Huckleberry Finn

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The world at the moment is filled with Chaos, so much Chaos that it might explode.
It brings to mind a book I once read. It was called The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain.



The introduction to the book reads:
Persons attempting to find a motive in this narrative will be prosecuted.
Persons attempting to find a moral in it will be banished.
Persons attempting to find a plot in it will be shot.

So I guess I will be prosecuted, banished and shot. Oh well, I am 75 years old and have died a couple times already. It seems like this story must be told. You may not realize this but the two main characters in this story are Aspies. They are Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn.

This book was first published in the United Kingdom in December 1884 and in the United States on 18 February 1885. But the story it presents has existed in the human race for a very long time. If you look around, you can actually see it happening today.

Ok, I am game: what aspie/autism behaviors or traits do you see in yourself that are similar to traits or behaviors you see in Huck and Tom?

you're the first person I ever heard to suggest that they were "aspies".

And you probably are also the ...last person to ever say that...because thats nonsense.

Tom Sawyer is an alpha male NT if there ever was one.

His buddy Huck Finn is indeed an outsider whom an aspie might ID with but he isnt really an actual aspie.

Same with the escaped slave Jim.

Ok that's interesting I might look into it

I could do with a new book

Huck and Tom are like children. They have the minds of children. I was physically attacked by a bull when I was 3 or 4 years old and I died. The bull weighed over 1,000 pounds and I weighed around 15 pounds. It was like being attacked by a dinosaur. I died. I experienced at the time what has been called a "Near Death Experience". I stood next to my dead body. This occurred a long time ago. My parents took my dead body into our home and stood next to it in utter horror. I could see my dead body. I didn't understand what was happening. A voice spoke out and said, "Live or die, chose?"

So yes, I can see their traits in Aspies. If you are an Aspie and read this book, I suspect you will also see it too.

I read both books and am especially fond of Huckleberry Finn, but Huck doesn’t really seem like an Aspie to me. He’s an outsider in various ways, but there are clear reasons why he would be outside of autism - abusive father and extreme poverty.

There are two types of Aspies in this world. During deep sleep we experience Deep NREM sleep and REM sleep. These are very different phases of sleep. In Deep NREM sleep you mind moves along like a speeding bullet. In REM sleep, you mind slows down to almost normal speeds. I am like REM sleep and someone who once was a member on this forum but left had a brain like Deep NREM. He didn't think in terms of words but rather in terms of pictures. His thoughts could move at the speed of light. He was a remarkable Aspie. He had an IQ above 155. He was from Italy and spoke no English. I spoke no Italian but we could communicate fairly well.

So to answer your observation. Aspies have two very different forms. One is Tom Sawyer and the other Huck Finn.

What can I say? To me it is as clear as day. But maybe it is because I have died a couple times so far. And I can see invisible things.

jimmy m - I am not sure your metaphysical point of view makes sense to me at this time, but I appreciate that you are trying to share about yourself and your experiences and how you see things, and what makes sense to you.

I can relate to how Tom sometimes sees the world in terms of books he has read and how he seems to make things complicated.

I can relate to Huck feeling like an outsider and how strange "normal" people seem to him, and how he can do things and understand things other people he comes upon just cannot or don't, but there are other things that make sense to people he meets that just don't make sense to Huck.

Dude...there isnt a SINGLE thing in this post that has anything to do with proving your point! Your post was total waste of verbiage.

Basically what Fenn said...outsiders like aspies can relate to Huck (and thats part of why everyone including aspies should read Mark Twain). But Huck was not an aspie. He was too streetwise. Too manipulative. He got all of the boys in town to paint that fence for him after all. Lol!

There are characters in literature that do seem to be well drawn pre-diagnosis-era aspies like Boo Radley in "To Kill a Mockingbird". But no one in Tom Sawyer is that.

