[ SECRET POST #2161 ]

[case]

⌈ Secret Post #2161 ⌋

Warning: Some secrets are NOT worksafe and may contain SPOILERS.

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Notes:

Secrets Left to Post: 04 pages, 098 secrets from Secret Submission Post #309.
Secrets Not Posted: [ 0 - broken links ], [ 1 2 - not!secrets ], [ 0 - not!fandom ], [ 0 - too big ], [ 0 - repeat ].
Current Secret Submissions Post: here.
Suggestions, comments, and concerns should go here.

Comments

[light_shade]

Well, for me, it was the scene where he refused to go to a simple school dance for thirty minutes when his possibly-dying mother asked him to because she didn't know if she'd be around for other dances later. She had clearly defined the limits and terms of going to the dance and he acted like a complete disrespectful brat in that scene. Having the writers handwave his behavior as part of his condition just makes me think they glanced at the Wikipedia page for Asperger's and called it a day.

[(Anonymous)]

That... actually makes me feel more sympathetic to him than the previous bits and pieces I've heard about him. Why is it so important to his mother than he go to a school dance? It's a school dance. It's not like he'd be missing anything critical. Wouldn't she rather spend time doing something they both enjoy? I think... I would go to a school dance for thirty minutes if my possibly-dying mother asked me to, but it wouldn't have come up, because my mother wouldn't ask me to do anything so stupid when she knows it would make me uncomfortable.

A fucking school dance is not worth emotional blackmail.

[light_shade]

It was more the lack of respect he showed her in that scene that got me, although for personal reasons, the dance thing annoyed me too. He basically yelled at her, not as his mother, but the same way he might do to a peer, calling her names and pitching a fit. That is not acceptable to do to your parent no matter what they ask you to do.

[(Anonymous)]

But...that's kind of the point. Some people with autism do not see the difference between a relationship with a mother or a peer. Or rather they don't understand why you should act differently between the two. A lot of what kids with aspergers would do would probably fall under commonly thought "not acceptable to do to your parent no matter what they ask you".

[(Anonymous)]

I can imagine situations where it would be acceptable to pitch a fit at one's parents, although it probably wouldn't be very effective.

"I would like you to give me your entire life savings so I can buy crystal meth and get super high."
"I would like you to have sex with that sketchy guy over there."
"I would like you to assassinate Archduke Ferdinand."

[(Anonymous)]

I lol'd at that third one.

[thinkatory]

Please ask for clarification if any of my points are iffy; this is a topic on which I have trouble being clear to neurotypicals.

I have high-functioning autism and my mother (who was my primary caregiver throughout my life) actually saw this fight as some proof Kristina doesn't really fully comprehend Max's condition yet. High-functioning autism is a development disability that affects social situations, and that isn't limited to "people outside of your family." Though speaking as someone with HFA I can tell you that it's easier to deal with family because they understand it better, take the usual "I don't understand why my family is so WEIRD and doesn't UNDERSTAND MY SPECIALNESS" of teenagerdom and add in a GIGANTIC blind spot for stuff like "why is my mother making me do this thing that makes me deeply uncomfortable?" and it becomes less of a question of why he reacted the way he did.

"It's easy dealing with autistic teenagers, no matter how high-functioning they are," no one said ever.

[(Anonymous)]

Just affirming your comment. I agree with all of this.

[unicornherds]

That seems more of an issue with the mom than the kid. I mean, I could see an average teen pitching a fit that long if they really put their mind into it.

My main problem with Max's storyline, when I watched the show, was that his mom never seemed to actually get Max's problems. She acknowledged but never seemed to understand. And I found her way more annoying and hard to watch than any annoying behavior Max exhibited. Though that could be because I have cousins with autism that act very very similar to Max at times and so I kind of understand through the frustration.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying that the writers get it all right or even do all their research. And his condition is definitely exaggerated for TV at times, just that it was that way from the start.