Max Green

Lynne Streeter

ENG 112 NJ

03/14/12

Asperger Syndrome: Obstacles that Lead to Maturity

Being mentally “challenged” is not as challenging as what most would believe;

being “abnormal” does not mean one is that different; being “handicapped” is not

necessarily such a disability. Mental disorders, syndromes, and disabilities are a

significant part of our medical community today. For thousands of years, biological

diseases have been the epicenter of human problems, but now that vaccines and

antibiotics have been discovered, more focus is being turned towards the diseases of the

mind; however, these “diseases” are not contagious and do not always cause sickness and

death. A psychological problem is simply a mental function that is considered to be

abnormal, or what the majority of humans do not have. One emerging mental syndrome

in particular has been the subject of controversy in the medical community. This

syndrome, known as Asperger Syndrome (AS), was first recognized and given a name to

by Dr. Hans Asperger in the 1940’s (DuCharme and McGrady 1). Most of the debate

around Asperger Syndrome lies in its broad criteria and its similarity to the more famous

Autistic Disorder (DuCharme and McGrady 1). The way Autism differs from Asperger

Syndrome is that AS has the following differential criteria: no significant verbal

communication impairment, no delay in language use during childhood, and no delays in

cognitive development and an overall curiosity for surroundings (DuCharme and

McGrady 2). Moreover, many criteria for AS cannot always be studied with laboratory

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observations, and so there is still a large amount of broad, self-interpreted traits and

characteristics of AS that have yet to be fully agreed upon by the medical community.

Thus, some of the broader and more easily-recognized criteria that will be discussed are

as follows: significant social impairments in building and maintaining relationships with

peers (Shaked and Yirmiya 109), a misunderstanding of social gestures (Shaked and

Yirmiya 106), an above-average intelligence quotient (DuCharme and McGrady 8),

narrow areas of interest (Gerhardt 162), misinterpretation of metaphorical words and

phrases (Shaked and Yirmiya 107), and a repetition of certain actions or words (APA

389). People with AS struggle in some aspects of their daily life, but most significantly

in their social interactions with others and the relationships they have with friends and

family (Shaked and Yirmiya 104). Nonetheless, many AS people do not consider

themselves to have any severe disorder when compared to the “NT” (“Neurotypical,” or

people outside of the Autism Spectrum) people (Schneider 12). Oskar Schell, a fictional

character who displays many noticeable and odd characteristics in his personality, will

have his daily life and interactions with people put under a microscope in this essay, in

the hopes of gaining further insight into his mind. Oskar is the main character of

Jonathan Safran Foer’s novel, Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close, and is a very unique

child who has undergone many trials and tribulations in the past few years of his life.

With the death of his father in the September 11th, 2001 attacks on the World Trade

Center Towers, Oskar has become more distant from his mother and has suffered

emotionally in many aspects of his day-to-day life.  Due to the fact that Oskar acts very

differently from his peers, one can possibly infer that he may have some kind of slight

mental or development difference.  After observing Oskar’s actions and doing more in-

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depth research regarding mental disorders, I have theorized that he displays many

symptoms of Asperger Syndrome, and may in fact fit the diagnosis. Additionally, does

having the label “disorder” truly mean that one is less well-off than any other person? If

Oskar truly does have AS, I believe that it may have actually helped him in his journey

throughout the novel, allowing him to grow and mature into an adult.

Asperger Syndrome has many characteristics, but the most notable to observe is

the difficulty a patient have in their approach to interacting socially with others his or her

own age (Shaked and Yirmiya 105). While the medical diagnosis of social functioning in

AS is quite broad, patients with either AS or Autism are described as having a “lack of

social or emotionally reciprocity” (APA 387). Many consider that AS patients, while

having a an impairment in communication, can still converse, use language efficiently,

and carry on conversations with people (Tager-Flusberg 92). The coup de grâce is that

while AS patients make strong efforts and have a “willingness to engage in social

contact” (Schneider 17) and interact with peers, their actions are often “clumsy and not

successful” (Shaked and Yirmiya 109). Their words and sentence structure are

occasionally “poorly organized” (106), with social skills that are “immature and rigid”

(109), all while having difficulty understanding why others do not enjoy interacting with

them (109). Also, patients seem “socially intrusive” (Little 139) by peers who do not

understand their way of thought. Due to these issues an AS patient encounters, they

sometimes become socially avoidant because of their awkward interactions and

misunderstanding of peers (Shaked and Yirmiya 105). They begin to associate with

others outside of their age group, both much younger or older, often having “preference

to adult interaction” (DuCharme and McGrady 10), most likely because peers their own

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age do not understand them. Humor and comedy does also not come easily for them to

understand, having very different ideas of what is appropriate and considered the social

norm (Shaked and Yirmiya 109). In addition to the above, bullying and teasing is a

common action that occurs because of AS children’s “unusual interests and normal

sociability” (Lyons and Fitzgerald 50).

As mentioned before, Oskar Schell has many odd characteristics about himself

that led me to observing him in greater detail in regards to a diagnosis of Asperger

Syndrome. At first glance, one will notice that he has no friends his own age, other than

“The Minch” (Foer 73) and “Toothpaste” (73), both actually tied as being below his

doorman on a list of people most important to him. Oskar has no trouble whatsoever

approaching, speaking fluently, and conversing with the people around him. In fact,

Oskar is usually the instigator of his conversations and interactions: as seen in his

discussion with the limousine driver, Oskar went out of his way to talk with him and tell

him jokes and stories, trying to win over the limo driver’s friendship (5). However,

Oskar had trouble in his speech organization, jumping around from topic to topic: “your

sunglasses are one hundred dollars… do you know a lot of curse words?... succotash my

Balzac, dipshiitake… cool driving gloves… when you look up ‘hilarious’ in the

dictionary, there’s a picture of you” (5). Oskar even mentioned to himself that he

“couldn’t tell if he liked me (him) or not” (5), having trouble realizing why the man

wouldn’t enjoy talking to him. In addition, the people outside his family whom Oskar

associates himself with are either older or younger than him, such as the elderly A.R.

Black who lives above him and the older man he befriends who he thinks is his

grandmother’s renter (257). Oskar also receives a lot of teasing and bullying from

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children his own age, as when he mentions how Jimmy Snyder “made the lives of nerds

like me (Oskar) and Toothpaste and [sic] The Minch almost impossible, of imitating

mental retards” (146). Oskar’s clumsy and direct social approaches, along with the lack

of peers and torment he receives from children his own age, has certainly proved to be a

difficult task for him to handle and are all commonalities of having social symptoms of

Asperger Syndrome.

Along with the verbal impairments patients with Asperger Syndrome have in

social interactions, AS patients are known to misinterpret a variety of social cues and

norms because of their different “common sense” (Shaked and Yirmiya 108). AS

patients are also known to cause confusion in others due to their written or verbal

“idiosyncrasies” (104), where an AS patient sees language only in a literal sense,

generally not comprehending slang and other colloquial terms (DuCharme and McGrady

5). Because AS people may lack those basic rules of “social conduct, they are liable to

say or do things inadvertently that may offend or annoy others” (Shaked and Yirmiya

108). In conversation, people use many different ways to communicate their feelings

towards others. Using hand gestures and body language, performing eye contact, and

using facial cues and mouth movement are all ways that common people display feelings

and ideas towards each other in communication. Unlike most people who would use

these aspects to convey a position in conversation, AS people often use “inappropriate

body language” (106), and thus do not always “recognize others’ intentions” (106) or

emotions though nonverbal communication. Because of nonverbal miscommunication

with others, AS patients can be misunderstood due to their “wooden quality” (107) of

facial features which provides a further barrier in conversation with the “NT.”

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While it may be more difficult to observe in a novel setting, Oskar Schell’s

relationships with others and their reactions to his personality provides enough substance

to analyze the nonverbal cues or reciprocity to others in a social setting. As previously

stated, Oskar sometimes performs rather carelessly with people in his class (Foer 189).

The bully Jimmy Snyder asked him who Buckminster was and after Oskar’s first very

scientific and precise answer about the actual scientist Richard Buckminster Fuller, Oskar

claims, “Buckminster is my pussy” (190). While taken literally, this word is just a “cat,”

but in slang-terms it has the negative connotation of a body part. Because of Oskar’s

sense of literal interpretation, Oskar unknowingly and inappropriately acted a certain way

that resulted in his classmates tormenting him. After this remark, Oskar wonders why he

“didn’t get what was so hilarious” (190) and was genuinely confused to why he was

being laughed at by his peers. Likewise, in Oskar’s conversation with the locksmith, he

does not understand that when someone says the slang word “shoot,” it means to ask a

question or “go ahead” (39). These two examples are not only a lack of understanding in

metaphors and slang, but also the “extreme literalness” (Bogdashina 181) a person with

AS comprehends in his or her mind. In addition to his lack of understanding about

unofficial English rules, Oskar’s ability to sense other’s emotions and “place himself in

other people’s shoes” seems to be somewhat limited. In his visit to Ada Black, Oskar

tells her maid that her “uniform is incredibly beautiful” and that “Gail is a beautiful

name” (150). Gail was very taken aback at these comments, and Ada remarks that his

compliments made Gail “quite uncomfortable… I could tell that she felt embarrassed”

