I can honestly say that "Dating Data" by Temple Grandin, was one of the most eye opening things that I read. It is written in first person limited, which made is very touching; it gave real insight into the life of this woman.
I always knew the definition of autism, but i never truly understood what it was like to be autistic. However, the reason that the article had such a big influence on me is that it made me aware of the importance of emotion; and of how heavily we rely on our emotions on a day to day basis.
During this unit; we spoke a lot about the distinction between emotion and logic. I thought i understood the concept very well; and it was easy for me to point out the differences; however, through this article, I realized how intertwined the two are. Emotions are not simply a feeling or a state of mind, such as being happy or sad. Emotions are much more complicated, which is what I was trying to say in my previous blog. However, I now understand why they are so complicated.
Our emotions are our instinct. Since early childhood, even before our brain or logic begins to develop; our emotions are already at work. We form personal relationship simply and firstly through our emotions; and I was able to see that through the authors description of how she could not understand them. I thought personal relationships were established firstly according to our personalities; but something exists that isolates autistic people and prevents them from fitting in; it is the bond of our subconscious emotions. "I have very few subconscious cues to guide me during complex social interactions." we have an instinct that guides us, we do not even need to think to know- or sense rather; that telling someone they are fat or ugly, is rude. Our emotions conduct us through the dynamics of people's emotions, feelings and reactions. However in the case of autistic people, they actually have to be taught appropriate behavior that seems so very obvious and "logical" to us.
Our emotions help us develop the basic instincts that have nothing to do with our conscious brain, that make communication a natural process. Autistic people have to work out a separate 'translation code" for every new person they meet; responding appropriately to social interactions is not a natural process.
Our emotions also help us understand each other, and ourselves, as well as to communicate with others. It is due to emotions, that others can understand subtle emotional cues, such as a change in our tone of voice to indicate disturbance for example.
Grandin writes about how it was through her experiences only that she learned that certain social behaviors can make people angry; for most of us, we do not need to learn these things by doing; our emotions give us some inherent tendency that makes our lives so much easier if you think about it!
It is true that perhaps autistic people are much more logical; but to what extent can they put that logic and sense to use, do they have the necessary skills? I think that our emotions sometimes do get the best of us, can can blind our judgment; or cause us to act irrationally. But somehow, I think that at the same time, they give us a feeling of safety and of ease of interaction. Emotions connect us to each other; we do not feel alone, it is easier for us to establish connections to people, places and events that eventually build up our character and perception in life...it is through these experiences and relationships that we form who we are.
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