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quirkyandlaughing
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31 Jan 2012, 12:27 pm

I just finished writing a novel with an Aspie protagonist. It didn't start out on purpose, but in hindsight I realized it was the story of an Aspie before diagnosis, discovering that he had theory of mind limitations. This was exactly the awakening I was having over the 6 years of writing it (though I had no idea at the time). Once I realized I had Asperger's, I went back and revised with this in mind. It was a fascinating awakening for me.

Has anyone read Confederacy of Dunces by O'Toole? I feel like he's Aspie. Antisocial, extremely smart, very moral, always clinging to the things that make him comfortable, deathly afraid of the workforce... He's not like the typical Aspie you see in movies and on TV. They're always the science or math geniuses with flat affect that don't seem to bungle up their own lives much. The Asperger's that runs in my family is very different from that. I'd love to see more diversity in fictional Aspies in general.



quirkyandlaughing
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31 Jan 2012, 12:31 pm

I just thought of another book! Solitude of Prime Numbers by Paolo Giordano. You could convince me that both the main characters in that are Aspie. I highly recommend it, by the way. I love fiction about loneliness.

There's a really obscure one called Regarding Roderer by Guillermo Martinez that seems Aspie, too.

Before diagnosis, I pretty much only read novels written by physicists and mathematicians. Kind of funny now that I'm diagnosed - I think many of those writers are Aspie!



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01 Feb 2012, 5:21 am

I think if I wrote a screenplay or novel about asperger, the asperger character would be pretty much like me; asperger/add combination, very strong opinions, emotional,but only with other aspies



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02 Feb 2012, 8:44 pm

I only share emotions with people I trust.



quirkyandlaughing
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02 Feb 2012, 9:36 pm

TheygoMew wrote:
I only share emotions with people I trust.


Same here. I'll ramble on and on about my life story (a nervous habit), but feelings? Forget it!



USMCnBNSFdude
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03 Feb 2012, 8:11 pm

TheygoMew wrote:
NTAndrew wrote:
I haven't read Curious Incident. I did see Rain Man a long time ago. I'm interested in what you didn't like about those. You folks are the teachers, I am the student. Enlighten me!


Rainman isn't aspergers.

+100. Rainman is about middle to low functioning autism.



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04 Feb 2012, 12:57 am

NTAndrew wrote:
For many people, the only things they will ever learn about Aspergians are what they see portrayed in fiction. Knowing this, if you were writing a novel, a play or a screenplay, what would an Aspergian character be like? What would he/she say to the Neurotypical characters about his/her identity? And what questions would an Aspergian have about the way Neurotypicals interact with the world?

In case your curious I consider myself a Neurotypical, but the more I read about Asperger's, the less certain I am about my status.


I believe James Dean in "Rebel Without A Cause" would provide some insight. Anthony Perkins in the Orson Welles film of Kalfka's "The Trial" would be another pick.



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04 Feb 2012, 2:39 am

MrXxx wrote:
TheygoMew wrote:
Aspergers is more like Sheldon from the Big Bang Theory.


I have to disagree, but not the way you might think. Even though Sheldon is fictional, I agree Aspie is a good description for him.

However I think it is more accurate to say, "Sheldon is Aspie, but not all Aspies are like Sheldon."

Sheldon is a very extreme fictional representation of Asperger's Syndrome (that I happen to find plausible). You may one day meet an Aspie just like him or at least very similar to him, but you will also meet a LOT of aspies who are nothing like him at least from external appearances and observable behaviors.

It's been said, and it is VERY true. If you've met one aspie, you've met ONE aspie.


What is interesting to me - or funny, depending on how one looks at it - is that I've never seen The Big Bang Theory, but a few times people have joked that my Aspie son is like Sheldon, and I don't think those people are aware my son is Aspie.

Oh I hope Sheldon is a lovable and admirable character!


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Nurylon
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19 Feb 2012, 6:32 am

Hey, BuyerBeware, can you give some examples of how in House Rules the people have just enough knowledge of AS to be dangerous? I have come across so many people like that, knowing just enough about AS to assume everyone with AS was like this, or that I was always like that, or like this for this reason, or whatever. It really hurt and it really sucked.



megamum
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02 Mar 2012, 4:50 am

I like the asperger portrayal in Nick Hornby's 'About a Boy' (the book, not the film!) - though they never explore his aspergers or his mother's really, but I do think they are gentle genuine portrayals. Nick Hornby has an autsitic son.

