Poll: Favourite TV ambiguously Asperger's/Autistic character?
- Thread starter end_boss
- Start date
Recommended Videos
i know boston legal is plenty funny, and even if the hostage incident was the only way to bring it up i resepct the shows writers for treating the aspergers thing as a serious issue while not painting the person who has it in a derogatory light or being patronising about itBobDobolina said:
whoops, damn typo'sBobDobolina said:
My favorite Aspergers character is Jerry Espenson from Boston Legal. He's a brilliant lawyer that knows all the laws in side and out and what needs to be done, but can't really present it well because he can't function socially. The actor won an Emmy for that performance. He's been mentioned previously and is a pretty deep character.
[Poll: Favourite mildly offensive/and or patronising thread title]:
'Favourite brilliantly smart, socially retarded character?' 11.4% (4)
'Favourite really quite witty, black character?' 48.6% (17)
'Favourite amazingly athletic, gay caricature?' 40% (14)
[EDIT]
I don't necessarily have any problem with the portrayal of people with autism spectrum disorders or other disabilities in comedy. It's just that a thread on a gaming forum asking us to pick out the most hilarious possibly disabled person seems a little tasteless.
'Favourite brilliantly smart, socially retarded character?' 11.4% (4)
'Favourite really quite witty, black character?' 48.6% (17)
'Favourite amazingly athletic, gay caricature?' 40% (14)
[EDIT]
I don't necessarily have any problem with the portrayal of people with autism spectrum disorders or other disabilities in comedy. It's just that a thread on a gaming forum asking us to pick out the most hilarious possibly disabled person seems a little tasteless.
It is different and is offensive. Simply googling it will provide links, here are a few:end_boss said:
http://www.r-word.org/r-word-why-pledge.aspx
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/29981699/ns/us_news-life/ (if Dr Cox is behind it, you know it makes sense!)
http://www.newser.com/story/98255/nj-bans-the-word-retarded.html (not the only state to do so I believe!)
http://www.mencap.org.uk/news.asp?id=14931
Although some states still use the term, in the UK it is not used in any official manner.
On topic none of them.
Did anyone see the Greys Anatomy Episodes with Mary Mcdonnell playing a doctor with Aspergers? She was the closest I have seen to a accurate portrayal. She wasn't a nerd sci fi geek she was a heart surgeon whose singular focus was the human heart.
She had the part down pat in my opinion (speaking as a diagnosed Aspergers syndrome gal), the gestures, the mannerisms, the adherence to rules, the lack of eye contact and she didn't freak out when being touched she freaked out at loud noises and too much emotion.
I never watched Greys, (Im not a fan at all) I'm a battlestar nerd and when I heard Mary would be doing a few episodes as a woman with Aspergers I wanted to see how well she pulled it off and if the writers could do it without it being stupid.
And to my surprise (more about the writers then Mary, she's awesome) they did.
Okay, the only real aspergers/autistic I have seen lately that I find believable and adorable is Zack from Bones, he may not have been written as such but he certainly comes off that way.
She had the part down pat in my opinion (speaking as a diagnosed Aspergers syndrome gal), the gestures, the mannerisms, the adherence to rules, the lack of eye contact and she didn't freak out when being touched she freaked out at loud noises and too much emotion.
I never watched Greys, (Im not a fan at all) I'm a battlestar nerd and when I heard Mary would be doing a few episodes as a woman with Aspergers I wanted to see how well she pulled it off and if the writers could do it without it being stupid.
And to my surprise (more about the writers then Mary, she's awesome) they did.
Okay, the only real aspergers/autistic I have seen lately that I find believable and adorable is Zack from Bones, he may not have been written as such but he certainly comes off that way.
Oh man, from the second link, the comments are amazing.Rekrul said:
"This is retarted! LOL Im so tired of ppl freaking out over a word. This is america, FREEDOM OF SPEECH, and to me that means I can say any damn thing i want, and if i wanna use the word retard, i will! Im not gonna have people tell me what words I can and cannot say, im an adult therefore I will do as I wish. Im not gonna go on and on with this story though, cuz its to retarted for me HAHA"
It has like 9 thumbs up...
All of those threads all focus on the exact same argument, which is that the term "retard" should not be used as an insult. However, "retard" is still a word with a meaning, and to the best of my knowledge I am using it properly. Saying "socially retarded" is not being used in context of an insult, and is simply to say that in the case of these characters who may or may not be autistic or have Asperger's (I already pointed out that they might not fit the true definition), they are socially awkward/inept/undeveloped. I am not saying the people "are retards," I am describing an aspect of their personality as having developed alarmingly slow compared to their accelerated intellects. If we examine the N-word, we see a term that has no definition beyond its repressive use and its counter-usage by its targeted community. "Retarded," just like "gay," and "queer," are words with proper definitions that can be used in a context outside of its unfortunate connotations.Rekrul said:
I think "ambiguously autistic" is the better way to go about it. With how uncommon autism is, you're likely to only come across one developed autistic spectrum character throughout the run of a given show. By explicitly stating a character "is autistic" you're implicitly saying "and this is how autistic people are".Faela said:
I really hope they manage to bring him back eventually. It's also nice to see a gay actor getting work as a straight character.