{"id":2023,"date":"2020-04-29T17:19:20","date_gmt":"2020-04-29T17:19:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.dislit2020.chris-foss.net\/blog\/?p=2023"},"modified":"2020-04-29T17:19:20","modified_gmt":"2020-04-29T17:19:20","slug":"the-right-way-to-be-autistic-final-exam","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.dislit2020.chris-foss.net\/blog\/uncategorized\/the-right-way-to-be-autistic-final-exam\/","title":{"rendered":"The Right Way to be Autistic (Final Exam)"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

As I was reading Ari Ne\u2019eman\u2019s piece on the conflicting narratives of Neurotypical and Autistic individuals, I was reminded of research I did on the book The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time<\/em>, specifically in regards to the author Mike Haddon\u2019s writing process, and how he actually did very little research when creating the character of Christopher Francis Boone. At the time of my digging into the book\u2019s history, I was impressed by Haddon\u2019s stance that he felt he did not need to perform in-depth research because the autism spectrum is so broad and vast that there is no singular set of requirements for an autistic individual to have, and the critical response to the book led me to believe this was a valid stance to hold. However, after reading Ne\u2019eman\u2019s piece, I have come to wonder if this was truly the best course of action for him. In this essay, I will use Haddon\u2019s Curious Incident <\/em>to discuss the merits of autistic consultation in media and why I believe that the story of Christopher Boone is one of the better depictions of autism, despite the ways in which it could have benefited from an insider perspective during the writing process.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Christopher Francis Boone is, in no uncertain terms, a savant; in many ways, he is a stereotype of autism, gifted in math, a personality built around the logical world which falters and fizzles out when faced with emotional spontaneity and anything he cannot reason his way through. To Ne\u2019eman, this in and of itself might be a piece of damning evidence in condemning Curious Incident <\/em>alongside other stories about autism written by neurotypical individuals, and I sought out critique of the book written by individuals on the autism spectrum, in search of a more personal view point. In researching this, I came across a blog post by Nomi Kaim, an autistic individual, which focused on her reaction to the character of Christopher. One of the first things she brought up was the ways in which Christopher is a textbook example of an autistic individual;<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMany of Christopher\u2019s character traits fit the textbook definition of autism. He has profound difficulty communicating and interacting with people, including overly literal interpretation of language; difficulty interpreting gestures and facial expressions; and an inability to take other people\u2019s perspectives. His speech is excessively formal, and he is incapable of social spontaneity or reciprocity. He constantly misses the big picture, or context, of what is going on. He fixates on a few themes he cannot let go of, rocks or groans when overwhelmed, and is hypersensitive to sound, smell, and touch.\u201d (Kaim)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, she spends just as much if not more time talking about the depths of Christopher\u2019s character, and the ways in which he breaks the mold pushed so often by neurotypical authors. She relates to his confusion born from vague terms like \u201ckeep off the grass\u201d, his love of animals, and the way he uses logic and reasoning to make his way through an emotional world. Yes, this is only one kind of autism, but it is a portrayal of autism that resonates with real individuals. One thing that Curious Incident <\/em>succeeds in, which I think Ne\u2019eman would agree with, is the way that those around Christopher interact with him. One of the key goals of autistic self-advocates is to the push for \u201cboth support and acceptance throughout society\u201d (Ne\u2019eman). This is, I feel, one of Curious Incident<\/em>\u2019s most noteworthy triumphs. Christopher\u2019s parents, Ed and Judy, both strive to support Christopher to the best of their abilities, within realistic limitations; Ed cooks the simple meals that fit within Christopher\u2019s particular palette, while Judy does her best to understand Christopher without allowing her own neurodivergent traits to get in the way. Judy in particular was an interesting character to me because of how far from the stereotype of a \u201crefrigerator mother\u201d she is.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If anything, she cares far too much, without any outlet for the ways in which she cares. Christopher, like many autistic individuals, rejects her offers of physical affection, and lashes out when she tries to touch him without consent, yet as the book progresses she makes strides in learning about Christopher and his boundaries so that she can be the best parent she is capable of being for him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When Ne\u2019eman talked about those who \u201cdefine disability not according to its effect on individuals with disabilities, but on the basis of how it is perceived by those around them\u201d, I was prepared to reread Curious Incident <\/em>with a critical eye, remembering a good deal of time spent on how Christopher\u2019s parents reacted to his unique sense of self, but found that their reactions to him were often background noise compared to the way the book focused so heavily on Christopher\u2019s life and the way autism effected it. It left me wondering how Haddon had managed to write a story that seemed to succeed in its depiction of an autistic character when he didn\u2019t even go into it with the intention of writing one. For the most part, I agree with Ne\u2019eman\u2019s assertion that it is the author\u2019s moral obligation to consult autistic individuals whenever they seek to represent autism in the literary space, yet somehow Haddon created a character that resonated with many and disturbed very few, without having done so.