy or awkward. · ** Skilled or talented: ** Many children with Asperger's syndrome are exceptionally talented or skilled in a particular area, such as music or math. __ Diversity __ : Coping Under Pressure. One guarantee in life is that you will be presented with stress and emotional turmoil. The only thing that changes is how people cope with that stress. Christopher Boone retells how his world is sent into turmoil by chaos - the death of a favourite dog, the discovery of a deception regarding his parents - and how he restores order. Because Christopher suffers from Asperger’s Syndrome, the desire for order and stability is actually a necessity of living. He **needs an** **ordered and stable life** to be happy and safe. Taking into account Christopher’s limited ability to cope with the world and people, the decision to go to his mother, travel by train that would involve having to confront strangers, shut up with crowds and having to negotiate signs, would have been a very daunting thought. However Christopher was driven by the need to restore order in his world. He showed incredible courage and tenacity by even contemplating such a journey even though how he coped with the journey was sometimes unique. For example, after hiding from the policeman in the baggage shelving, after a while he decided it wasn’t such a bad place because at least he could be alone. After pulling a suitcase across he decided “it was like a door” and he “felt safe”. While many people made smart comments or rude comments, for Christopher it was a means of coping with an otherwise chaotic and terrifying experience. As we go though life, we all find ways of coping with world and experiences that put outside out comfort zone and this a unique aspect of human nature. We are all different in our thinking and the way we respond to outside experiences or stimuli.  Having a family member with any form of PDD can be very difficult at times for all members involved. It meant they couldn’t function like most families. Both his parents had to go out of their way to accommodate Christopher’s special needs. Outside of his family, Christopher had problems forming relationships with anyone because they didn’t understand where he was coming from. An example of this was when Christopher moved back in with his mother, Mr Shears took a complete dislike to him. In one way this was good because it demonstrated to his mum that he actually wasn’t a very nice person to begin with. One of the few people he had a positive relationship with outside his family was Siobhan. She understood his needs and he trusted her. · While his mother tried her best to cope with Christopher and his at times very difficult ways, she found in the end she couldn’t cope. She didn’t have the patience required keep calm when Christopher was being practically difficult. For example, in one of her letters she retells of the incident during Christmas shopping when Christopher threw a tantrum in a store, knocked stock of the shelving and then wet himself. The only thing his mother could do was wait for Christopher to stop screaming and then take the two hour walk home because he refused to go on the bus. · In the end, his mother felt very inadequate and guilty as far as Christopher was concerned. She didn’t cope with Christopher’s behaviours as well as his father did and this made her feel guilty and inadequate because she couldn’t be the mother that he needed: someone with the patience of a saint. In the end, this created many arguments between her and his father. Inevitably, she had an affair with Mr Shears and ended up leaving. What is important in the marriage split-up was that her affair became the symptom of a troubled marriage. She felt that the family would be better off without her. “Father said, ‘Christopher, do you understand that I love you?’ to which Christopher relies ‘Yes’ because ‘loving someone is helping them when they get into trouble, and looking after them and telling them the truth.’ Their relationship is different to the normal father/son relationship. · His father often has to go out of his way to accommodate Christopher’s odd characteristics. For example, providing him with food that isn’t brown or yellow. · However, his father is a human being, not superman. Sometimes he got very angry and frustrated with Christopher. For example in Chapter 127, his father gets angry with Christopher after finding out he had carried on asking neighbours questions when he had been told not to. His father lost his temper and grabbed Christopher which was a mistake as Christopher immediately lost control and lashed out at his father. Then the whole situation got out of control., · Christopher tries to relate to his father but is very limited when trying to understand his father’s emotions. For examples, when his father cried, Christopher coolly observed “he had tears coming from his eyes.” · Christopher’s top priority in any relationship was **trust.** This made the discovery of his mothers letters and the fact that his father had killed Wellington all that more traumatic. He had lost his trust in his father and at that point his world fell apart. T**he way the book has been written to reflect the character.** Very **methodically ordered and inclusion of minor and repetitive details** that reflect the way the Asperger’s mind works i.e. When he finds the dogs dead, “I had been hugging the dog for 4 minutes..” and when Mrs Shears told him to put the dog down he did and “moved back two metres.” He giving his age he was “15 years and three months and two days.”
 * What Are the Symptoms of Asperger's Syndrome? **
 * Themes **
 * being different; being “other”; what makes us similar to, or different from others.
 * It can mean the difference between inclusion into a group vs. exclusion from a group
 * disabilities – how you define such a thing and what sets you apart from others. It makes us aware that within society we have a huge range of people who are all very different.
 * Many of Christopher’s behaviours and thinking was different to other people. He had trouble understanding many basic social skills such as facial expression, reading body language or emtions. He had a fixation with, and was very good at maths but this did not necessarily make him different. What it did do was make him interact with other people, and in some situations, differently. For example, when door to door knocking, looking for Wellington’s killer, it didn’t occur to him to introduce himself before asking if this stranger knew who killed Wellington. Or when during his first confrontation with the policeman he curled into a ball on the wet grass. This resulted in him getting abused from people who didn’t know him. It also showed how intolerant people were to anyone who didn’t act as they expected them to.
 * Christopher was also different in the way he functioned in relationships. He didn’t understand other peoples’ perspective, such as his mother or fathers, and couldn’t stand being touched. Most families cuddle each other and don’t think twice about physical contact. However, Christopher’s only form of physical contact with his parents was the spreading of their hands and touching the finger tips.
 * Brings to questions – What is normal? There are times when most people can’t stand being touched due to just plain not wanting to at that particular time or not liking the people who are trying to make physical contact..
 * Should Christopher be mainstreamed of separated as far as schooling goes?
 * Look at Chapter 71 – what is the point of this chapter?
 * Acceptance – ** accepting others and accepting that we are all different with different beliefs, needs and expectations.
 * Relationships **
 * Christopher/Mother Relationship **
 * Father/Son Relationship **
 * Style **
 * First person narrative/perspective. **
 * Prime Numbers for chapter numbers. – ** because of his obsession with prime numbers.

Notes on Characters