John Elder Robison seems to have led a pretty interesting life thus far. He grew up mostly alone and pretty independent, lacking interaction with kids his age, while his family life was far from perfect. He pulled a lot of pranks that seemed to amuse no one but himself (for example, the “religious ritual” burning of the dummy in the woods). John Elder had savant-like abilities in electronics and other machine work, which set him even further apart when he was young but eventually brought him into a whole new world were he felt welcomed and accepted.
When John Elder finally finds out that Asperger’s is an actual condition, he asks if there’s a cure and his friend tells him it’s not a disease, it’s just the way he is. I don’t think John Elder actually think of himself as having a disease that needs a cure – he didn’t even know anything was specifically “wrong” with him until he was an adult. He actually seems to just accept himself as he is and knows he has to overcome a lot of adversity. He works harder than most people to function in social situations and daily interactions, but his work pays off and lets him live a mostly normal life. Rather, John Elder believes that society and the people around him just need to be a bit more accommodating and sympathetic to his differences.
One of the main difficulties John Elder has from the very beginning is how he comes across in social situations. He often just blurts out exactly what he’s thinking when it pertains to nothing the other person has said. This can be annoying and frustrating, especially to a child trying to carry on a conversation with him, which contributed to a lonely childhood for John Elder. He also doesn’t have much control over his facial expressions – there were two conversations in the book where he was told that someone had died, and he actually smiled. This comes across incredibly disturbing to someone who doesn’t understand John Elder. He isn’t happy that someone has died, he’s happy that he’s ok and the people that are close to him are ok.
Nicknames are a big part of John Elder’s interactions with others. I’m still beside myself that he called his mother “Slave” and his father “Stupid” and they actually put up with it. Some nicknames were awful, some weren’t so bad, and others made no sense at all. This is common for those with Asperger’s, and luckily it’s a trick that helps John Elder and (generally) doesn’t offend other people.
John Elder’s time in the school system seemed to be time wasted. The teachers didn’t know anything about Asperger’s and they labeled him as lazy and stupid, resulting in him receiving poor grades and lacking motivation and effort. He played pranks in the school, skipped school to spend time in the “music scene” where he felt more comfortable, and didn’t accomplish a whole lot. Eventually he was told to get his GED instead and ended up scoring very well. Unfortunately, the lack of knowledge that the faculty had did a disservice to John Elder, mostly in a social sense. School is a socialization institution, and socialization was one area where John Elder was struggling, because he could put together radios and TVs on his own with no trouble and had a pretty sharp mind.
I think the important thing with John Elder is that while he certainly faced a strong amount of adversity, he worked really hard to overcome it and now leads a successful life. He is happy, healthy, and right where he wants to be. It was a long road getting there, but he figured out a way to make everything work. He’s proud of the fact that he accomplished everything on his own – without medication, drugs, alcohol, or any other assistance – as well he should be. John Elder shows us that even diagnoses such as an autism spectrum disorder aren’t the “be all, end all” – a person can still have a happy and accomplished life, regardless of their struggles and circumstances.
6 comments:
If I may, let me give you another idea to ponder, with regard to my childhood pranks . . .
It is my belief that my pranks were a harmless way to vent my frustrations as a misfit teenager.
As annoying as they may have been, no one was hurt. Ever.
Today, society has clamped down on pranks like that. IN my opinion, that's one reason for the lethal violence in schools today. By not letting kids do harmless stuff, we create the potential for dangerous explosions.
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And you are right - I never thought of myself as "diseased." But I did think of myself as "defective" and that did not change until I learned about Asperger's.
Feeling defective is not good, no matter how successful you are.
Arson is actually a crime, punishable by law.
And planting pornography in a teachers desk in school...well, that's also illegal for a minor to have their hands on. Not to mention the fact that that teacher could lose his/her job as well as professional and personal credibility.
I would not define these examples as "harmless stuff" even if no one was physically harmed.
