JADE Student Edition 2019 JADE JSLUG 2019 | Page 26

autistic individuals feeling isolated by their own stories, and strive to find ways in which this could be rectified in future portrayals of related conditions. Though Waterloo Road does make an effort to encourage the viewer to sympathise with Karla - most notably through our viewing of Mr Budgen through Karla’s own eyes prior to her meltdown (Waterloo Road: Season 3 Episode 1, 2007) - Parenthood largely brings the viewer Max’s story through the impact of his experiences on those around him. Even the storyline which sees Max bullied focuses on the response of his parents (Parenthood: The Offer, 2014), supporting Holton’s argument that the programme portrays Autism Spectrum Disorders as ‘isolating and fearful’ due to the lack of emphasis on Max’s voice (Holton, 2013, 59). The notion that Parenthood presents Asperger’s Syndrome as being ‘isolating’ is also supported by Max’s inability to maintain a single peer friendship throughout the entirety of the show’s run, losing his friendship with Micah due to his anxiety over the loss of the school vending machine: a direct result of his Asperger’s Syndrome (Parenthood: Stay a Little Longer, 2014). Though I do not agree with Holton that the condition is portrayed entirely as isolating throughout the series, due to the more subtle dealing of Hank’s Asperger’s Syndrome, I do believe that that the series could have better represented its autistic audience by allowing Max’s voice to take prominence. The series’ representation of Asperger’s Syndrome could have become more raw and poignant by moving away from portraying his condition through the eyes of his family, and towards portraying it from his own perspective. Conclusion Through this study, I have demonstrated the way in which I believe the portrayal of Asperger’s Syndrome in television dramas such as Parenthood and Waterloo Road can unintentionally alienate viewers with the condition. Textbook portrayals encompass every known trait of the condition, portraying 26  autistic individuals as as a danger to society and failing to provide sufficient first-hand perspectives of their experiences. Alaina Leery’s blog post about how it would be beneficial for her to see an autistic character who truly represents her experiences may be an opinion mirroring many on the Autistic Spectrum who lack the resources to make their voice heard. Furthermore, her post highlights the way in which television portrayals of girls such as Karla Bentham - who exhibit predominantly male traits - may even be harming women’s chances of being diagnosed if their condition manifests itself in a more subtle way (2017). Though recent television programmes have begun to make progress in diversifying their portrayals of individuals with Asperger’s Syndrome; such as Hollyoaks’ casting of autistic Talia Grant (Stanger, 2018), I believe that there is still a long way to go before there is a wide enough variety of portrayals of Asperger’s Syndrome and other Autism Spectrum Conditions to sufficiently represent the experiences of the autistic community. Through a direct focus on the experiences of the character with Asperger’s Syndrome and an introduction of characters whose autistic traits vary in severity, television executives can make their autistic viewers feel better represented and hopeful that they are not alone in the world. By seeking to better represent their neurodiverse audience, television dramas can stop telling their autistic viewers that they appear out-of-place in the societies they inhabit, and start telling them that their condition should not and will not stop them from leading the life we all desire: one of happiness, success, and love. References Author Unknown. (2016). ‘What is Asperger Syndrome?’ at National Autistic Society,