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I am led to believe the aspect of this book which aids the most in its success in depicting an autistic character is the fact that it is told from a first-person perspective. There is never as large a focus on any aspect of the world as there is on Christopher and his perspective of it. He is the most important character, and the book frequently asserts his competence and independence, while balancing this out with his limitations, such as the times in which he is overstimulated by loud noises and foreign environments. These limitations, however, never hinder Christopher so much that he cannot accomplish his goals, which goes a long way in establishing Curious Incident <\/em>as one of the more positive representations of autistic characters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ne\u2019eman spends a large portion of time in his Dueling Narratives <\/em>essay discussing who has the power to control the narrative surrounding autism; that is to say, whose voice is most prominent, neurotypical individuals speaking for autistic individuals, or those autistic individuals themselves. Curious Incident <\/em>is a strange case in that it does not truly fall into either of these categories; though the story is told from the perspective of an individual on the autism spectrum, can it truly be considered a story with an autistic voice when it was written by a neurotypical individual? One argument I make in defense of Curious Incident <\/em>is based around the following quote, also used in Dueling Narratives<\/em>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe tragedy is not that we\u2019re here, but that your world has no place for us to be. How can it be otherwise, as long as our own parents are still grieving over having brought us into the world?\u201d \u2013Jim Sinclair, Our Voices<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Haddon may not be an autistic individual, and he performed the minimal amount of research in writing one, and I find this to be a fault of the book, in that Christopher is still a savant, a child so talented in mathematics that he goes on to take college levels classes as a middle schooler. However, in much the same way Ed and Judy Boone desperately try to create a place for their child to be accepted in the world, Haddon is like a third parent to Christopher, crafting a realistic literary world that is not built for him, but making sure that he is strong enough to attempt to carve out a place for himself in spite of this. The book would have benefitted from an autistic perspective in the writer\u2019s room, and this is not a statement I consider subjective; there is always room for improvement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, Haddon deserves at least a portion of the applause he has received for creating a character who is far more than the few stereotypes he fits into. I agree with Ne\u2019eman, that for the most part autistic perspective is a requirement in the creation of autistic characters, and Christopher as a character could only have benefitted from this. Curious Incident<\/em>\u2019s success is in spite of the minimal research done, not because of it, and this is a fact that I stand by.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I would love to hear any thoughts Ari Ne\u2019eman has on Curious Incident<\/em>. It would be fascinating, I think.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Word Count: 1427<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

As I was reading Ari Ne\u2019eman\u2019s piece on the conflicting narratives of Neurotypical and Autistic individuals, I was reminded of research I did on the book The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time, specifically in regards to the author Mike Haddon\u2019s writing process, and how he actually did very little research when … Continue reading “The Right Way to be Autistic (Final Exam)”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":100,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[1],"tags":[85],"class_list":["post-2023","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-final-exam"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pcJhts-wD","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dislit2020.chris-foss.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2023","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dislit2020.chris-foss.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dislit2020.chris-foss.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dislit2020.chris-foss.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/100"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dislit2020.chris-foss.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2023"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.dislit2020.chris-foss.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2023\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2190,"href":"https:\/\/www.dislit2020.chris-foss.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2023\/revisions\/2190"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dislit2020.chris-foss.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2023"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dislit2020.chris-foss.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2023"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dislit2020.chris-foss.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2023"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}