'Tom is filled with imaginative schemes, but they all come from adventure stories he has read. Tom makes everything seem fancy and "high faluting." He adds extra touches so as to give the simplest undertaking an air of magic, and he conforms rigorously to the rules--as he interprets them--from the fancy works of fiction he reads. Huck is not a reader, but instead he possesses a mind capable of performing feats that would escape Tom's bookish imagination. Tom is a dreamer, and Huck is always the practical or pragmatic person.'

Source:

https://www.cliffsnotes.com/literature/ ... -contrasts


Autism rules and scripting are important concepts in understanding how individuals on the autism spectrum navigate social interactions and environments. Here’s an explanation, with references to TV shows, movies, and books that illustrate these concepts:

Autism Rules

Autism rules refer to the structured guidelines and routines that individuals with autism create to manage daily life and social interactions. These rules help reduce anxiety by providing predictability and a clear framework for understanding what is expected in various situations.

Examples in Media:
1. TV Show: The Good Doctor
- The character Shaun Murphy, a young surgeon with autism, often relies on strict routines and specific protocols to handle the complexities of both his professional and personal life.
- Shaun’s adherence to rules helps him excel in his medical career, but it also highlights the challenges he faces when unexpected situations arise.

2. Movie: Rain Man
- Raymond Babbitt, portrayed by Dustin Hoffman, demonstrates a strong need for routine and specific rules in his daily life.
- His insistence on certain rituals, like watching a specific TV show at a certain time, illustrates how these rules help him feel secure and in control.

Scripting

Scripting involves memorizing and using pre-prepared phrases or dialogues in social interactions. Individuals with autism may rely on scripting to navigate conversations, using lines from TV shows, movies, or books to communicate more effectively.

Examples in Media:
1. TV Show: Atypical
- The main character, Sam Gardner, often uses lines and phrases he has memorized from his favorite TV shows and books to help him interact with others.
- Sam’s reliance on scripting is shown as both a helpful tool and a potential barrier to more spontaneous interactions.

2. Book: The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon
- The protagonist, Christopher Boone, often refers to his favorite detective stories and uses the language and logic from these stories to make sense of his surroundings and communicate with others.
- His scripting helps him feel more confident in social situations, even though it sometimes leads to misunderstandings.

How These Concepts Help

- Predictability and Structure: Both autism rules and scripting provide a sense of predictability and structure, reducing anxiety and making social interactions more manageable.
- Communication Aid: Scripting can serve as a communication aid, allowing individuals to participate in conversations even if they struggle with spontaneous speech.
- Coping Mechanism: These strategies act as coping mechanisms, helping individuals with autism navigate a world that can often feel overwhelming and confusing.

Challenges

- Rigidity: Strict adherence to rules and scripts can sometimes lead to difficulties in adapting to new or unexpected situations.
- Social Misunderstandings: Using scripted language can sometimes be misinterpreted by others as inappropriate or out of context, leading to social misunderstandings.

Understanding and appreciating these strategies is crucial for supporting individuals with autism, allowing them to leverage their strengths while addressing potential challenges. By referencing relatable characters in media, we can gain insight into the diverse ways people on the autism spectrum navigate their daily lives.

Source:

ChatGPT

Is it available on CD?

^ Yes.

https://naxosaudiobooks.com/adventures- ... nabridged/

Curiously there is the Huckleberry Finn syndrome -
The condition or act of a shirking or neglecting one's duties or obligations, as when staying away from school without permission, arising from parental rejection, feelings of rejection, and superior intelligence.

All my favourite characters are autistic too, because I say so rather than anything drawn from the text specifically.

I think Mark Twain was a great writer who was especially good at capturing what it means to be human or, at least, facets of the human experience, so many (autistics and NTs alike) will find his characters relatable. I related to Huckleberry Finn because I grew up with bigoted beliefs, not so much about race, and I felt like I was wrong for not going along with them. However, like Huck, I concluded: “All right, then, I'll go to hell.”