The Big Bang Theory
If Sheldon is an aspie, how come he never gets nervous around people? I think he's too designed. Altohugh he does corky and offensive things to others, none of them can be interpreted as mere cold hearted, as many of a real aspie's actions would be. His peers seems to cope somehow and get along with his exentricity, and they care for him.
You don't have to be nervous around people to have an ASD.
The main problem I have is that he interacts too well (the give and take of social interaction), but then, they need to add it as he wouldn't be much of a character* if he interacts how someone with an ASD does.
*To outside observers
I think being nervous around people is more of a sympthon of social anxiety (which Sheldon, the incarnation of rationality, does not have at all). Granted, Social anxiety tends to be correlated with AS, but it is mostly a result of the frustration the person gets due to her social limitations due to the AS.
Ie: I have Social anxiety but I do not have AS. Some person has AS but does not have social anxiety. Many people in this forum have both AS and social anxiety.
I think Sheldon is probably more of a case of the Albert Einstein syndrome (if there's such thing) than AS...
I love Sheldon. I sometimes do see similarities between him and me, although I wish I was as smart as him. Though in other ways, he is so smart he can be dumb some times. Though when I figure out "god this guy is clueless" I wonder if there are situations in which I am actually as clueless as him without noticing. hmnn.
Though I am more like Raj, unfortunately. But not even that would make me drink, never!
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It also could not reinforce any stereotype about autism either because the producers have never claimed he is got AS or another thing in the spectrum.
Sheldon can have friends of his own age as well. He even managed to befriend Penny and that seemed so unlikely in the first few episodes...
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Aww...Sheldon... ^^
When I saw the first episode of this, I said to my roommate "if I were neurotypical, I believe the correct course of action would be to develop a massive character crush".
But thinking back, I guess if I were NT, said character crush would not involve Sheldon Cooper!
Haha, the same here. I see it with 2 my good friend while pausing from work. I usually insist that I'm Leonard, but they always tell me "no, no, you are Sheldon".
Actually I think that from an "understanding" point I'm like Leonard, while from a "pulsion/behaviour" point I'm more like Sheldon (but I like sex).
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I would guess that Sheldon is intended to have Asperger syndrome, because there are several Aspie characteristics he has (like the need for sameness) that writers who are just going for a general "nerdiness quotient" probably wouldn't include. There are several characters on other TV shows who also seem Aspie, whose creators have discussed them as being likely Aspies, so it seems like AS is more widely known in the television production world than it used to be.
I doubt the character of Sheldon really helps AS awareness. For one thing, since it is not stated on the show that he is AS, you would only pick up on it if you were already familiar with AS. Also, Sheldon's eccentricities are often shown as being extremely annoying to the other characters on the show, while we really don't see any benefits to AS. After all, several other characters on the show are as intelligent as he is without being AS.
Nailed it!
I absolutely love Sheldon. I have been thinking he has aspie traits. In the show I watched the other day he said to Raj, I'm not good with facial cues as you know so I am guessing you are either sad or angry." And I thought that's it. He's definately aspie.
And the way he doesn't get sarcasm. My sister is like that. She takes everything literally.
Its a fun game. On this and the other aspie site I go to there are threads about "which movie/TV characters do you think are aspie?"
I glanced at the "Big Bang Theory" once and it seemed liked all of the principle characters were prime candidates.
It could well be that the writers of the show may even have had Asperger's in mind when they created atleast one of the characters, but they didnt intend the show to be an educational public forum on the subject of aspergers so that trait was never spelled out.
It is a comedy.
I suspect that the "Gieco Caveman" was originally concieved of as the "Geico Neanderthal Man" (the ads would make more sense that way- " we had no idea you guys were still around!"). But they dumbed the concept down for the general public by calling the fictional victims of Gieco's insensitivety simply "cavemen" because Anthropology students are few and far between.
Likewise alot of therapists (let alone the public in general) havent heard of Asperger's yet.
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Yes! Exactly! Me, too!
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Yes! Exactly! Me, too!
Yeah same here!
Sheldon is how I feel I am inside. Except I dont know the technical stuff he's ranting about.
I read that the actor of Sheldon said that the character wasnt meant to have AS, but, he said that the character couldnt have more traits of the syndrom. So yeah, he also agrees to that Sheldon is a typical Aspie.
I love the show. So does my fiance. We watch it and laugh and laugh. We recognize alot so that makes it even more fun!
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Yes! Exactly! Me, too!
Yeah same here!
Sheldon is how I feel I am inside. Except I dont know the technical stuff he's ranting about.
I read that the actor of Sheldon said that the character wasnt meant to have AS, but, he said that the character couldnt have more traits of the syndrom. So yeah, he also agrees to that Sheldon is a typical Aspie.
I love the show. So does my fiance. We watch it and laugh and laugh. We recognize alot so that makes it even more fun!
I fourth that! And yeah, I reckon I probably got more out of it than the NTs I was watching it with. (Except the ones who took up sneezing every time I mentioned online gaming or started talking in long technical terms or misunderstood their sarcasm...and those sneeze/coughs sounded suspiciously like the word "Sheldon"!)
I love the show!
I agree that Sheldon is Aspie, while he seems irritating to the other characters, I occasionally wonder if he's on to something that they don't like to hear. The other characters only seem aspie in relation to their efforts (or difficulties?) with women. I can relate to Rajesh's shyness, I feel like that on the inside!