Essay Example: Understanding Autism and Its Views

All around the world, there are people with diseases and illnesses that stop them from doing many things. Autism is probably the worst of them. Autism is a genetic syndrome that “refers to a broad range of conditions characterized by challenges with social skills, repetitive behaviors, speech, and nonverbal communication”(autismspeaks.org). It is widely known in our world today. There are people in this world who hate it and who are fond of it. But in today’s world, most people do not like it and call it a disease or a problem. Unlike most people, Mark Haddon (someone who understands what autistic people go through) thinks that it is a special ability and should be fully understood before being condemned. This is why…  In 2003, Mark Haddon wrote “The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime” because he had witnessed people being stereotyped and wanted to change their negative views on Autism and the stereotypes so that society could understand what they were enduring.

Knowing that Autism is a genetic syndrome that mainly affects a person’s social skills, we are aware of the fact that people with Autism are made fun of and talked behind their backs(including on social media) about something that isn’t their fault whatsoever. It is also not their fault because Autism has no cure. It has treatment, but that is all. The CDC(Centers for Disease Control) has said that they “Currently, have no treatment has been shown to cure ASD(Autism), but several interventions have been developed and studied for use with young children. These interventions may reduce symptoms, improve cognitive ability and daily living skills, and maximize the ability of the child to function and participate in the community”(cdc.gov).  Even though people know that this data is true, they still stereotype people with this ability. In real life, people who do not experience such diseases call it a disability and they say it is weird to be friends with them or talk to them, or even be near them. It is like people think they are contagious. While this is a very negative view, it is a view most people think about this ability in our world today. In the book, this can be shown when Mrs. Shears is screaming and wailing and Christopher, “Put my hands over my ears and closed my eyes and rolled forward till I was hunched over”(Haddon 4). This can show how sensitive Autism people are(and that Mrs. Shears probably knows he has Autism and still is being horrible to him). Again, this can show how insensitive and cruel people in our society can be to people like Christopher. It needs to be stopped. There are many activists and people in this world that understand Autism and are trying to stop these stereotypes from spreading. Mark Haddon is one of them.

Mark Haddon is an English Novelist who has worked with people with Autism before. He understands people with it, and the disease itself. He has seen it first hand. In a biography about Mark Haddon, it is shown that “Haddon has had some personal experience in the past working with autistic people”(notablebiographies.com) in Scotland(at a nursing home in which he helped out Autistic people). Because of these personal experiences, he is inspired to promote the good things about Autism in his book “The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime”. Along with all the downfalls of Autism, Mark Haddon has incorporated many good things about it. Such as enhanced memory, smartness/deductive reasoning, and deeper understanding and analytic skills. These things are what make Christopher special. Even though people in the world do not necessarily make the connection, Mark Haddon certainly does. He shows that Autistic people have the same amount of potential as many other people in this world(maybe more). Which is another reason to condemn bad things being said about Autism. If such info like this was spoken more loudly about, then we would have a better time changing people's views on this disease. But because there are many other factors, such as rumors from renowned people saying that Autism is bad, people trust those people more than they trust experts like Mark Haddon because of the other successes they’ve had. People can be manipulated like that very easily, but even if this continues to happen, people like Mark Haddon will continue to fight for educating people about the true wonders and good things about Autism. People like Christopher Francis Boone.

Christopher is an autistic boy and is the main character in “The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime” and is the person in this book that shows that the stereotypes are completely false. In the book, he takes “Level A Math and Physics Classes”(Haddon 216) and is a very intellectual being who uncovered the fact that his father killed Wellington and lied to him about his mother's death. To prove he lied, when Christopher asked him “What kind of heart attack… I don’t know… Don’t ask me any more questions about your mother”(Haddon 27) he lied to his face, and because Christopher is kind, considerate, and nice like any other kid, he obeyed his father’s command. By working the way he did in these 2 situations, he has proved to be a very capable being just like any person. That is what Mark Haddon is trying to show here. He wants the readers to understand and realize not only the fact that Autism is not bad, but that condemning it on social media or any such platform is fundamentally and morally wrong in general. No one should go through what autistic people are going through because of these condemnations and rumors. Which why the world needs to change the negative views on this topic.

The world currently has a view on Autism that does not seem likely to be true. People say that Autism is a disability and that they should not be considered the same way “normal people” are. People consider autistic people to not be “normal” because not only do they consider it to be a disability, they consider it to be a disease that can spread(even though a lot of people know that it is not true. ASD is not contagious in any way). Even though they are not being physically harassed or harmed in any way, “they are pitied and they are disregarded in many ways”(neuroclastic.com). For example, if a smart, capable autistic person goes in for a job interview, it is seen that people whom DON’T have autism are picked for the job, even if they are not right for the job or even don’t have the qualifications or experience compared to the autistic person who applied for the job. This can justify the fact that social media platforms are used to either make someone look bad, or look good(such as rich people who had more opportunities than autistic people because they did not have any special physical or mental ability like these people). Earlier, it is stated that autistic people are not called “normal” like other people because people consider it a disability. But really, the problem with the people who condemn Autism is their definition of the word “normal”. The official definition of normal in the Merriam-Webster dictionary is “conforming to a type, standard, or regular pattern: characterized by that which is considered usual, typical, or routine”(Merriam-Webster.com). Even after knowing this definition, people will still think that Autism is out of the ordinary. But that is completely false. There are over 75 million people in this world today with Autism(the growth rate continues to rise all around the world), which statistically, is about 1% of the global population. This data can show that it abides with the definition of normal. It is standard because there are many, many people in the world with this, and it is heartbreaking that they are called unnormal, while others are. If people are not educated about this, people will continue to misinterpret the real understanding of Autism and Normality. If someone is not educated about this and posts about how bad it is, it shows how cruel and rude this world and society have become. This action may be justified(because this person has may not have the opportunity to such education), but still, people should speak out and help the world understand. It all revolves around communication and understanding. If people do not communicate and give the correct information and interpretation of this disease, people will continue to shame, pity, and disregard autistic people. This is not what Mark Haddon, autistic people, and other people who understand the disease would want to see. They would want to see people being loving and caring to autistic people and other people with illnesses and diseases that may limit or extend their abilities to do things.

In 2003, Mark Haddon wrote “The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime” because he had seen autistic people being misinterpreted/misrepresented and wanted to stop the spread of such negative comments, which is why he tried to educate people who do not truly understand it. As said before, autistic people are disregarded, pitied, and shamed because of this special ability. They are called abnormal and are not welcomed by society. But, Mark Haddon’s book “The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime”, has shed some light on autistic people and has shown how Christopher accomplished high things while combating a mental disorder that he did not ask for. Christopher likes who he is, and considers himself to be normal. This book is trying to show that no matter what people say or do, people will always look out for you and that autistic people have the same potential as the said to be “normal people”.