House Rules - I thought there was far too much accommodation to the young man at home. The mother never appeared to try to challenge his 'rules' or move him forward at all, she just changed everyone else's life. I recently met a mother who was cooking yorkshire pudding (UK savoury side dish) with gravy for breakfast for her son every day. Now after Mum was given some support to make a change, he chooses from a small menu of breakfast foods...

Claire



sas144
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09 Mar 2012, 11:37 am

quirkyandlaughing wrote:
I just thought of another book! Solitude of Prime Numbers by Paolo Giordano. You could convince me that both the main characters in that are Aspie. I highly recommend it, by the way. I love fiction about loneliness!


This is the one book that made me realize with a shock that I may have Asperger. The protagonist Mattia really is telling MY life. Anyone else that knows the book? It is highly recommended.



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09 Mar 2012, 12:44 pm

Nurylon wrote:
Hey, BuyerBeware, can you give some examples of how in House Rules the people have just enough knowledge of AS to be dangerous? I have come across so many people like that, knowing just enough about AS to assume everyone with AS was like this, or that I was always like that, or like this for this reason, or whatever. It really hurt and it really sucked.


I remember it being assumed-- and stressed-- by the prosecuting attorney in the story that, basically, "Everyone knows people with Asperger's are sociopaths-- while still capable of knowing right from wrong, but not of caring about it-- so obviously the boy must be guilty of murder."

So tired.

Yes, the mother in the story was far too indulgent. Begs the question, though-- If you were on your own with two boys, without much knowledge, what would you do?? Fight the constant battle?? Keep the peace any way you could?? Something in the middle?? Opt out??

In reference to Sheldon-- No, he's irritating and abrasive. But, after fifteen years of comparing myself to Frank Burns (M*A*S*H) and Steve Urkel (Family Matters, I think), Sheldon Cooper doesn't look so bad after all.


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Kjas
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10 Mar 2012, 8:46 am

If I were to portray it in film or a novel, I would choose to have more than one Aspie in there (maybe 2), so people can see in which ways we can be similar and in which ways we can have our differences. I wouldn't make the characters too extreme, I would make them obvious enough to carry some or most of the obvious traits while at times being able to blend a little.

Too many of us forget that even between Aspies there are massive differences. Some of us are not functional without assistance, some of us are functional and some are blend too well. We also have those of us who are borderline NT / Aspie. We're all different. Some of us are hypo-sensitive to pain while other are hyper. Some of us have issues with verbal communication, while others are excellent at it. It affects us all in different ways I would like any portrayal to reflect that diversity.

As per Big Bang Theory, the portrayal of Sheldon, while I do find it hilarious and can certainly relate to the way he thinks (but not necessarily the content of what he thinks / says), it is far too extreme. I think the portrayals being so extreme, particularly in film and TV, often colour the NT's view of us automatically to the negative and the extreme.

As per House Rules, the mother in that story was far too lenient. Some of us could have had that experience, but plenty of others would have been pushed very hard by their families to conform in every way. The pressure of our own families pushing us to conform is far more common, therefore I believe it would be more beneficial to portray that. That kind of pressure being put on us by our own families (especially if unDXed) can be shattering to our trust in them. If we can't be ourselves at home with our families then who can we be ourselves around? It simply tells us that we cannot be ourselves. Why would anyone else expect someone to live like that and be happy?


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Last edited by Kjas on 10 Mar 2012, 9:07 am, edited 1 time in total.

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10 Mar 2012, 9:03 am

TheygoMew wrote:
I am reminded of Kathy Lee Gifford and how she treated the autistic boy on live tv. He cried and they laughed. The one friend he has is a hero for befriending him. Seriously, do these people think they really have empathy?



[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1MwuJy07lQY[/youtube]

I didn't watch the above clip because I knew it would make my hyper-empathetic tendencies to go into overload but I Googled and listened to Howard Stern's take on the matter. Stern is usually an asswipe but he was right on in this response. What a bunch of insensitive clods and how about that ToM! Another thing that occurs to me is why didn't the autistic boy's mother refuse to put him on the show? I would never do that.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q2RnFAfoLzE&feature=related[/youtube]


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munch15a
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17 Mar 2012, 12:10 am

I would not write a book about autism I would write one about a crime story or love story or sci-fi that happened to have someone with autism in it this is what often angers me well anger might be to strong a word there is a view that autism is a life defining condition then you will never get away from I you would not write a book about someone who had a heart problem you would write a book with a chactier with a heart problem

Heard the Jodi picol book was good tho