Mimicry

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My mental health doctor told me that I mimic others; I got to thinking about it and realized she's right. Particularly in my younger years, I wanted my family to be like the families I saw on TV (Cosby, Keaton) and being massively disappointed when I tried to copy how the characters would talk and it didn't work with my family.

I probably still mimic a lot, but I'm not aware of anything off the top of my head.

Has anyone else been told they mimic behaviors?

Thanks!

I started mimicking cartoon characters as early as 4 or 5 years old. It was a great savant talent to have working in broadcasting, because I used it every day for doing celebrity impressions or creating characters for radio commercials. I was lucky enough to find an actual use for Useless Talent #56.

The ones I do best are the ones that just sort of creep into my brain as I hear them on TV or in movies day after day, until one day they just come out on their own and I realize I'm goofing around talking to myself in someone else's voice without even thinking about it. The ones I have to work on consciously rarely come out sounding as perfect and natural to my ear.

I probably do, I've no idea.

When I watch too much of a certain show, I find that I behave a lot like the characters portrayed, almost exactly, and when I realize that, actually I try to keep the assimilated traits I like, and throw the rest out. Don't watch too much smallville if that happens to you. Or anything with poor screenwriting for that matter. Smallville's a good show, but it has TERRIBLE screenwriting.

I do it a lot. Like when I'm posting I'm usually mimicking styles and words I have read or heard in the way I write.

I'm a compulsive mimic. People get annoyed when I mimic them when I'm talking to them. Whenever I catch myself doing it, I stop immediately. I dont always realize I'm doing it, though.

I also mimic characters from TV and film. And God help me if I'm speaking to someone with a foreign accent. I have to fight with myself not to imitate their accent. People get very upset and think I'm making fun of them.

I've also gotten into loads of trouble repeating things I've heard on TV or movies so I try not to do that anymore. It always seems to tick people off.

I read in a book about aspies that this is normal behavior for us.

I do it a little bit, but I try to tone it down depending on who I'm talking to. If I'm talking to people my age I don't mind mimicking them. For some reason I usually fail to mimic people my age. That's the one time mimicking is actually useful for me.

I've just answered a similar question in another thread.

In short, the answer is yes.

I do mimic peoples voices quite often.

They have to have a distinctive voice to begin with though.

I've involuntarily mimicked most actors on Battlestar Galactica, Stargate, Falling Skies, Parenthood (it irritated me that when I was out talking to people I would suddenly sound like Max's mother), Doctor Who, Torchwood and countless other shows.

There are a few band members that I end up sounding like and dressing like too.

You guys should hear Craig Nicholls from The Vines do interviews. He can I think at will put on a variety of English accents. I'm kind of jealous. I can't do it at will.

The most strangest accent I've mimicked (besides Christopher Judge as Teal'C) was John Pertwee and the 3rd Doctor on Doctor Who. There was a bit of Harry Sulllivan in there to. They had a very old fashioned way of talking. 'I say,' 'old boy' etc.

For may years I was Daniel Radcliffe's Harry Potter and even dressed like him, and I got nicknamed Harry Potter. I like doing Dr Daniel Jackson because he talks very fast. I've even done a few James Spader characters.

I mimic a lot of dress styles too. I'm hellbent on looking like every protagonist in a children's sci-fi/fantasy movie. So I dress that way and imagine myself as one.