JADE Student Edition 2019 JADE JSLUG 2019 | Page 25

found that the object of a female’s special interest is far less likely to be considered an unusual interest for someone of their age and gender, unlike the interests of males. Though every individual with Autism is different and so there will be autistic females with ‘unusual’ interests, the inclusion of a female character with Asperger’s Syndrome provided Waterloo Road with a valuable opportunity to demonstrate the nuances of the condition and finally allow a greater proportion of autistic female viewers to feel represented on screen. Instead, they have produced another version of the mathematical genius (Waterloo Road: Season 3, Episode 1, 2007) with Asperger’s Syndrome who appeared out-of-place in everyday society; the only difference being that this time, the character has a female body. In presenting their only autistic female character as exhibiting predominantly male traits, Waterloo Road alienates female viewers with Asperger’s Syndrome, possibly encouraging feelings of being out of place both in the neurotypical world and within their neurodiverse label. A Danger to Society? Following my examination of the truthfulness of the portrayals of Asperger’s Syndrome in these two television dramas, I wish to demonstrate the harmful effects that dramatised portrayals can have on those with a developmental condition. In an attempt to create engaging drama for their viewers, television producers can often over-emphasise the significance of violence for those on the Autistic Spectrum, presenting a false idea that those with Asperger’s Syndrome are to be approached only with caution. At the outset of both Max Braverman and Karla Bentham’s introductions, they were portrayed as a danger to their classmates. In an early season one scene, Max is shown to become distracted by and therefore angry at the sound made by a fish tank in his classroom, subsequently destroying the tank and appearing to be a danger both to animals and his fellow classmates (Parenthood: The Deep End of the Pool, 2010). In presenting Max in this way from season one, Parenthood instils the notion that children with Asperger’s Syndrome should be separated from their neurotypical peers for the protection of those peers, rather than to help the autistic individual become more comfortable and get the most of their time in education. Similarly, Karla Bentham’s introduction to Waterloo Road features a scene in which she becomes afraid of her teacher and hits him with a chair (Waterloo Road: Season 3 Episode 1, 2007). Though Waterloo Road arguably does a better job at demonstrating Karla’s fear prior to her violence, the fact that this violence came so soon after her initial introduction again encourages viewers to perceive those with Autism Spectrum Disorders as an uncontrollable danger first, and a human being second. Though it is likely that an individual with Asperger’s Syndrome would be more uncomfortable and prone to emotional outbursts on their first day in a new environment due to a preference for routine (WHO, 153), it seems preferable for liberties to be taken in portraying this on screen in order to establish the autistic individual as a human being first, increasing levels of audience empathy towards any subsequent outbursts the drama shows. In doing this, dramas may take an important step towards humanising their autistic characters, rather than presenting them merely as a danger in need of controlling. Whose Experience? As I have shown, the portrayals of Asperger’s Syndrome in both Parenthood and Waterloo Road are, for the most part, portrayals of severe manifestations of the condition which do not accurately represent the experiences of the majority of the autistic community. For the final part of this study, I seek to examine the way in which these dramas can leave Article #3 25