Rhetorical Questions.

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Thought I'd start yet another subject (ha, sometimes I worry I post too much on WP).

I've understood that people with Autism/AS sometimes have difficulties understanding rhetorical questions and answer them even though they're not supposed to. I've got a hard time with rhetorical questions as well, only I seem to do it the other way around. I sometimes think that a question is rhetorical when it isn't, so I don't answer and then the person who asked me something needs to ask me again before I understand I'm supposed to answer the question. Does that ever happen to any of you? The backwards thing. I guess I answer rhetorical questions sometimes as well, but not as often.

Happens to me both ways, but usually I just answer even rhetorical questions - stating the obvious.

I often answer rhetorical questions. People have chided and scolded me for it, but I keep answering them. Show me a way to spot that a question is rhetorical before I open my mouth and I'll stop answering.

I usually answer rhetorical questions, and then I realize that I wasn't suppose to answer it based on their reaction/expression. Then, I try hard to laugh it off and go about my business.

One time, talking to my attorney, he said "since you don't have questions about the process, I'll answer some of the more common ones. First question to answer is: How long will it take?" at which point I gave him a fairly long answer. He said, "I was supposed to tell you that."

Have a lot of trouble distinguishing those, so I had been admonished for answering rhetorical questions and scolded for not answering questions i thought were rhetorical

I can tell what's a rhetorical question and what isn't. It's other people who can't seem to with me, and don't go blaming it on how or when I say it because I'm good with tone of voice so I ask rhetorical questions in the same tone of voice other people would, and I still get an aggressive ''how the hell do I know?!'' response, and I have to always say, ''it was a rhetorical question, I wasn't expecting an answer, I was just expecting an agreement'', and they don't seem to know what ''rhetorical'' even means.

The other day my mum's camera wouldn't work properly, and she was getting all upset, and I knew how she felt so I was trying to empathise, so I tutted and said, ''aw, what is the matter with it?'' and she yelled, ''oh, I don't know, why are you asking me that for if I don't know myself?'' although the more appropriate response should of been, ''I don't know, it's just stopped working all of a sudden''.

But I suppose I will get a string of replies here saying ''oh perhaps you asked that at the wrong time and she was feeling stressed and didn't want you asking that in her ear'' or, ''oh perhaps she did response in the appropriate way but because you're an Aspie and so can't read tone of voice you just misinterpreted how she said it and turned it into an insult''.

No - that is not the answer. I don't want anyone trying to defend NTs by throwing all these ifs, buts and maybes at me, I can read tone of voice, but I can't explain a tone of voice, some voices are like explaining a colour, I only know it when I hear it.

I can generally recognise rhetorical questions (from experience), but sometimes choose to answer them anyway. I do that as a way of disagreeing with, or questioning, what the asker is implying. For example:

Question (delivered with a smirk): "Did you enjoy the swings?"
Implication: "You should not have enjoyed the swings at your age. You should be somewhat embarrassed."

My answer: "Yes, I did."
Implication: "I reject your unspoken social standards. They matter far less to me than my own enjoyment."

Most of the time I pick up on it being a rhetorial question, but no one else seems to pick up on mine. Another problem I have is that I'll ask a question that my family doesn't know the answer to and now, instead of trying to answer or just saying "I don't know", they nod their head in agreement or ignore me completely. I wish they knew how ridiculous they look when they do that four or five times in a row.

I often think some questions are rhetorical and therefore don't answer, and people just give me angry stares.

I only realised my habit of answering rhetorical questions a few years ago. I still struggle with them. Now if in doubt I don't 'answer'. I wait to see if the ' question' is restated, then I know it isn't rhetorical.

I prefer the other person to experienc a little frustration, rather than me feeling stupid for answering comment that aren't questions

I just answer it even on the occasions that I know its rhetorical, because I don't like rhetorical questions.

There's another rhetorical trick I actually hate: When people play devil's advocate. Often they don't say they're doing this, they just adopt an opposing viewpoint. When the discussion gets heated, they say "I don't really agree with this, I was just playing devil's advocate" and it makes me more frustrated/annoyed, because not only were they arguing an illogical or often factually incorrect position, but they were doing so as a lie.