Summary
With “Autism and Rhetoric” Paul Heilker and Melanie Yergeau
argue that autism, a disorder of neural development, is simply another form of
rhetoric and not a deficiency or impairment. Though it is technically an
impairment, Heilker and Yergeau encourage people to look at autism in a
different light. Simply view autism as another type of rhetoric, a
stripped-down style of communication. Heilker, whose son is autistic, and
Yergeau, who has Asperger’s Syndrome herself, both have first-hand experience
with this rhetoric, and encourage others to view it as just that: another for
of rhetoric.
Synthesis
“Autism and Rhetoric” reminds me of Gee’s concept of discourse
community. If autism is a form of rhetoric, then it has its own community, and
within in that specific community, you truly are either in or out. There isn’t
much in between. I’m sure the parents and teachers of children with autism have
a far better understanding of it than anyone with no first-hand experience, but
those with autism themselves belong to a community outsiders will never fully
know. The rhetoric is simply unavailable.
Personal Opinion
I liked this article. Its focus was truly interesting.
Autism is so foreign and unimaginable to me that any examination of it is worth
reading. In high school, there were kids with autism, and I would always feel
as if I never knew what they were thinking, which I guess I don’t. It was
interesting to peer into that world, and then to view it as another form of
rhetoric. That concept is something I’ve never given any thought.
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