Is it possible for an autistic person to ever truly appreciate literature? Asking for a friend.
>>7818593
Depends on the autistic person. It's a complex disorder that manifests in a myriad of ways, but one of the hallmarks of it is an incapability of enjoying fiction. That doesn't necessarily mean that there will never be an autist who can appreciate it, but it'll probably be unusual.
>>7818593
My wife's friends sister is literally autistic in the non meme sense, and she crushes asian literature. I think she may be running out of shit that is in translation.
>>7818599
>one of the hallmarks of it is an incapability of enjoying fiction.
Why is that? Just the lack of empathy for the characters?
'True appreciation' is a spook my brother. If you feel you're getting something out of literature that's all that matters.
>>7818610
That would make sense as a factor. This explains why they disproportionately love scifi and fantasy: rather than empathizing with well-made characters, they can just slide into the position of the self-insert protagonist. These settings also fascinate them with endless world-building and trying to make specific "rules" to make the story's specific brand of magic/technology make sense.
I would also say they probably have trouble understanding non-literal interpretations of things -- metaphors and symbols go over their heads. Most of them would rather have the authors throw subtlety out the window and just explain things outright.
That being said, I wouldn't be surprised if there were some whose specifically weird quirks drive them to literature. I've always wondered what it would be like if an aspie's narrow obsession was with, say, social interactions and the people around them, and they got so good at reading people and knowing how social groups work that they completely camouflaged their autism and seem like a perfectly normal person.Sometimes I wonder if this is me.
Sorry for the rant, but I'm surrounded by these fucks every day and find them fascinating.
>>7818593
>asking for a friend
Just admit it's you
>>7818738
I am a sperg and this is pretty much how it works. it is less for the social insight though than for technical aspects like how the stories/characters operate and applying lit theory to them.
>>7818739
So tell us, can you truly appreciate literature?
James Joyce shows signs of it
>>7818618
Same thing
>>7818738
One thing you find out about growing up is that almost every single idea you've ever had, the person you are interacting with has had a similar idea, perhaps phrased differently or subtly shifted to fit their own personality, but it's pretty much the same.
When you accept that you are basically a clone produced by a barbaric educational institution engineered to crush all imagination and individuality out of you, and that the real you died sometime between age 3 and 5, you can just appreciate the aspies for being themselves. Due to some brain chemistry imbalance or whatever monstrous genetic defect prenatal hamstringing nature cruelly forced onto them as a curled up little fetus all cozy and dreaming of developing a brain...
They are probably the only authentic human beings left. In their inability to cope or express or engage; in this shallow and pedantic world where everyone agrees to disagree about agreeable things, it's a pantomime of living because the fear of dying is just what happens to other people; they reject without rejecting and exist carefree in ignorance of being ignorant.
It used to be that literature was the escape of these malformed individuals, but now they can hide in many different fields and engage in healthy dialogue with their own kind, of a kind.
In a way, the internet renormalizes even the abnormal, and you all ultimately conform. Bend your will to power. And obey money. Unironic nouveau pauvre. Suffering by choice is simply pleasure and self-gratification.
Strange, I'm an autist but I adore literature - I find that I develop empathy towards fictional characters better than real people. Fantasy & sci-fi were on my shitlist even before I started reading proper literature, world-building is just completely boring and magic/technology brands are even worse.
>>7818738
I manage to camouflage my aspie-ness by just observing the world throughout my early-mid teens and not really participating in it. I've never been drawn to strictly normal people either - I spent my last year of secondary school hanging out with normal people due to unforseen circumstances and they just weren't interesting enough to engage with. Most my friends either are aspies themselves, mentally ill or have a mid-high level of upset in their life and no matter what situation I am put in I always end up being naturall drawn to these people.
It's still different strokes for different folks even in the aspie world, and despite my interest in literature my real affinity lies within maths which is more typical for autists. But all that aside, I feel that I can truly appreciate literature and the more I read the more I will continue to do so, so the answer to your 'friend's' question is yes.