And there are a whole host of reasons for violence in schools today. Maybe we should begin with our conservative (read: primitive) politicians who inadvertently let guns fall into the hands of children because they're too busy thinking about themselves. Next we could note the increased number of broken homes today, and lack of family time and individual attention, and the sort of effects this has on a child's development. I, for one, didn't pull any pranks as a child, harmless or not, and today I stand as a well-behaved and well-adjusted young woman... far from a "dangerous explosion".
And at no point did I conclude that feeling defective is good. I've battled anxiety and depression for as long as I can remember; this doesn't make me feel "normal" because quite frankly, no one is. But I get up each morning and go to work as well as attend college to work towards my goals as successfully as possible. I face adversity every day to create the life I want for myself.
Well, I too have faced adversity to create the life I want.
I understand that you have a different view of my pranks. While it may be true that those things are illegal, my original comment still stands: Repressing those activities might well have led to a worse (and more illegal) result. And I think that's still true today.
If you become a teacher, you are going to come up against kids who are frustrated, angry, and resistant to authority. With those kids, your ideas of what's legal and what's not won't matter. What will matter is earning their respect. And having watched a lot of kids, I don;t think this line of reasoning is going to do that.
WOW! What an interesting exchange.
Though I have not had the opportunity to read "Look Me in the Eye", as I'm currently reading/juggling about five other books, along with the academic readings required for this semester, I'm intrigued by the points made by both John and Jenna in this post.
To begin, neither of John's "pranks" described here were illegal.
Though they both seem to possess acerbic underpinnings, and are maladaptive acts (defined by a "neurotypical" society), you have to put them into proper context.
Yes, your acts (John) were in fact potentially harmful. As Jenna stated, planting porn in your teacher's desk could've lead to that teacher losing their career, thus putting hardship not only on the individual, but their family as well. So I can hardly see how this would be considered "harmless". The possession of porn by a minor is not however a crime. The sale or distribution of pornography to a minor is illegal, but the mere possession of porn by a minor is not.
While I don't believe that this action was the best manner for John to handle his frustration with his teacher(s), I can understand why he would do such a thing.
Having grown up with a Nonverbal Learning Disorder (which has many similar traits to asperger's)I can appreciate the type of frustration that John experienced. Not only do you feel like an outcast amongst your peers at school, but when the adults of that extended community fail you as well, and in many ways become "emotional bullies" themselves, you attempt to "reclaim your dignity" by acting out in "maladaptive" ways.
What is all too often unrecognized is that such behaviors are actually logical responses to the adult's own maladaptive behavior towards the adolescent with autism spectrum or learning disorders.
It's a vicious cycle somewhat like physical abuse, where abuse will beget abuse unless there is appropriate intervention.
To illustrate John's point further, this is where someone like you (Jenna) would come into the picture. As a teacher you're bound to encounter transgressive adolescents who quite often have little regard for what you or society at large consider right, wrong, legal, or even illegal.
Whether a student has asperger's, a learning disorder, or not, it's up to you to as the adult figure to look beyond "good and evil" and focus on why the student/adolescent is acting in the ways that he or she does. What need(s) are they trying to fulfill? By understanding each as an INDIVIDUAL, you can then begin to act a a proponent rather than an opponent.
As far as John's burning of dummies in the woods, as long as he was burning items that he owned, did not intend to collect insurance on said items, and the burnings took place on his own property, the act was not only legal, but would be misclassified as "arson".
Arson: n.
The crime of maliciously, voluntarily, and willfully setting fire to the building, buildings, or other property of another or of burning one's own property for an improper purpose, as to collect insurance.
Though what John did was reckless, it wasn't criminal.
I disagree with you both on why violence in schools (and in general) has escalated, but I feel the breadth of that topic is far too expansive to fully discuss here.
As for being "defective", show me one person who has had a "normal life", and I'll show you the rest of the world....
Hello
I am a sophomore at Caledonia High School. In my Accelerated English II class I was assigned to do a book report on a biography. My younger brother has Aspergers, so I was inspired my book. I have to do a tote bag presentation in front of my class. During this presentation, I have to present 10 items that represent your life Mr. Robison. Are there ten items that you would want to represent yourself with? Thank you for opening my eyes to the way my brother processes things. It has really allowed me t see him in a different light.
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