February 22nd, 2007
Perceptions, or How to Change Them:
This morning, while waiting for my coffee to brew, I was watching CNN and they had a segment on about Amanda, a woman with autism and a movie she posted on YouTube.
In short, the video tries to make the viewer understand how she views her environment and her frustrations when it comes to dealing with “the rest of us” who think and experience things in, for lack of better word, a linear fashion. I know there have been studies that show native ASL users are able to perceive and express themselves in a more three-dimensional manner. However, I suspect that both hearing and deaf people still view the environment very similarly.
Amanda, in this video talks about how she has to interact with all aspects of her environment and how her native language is so different, it cannot be expressed in any language. She also talks about her frustrations in trying to deal with a society that views any language other than English as sub-standard.
I drew a few analogies from this: I agree with her assertion that society at large treats those who do not speak english well as sub-human. As deaf people, we all have experienced this.
We do the same thing inside the deaf community: that is, people who don’t sign pure ASL or SEE, or deaf people who are “grassroots” get some kind of “negative treatment” from their peers in the community.
Finally: this should be an example of how one person making an effort to communicate across linguistic barriers can make a difference. I hope the folks arguing about captioning their vlogs take note.
After seeing this video, I hope I have gained a greater insight and patience in terms of interacting with people who have different communication styles than I do. I hope you will too.
(video is captioned; Part 1 simply shows how she interacts with her environment… part 2 is a captioned explanation of what she sees. Also, I realized that the youtube logo on the embedded version may block some captions, Double-click on the movie to open the movie without the youtube logo):
February 22nd, 2007 at 1:01 pm
I also found that video clip fascinating after I thought about it more — precisely because the nonlinearity of ASL appeals to me. I love all languages like a heroin addict loves his next hit, but I experience many of the same frustrations when I try to use them in that I also tend to think in terms of nonlinear structures.
I can write very well because I can go back and poke and prod at things, rearrange them, edit, and then release the entire thing as opposed to having to cram the tinkertoy structures in my head through spoken language. I tend to repeat myself, approach things from a dozen angles, say the same thing many ways … I’m very much looking forward to learning a language that might structure things in a manner that’s more in line with my own native mental structuring.
I’m not autistic, but I do have some odd neurological things going on, and outside of savants, I’ve never met anyone who can do math or learn languages like I can, so there might be a connection.
February 22nd, 2007 at 1:45 pm
Yes, I also found it interesting and commented on that a little while back. It’s particularly relevent on the issue of speaking, which struck me the same as it did you…
February 22nd, 2007 at 2:17 pm
You know, given that she interprets spoken language as a limited way to communicate, I wonder if the case can be made that real-time language (spoken, ASL, whatever) is a sort of savant-skill, but one that is endemic in the the majority of the population?
It sure is a weird thing for any animal to be able to do, you have to admit. It takes a huge part of our brain metabolism, and it is honestly damned weird to convert meaning in the world to some sort of … aperiodic crystalline structure to be conveyed with mouth or hands. I think we all are sort of autists in a way, but similar ones. We share our savant skill, so it’s considered normal. Hm.
February 22nd, 2007 at 2:34 pm
I found this website mind-blowing. Amanda has a fully-developed website with an amazing history of profound insights, vlogs with captions, and stark descriptions of what it is like to live an autistic. We deaf can relate to nearly all of it, since we share the same communication barrier–the difference being that Amanda’s is internal and ours is external. Still, we all share the ache in the soul from the difficulty.
We need to get out of the mindset that communication requires face to face, English, symbol/word usage, following certain rules and orders. Amanda is showing us another form of communication that we all can take heart from. Thank you, Amanda.
February 22nd, 2007 at 3:26 pm
Thanks for the comments.
Actually, Janis, I need to disagree with you in re: ASL users viewing the world. Dianerez explains it better: ASL and english are both substituting symbols, words, etc. for what happens in the environment. Autistics, according to Amanda, don’t natively think along those lines and language cannot capture their thinking processes sufficiently.
February 22nd, 2007 at 5:59 pm
Neilmcd, I definitely take your point — language is language is language, ultimately. It’s effectively the same savant-skill whether it’s coming from hands or mouth. If it weren’t there would be no intertranslating them.
But I am still curious as to whether or not ASL will allow me, a somewhat tinkertoy thinker inherently, to be a bit more succint and comfortable. I guess the only way I’ll know is to just keep going with it and find out.
February 22nd, 2007 at 8:05 pm
Janis;
In that case, yes. I often find I can sign something in ASL but when I try and enunciate it in english, I am literally at a loss for words.
February 22nd, 2007 at 10:16 pm
Amanda recently posted a follow-up comment that clearly reinforces my thinking process in re: linear thought process for autistic folks:
~~~~~~~~~~~~
Comprehension works differently for me than it does for most people. I take in all the information, but it takes a conscious effort to take it in in the way that non-autistic people consider understanding. It takes work to understand what people are saying, otherwise they sound kind of like running water. I comprehend more reliably by noticing patterns of sensation than I do by engaging more traditional symbolic thought. My body does in fact respond to what is around me, but it’s not always the specific responses that others seem to expect.
February 22nd, 2007 at 10:16 pm
Sorry: Link to above: http://www.cnn.com/2007/HEALTH/02/22/autism.emails/index.html