11:48am July 23, 2013

➸ She ruined it with science.: End the Current Autism-Equals-Genius Delusion

mosaicofminds:

alwaysmadness:

mosaicofminds:

creativepolice:

Interviewer from Oxford asks: “Are most scientists and artists on the autism spectrum?”

I reply:

Are you kidding? Where would this wild assumption come from? Oxford University has even published studies on the afflictions that ARE correlated with genius: schizophrenia,…

Wow, this guy has no idea what he’s talking about, in addition to being hostile and rude.

1. There are at least as many studies disproving a link between schizophrenia or bipolar and creativity as demonstrating one.

2. Being “wired to see the world differently” is true for autism as well as schizophrenia, just in a different way. If “seeing things differently” makes someone creative automatically (which it likely doesn’t, because creativity also involves inventing something novel and useful to society), then it applies to autism too.

3. He’s obsessed with the myth of the romantic genius, which is cute, but he should read Peter Kramer’s “Against Depression” and think things through a little more deeply. While artists may often be mentally ill, they may well create *in spite of* and during periods of respite from their mental illness rather than because of it.

4. Also, all his examples of creativity are from the arts. I really hope he’s not saying that creating new technological inventions or scientific discoveries isn’t creative. I suppose it’s possible that creativity in the arts could look more like schizophrenia than autism, but that doesn’t mean all creativity works the same way.

5. To label an entire group of people incapable of being creative because they don’t look like famous artists is not only offensive but stupid.

“He’s obsessed with the myth of the romantic genius”

Very true! I think I just wanna replace one stereotype of genius with another, one that I like better. I am a gay male and am not attracted at all to these new media depictions of genius. They do nothing for me, and are frustrating, repetitive and boring. But, Van Gogh? Keats? Picasso? Idealized depictions of similar brilliance in literature and on film? I would stem cell grow a womb to have their children. And the afflictions loosely related to the two depictions, and similar ones, are the intellectual casualties of this inner war in my demented mind! Never ill will. Never offense taken. Just raw unfiltered typing. Peace.

You’re right, Van Gogh, Keats, and Picasso were amazing. I’d love to know people like that today (though might not want to live with them). There’s a lot to celebrate—but no need to tear other kinds of minds down to do it. Make sense?

From what I’ve seen, folks with mental health problems and those with autism spectrum disorder get some similar crap from people. So why not help each other out rather than tear each other down?

Sorry for ranting right back at you before. Your original post really upset me, and I should have slept on my reply before sending it. After all, you otherwise seem like someone I’d want to follow. Peace.

Also autism is tied to some kind of artistic creativity for SOME autistic artists. Not all autistic people are socially awkward tech people. I’m an artist, certainly not anywhere near an artistic genius, but autism related ways of seeing the world are an integral part of my art.

Try telling Donna Williams or Stephen Wiltshire or Christophe Pillault (all of whom have very different styles) that their art is totally unrelated to their autism. Artistic savants exist, and are more common than average among autistic people, like other savants.

I get so sick of the myth that autistic people are all sort of stiff socially awkward geeks with an extremely rigid approach to life. Some of us are like that. Some of us are almost the inversion of that. Some of us even slide back and forth.

And the idea that autistic people lack imagination is well and truly debunked by now. I mean come on.

Also the more socially awkward and tormented than you’ll ever be thing just makes me want to roll my eyes. Really? It’s a contest now? And you know everyone who will be reading this? okay….

Notes: