Comments on: Tangent on Ayn Rand and Randians

By: ray

ray — Thu, 30 Nov 2006 16:36:09 +0000

Psychological profiling of authors, based on their work is a popular parlor game, or a career path for English majors. It isn’t too far fetched to imagine that writers use the material closest at hand to fill out their characters and spin out plots.
But that doesn’t seem to be the major complaint about my Rand comment.
I think the response by “freeman” indicates a hypersensitivity to any notice or comment on anything related to Aspergers, probably from having to deal with people who don’t “get it” or who try to distance themselves from “diseased” people, or those who mainly just don’t understand anything outside of their own limited reference area.
Many Aspergers folks are capable of operating in our general social mix with only limited problems. Many even find a level of success, probably from being able to focus intensely on one area for a prolonged time. The pianist Glenn Gould, the animal researcher Temple Grandin, and quite possibly even Microsoft’s Bill Gates are Aspergers’. It has been noted that when Gates was hit with a cream pie in Belgium, he froze in place, acted lost and was completely knocked out of the expected routine: go into big building, talk to people who clap, leave…
Anyhow, I know a woman, and have corresponded with her for some time, who has three sons with varying degrees of Autism, including a high functioning Asperger’s. She is a subject of study by the CDC, since she has three kids with a particular disorder–though the use of the term disorder may be irritating. In order to understand her situation better, I did some amateur research on Autism and Asperger’s. There are plenty of books on the subject and even web sites these days that go into great detail on a wide variety of diagnostic subjects, physical or mental. Many just want to sell you something, but there are also those from advocacy organizations and public health institutes…etc.
And by the way, it’s poor form in arguments or discussions to demand credentials from someone with whom you disagree: “where did you pick this stuff up?” This tends to limit discussion on any subject either to people with a very personal experience with something or to professional researchers.
If Rand were a better writer, we wouldn’t have had this exchange.

By: Jeremy

Jeremy — Wed, 29 Nov 2006 21:51:46 +0000

It would be one thing if Rand could have repressed her emotions successfully, but one has only to read the stories of her encounters with non-believers to see how wildly her anger could flash. Same goes to the 100th degree for many (not all, of course) Randians.

By: freeman

freeman — Sun, 26 Nov 2006 23:39:08 +0000

Ray,

For starters, I reject the established framing of Aspergers “syndrome”, which seems to be result from a neurocentric and almost chauvinistic perspective. People with Aspergian traits (like myself) do not have a disorder or syndrome, such people are merely different from a neurological standpoint. All neurological makeups have their pros and cons and none of them are inherently superior to others.

Secondly, not all descriptions of people with Aspergian traits are accurate. A common portrayal seems to suggest that such people lack emotions or are at least emotionally cold and distant. That is not the case, and such a view is rooted in a superficial examination of such people’s external behaviors. (you can’t judge a book by it’s cover)

The other traits you list also show a lack of understanding of people with Aspergian traits. Where in the world did you pick this stuff up from? I’m not trying to be confrontational or anything, but your description most definitely rubbed me the wrong way.

As someone who knows little about Rand herself, I wouldn’t even begin to ponder whether or not she may have had certain Aspergian traits. I suppose it is a possibility though.

By: ray

ray — Sat, 25 Nov 2006 17:13:50 +0000

as to this from the review on Rand:

“Finally, her character’s negative attitude towards emotions troubles me. I can recall reading a passage here or there in her fiction that had persons seemingly going out of their way to not feel.”

It seems like Rand may be a borderline Asperger’s syndrome type, perhaps? Limited use/function of emotions, fixation on simple, mechanized systems for living, inability to actually relate to other people except as gadgets, not really “getting it” emotionally or socially. Then she just transfers these personal inabilities into her writing and makes 2-dimensional characters who act as persons in a system that they can’t ultimately deal with.
Though I could just be spinning my wheels.