(150). Of course, Oskar was trying to be friendly with the main, but in his remarks he did

not understand how he made her feel. While Oskar often claims the sadness he faces

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about losing his father, his “detachment from others’ feelings” (Shaked and Yirmiya 105)

affects how he understands how others around him, especially family and friends, feel

about the same subject or other such hardships: he constantly criticizes his mother for

trying to “replace” her husband with her new friend Ron and how she does not miss

Thomas (Foer 170). Oskar states that because he hears her laughing and rarely crying,

she must not miss him, while in reality, his mother is just coping in a different way than

her son (171). Furthermore, when Oskar says, “if I could have chosen, I would have

chosen you” (171) about her dying instead of his father, she becomes very silent and

extremely hurt, and while Oskar does recognize that he hurt her feelings, he’s unsure

about whether she’s mad or sad and is unsure about how to show his sympathy to absolve

their differences (172). Oskar Schell displays a misunderstanding of social gestures,

reactions, and others’ emotions, which are all prime examples of some nonverbal

communication issues present in people with Asperger Syndrome.

Another significant and very recognizable trait in patients with Asperger

Syndrome is seen in one’s hobbies, interests, and obsessions (APA 388). Mentally, AS

patients have a “narrow or intense focus on particular topics” (388), which they are very

knowledgeable in. Physically, AS patients have “repetitive motor mannerisms” (388),

including a “preoccupation with parts of objects” (388). To begin on the topic of subject-

focus, many people unfamiliar with the syndrome find AS people to be “egocentric”

(Shaked and Yirmiya 105) in conversation. Peter F. Gerhardt, a prominent researcher

and board member of Asperger Coalition of the United States, tells the story of one

patient in his focus on a particular subject: after much therapy and verbal skills, Brian

was able to converse on subjects other than his favorite topic (transportation). However,

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when placed into an actual social situation, every conversation Brian had “quickly

became focused on his interest in transportation” (Gerhardt 162). Afterwards, Brian

stated: “I know people find me boring and intrusive, but I find myself fascinating” (162).

Similar to an Obsessive-compulsive person, AS people perform mannerisms and

repetitive movements of their own (DuCharme and McGrady 12), and these actions may

range from hand-flapping to other such movements (APA 389). Moreover, an AS patient

may have an obsession with an “attachment to and holding [of] particular objects”

(Mayes and Calhoun 27). Lastly, outside of their narrow areas on interest, AS patients

usually have a superior intelligence quotient in comparison to that of an average person,

which most likely allows them to gather many facts and data as a result (DuCharme and

McGrady 8).

Oskar Schell has many obsessions of topics and stereotyped movements that he

displays throughout his adventure. Oskar Schell is constantly inventing from the start of

the novel: teakettles that can talk, skyscrapers that move around the elevator, and

microphones that play the sounds of a heart are just a few inventions to name from

Oskar’s vivid imagination (Foer 1). Indeed, unlike AS people’s one-topic focus, Oskar is

knowledgably in a wide range of topics. However, he does have a focus in each topic of

discussion, which usually involves proved scientific or mathematical data (94) or facts

that always somehow seem to relate back to the terrorist attacks on the World Trade

Center (3). During his journey, Oskar researches information that he believes would be

useful in his search, discovering how New York City has “319 post offices and 207,352

post office boxes…70,571 hotel rooms…4,425 buses” (40) and how a new lock is created

every 2.777 seconds in the city (52). This type of mathematical data is hardly of use to

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him in his search, and yet he still pursues in learning all he can about it. Likewise, Oskar

does many intelligent and higher-learning activities for his age, such as reading Stephen

Hawking’s A Brief History of Time (11) and inventing jewelry using Morse Code

messages (35), which most certainly infers he has at least an above-average IQ. In his

visit to Abby Black, Oskar starts a conversation with her about elephants stemmed from

the painting in her kitchen and begins to tell her random facts and information about them

(94). Abby, however, does not appear to be in the least bit interested in the conversation

and replies with simple, apathetic answers: Oskar’s “did you know?” type of personality

is found in most people with AS. Oskar also shows some AS compulsions and

preoccupations, as when he zips up her dress simply because he loves it (38). Also, along

with his obsession with carrying around his grandfather’s camera, he constantly shakes

his tambourine when walking: “I shook my tambourine the whole time, because it helped

me remember that even though I was going through different neighborhoods, I was still

me” (88). Oskar’s narrow interests and actions, along with his superior IQ and

knowledge of certain subjects and mathematical data are all prime examples of Oskar’s

traits that are also shared traits of people with Asperger Syndrome.

In the three paragraphs above, I have explained and demonstrated some of the

various criteria that people with Asperger Syndrome have, and have showed how Oskar

displays some form, from mild to moderate, of each of these symptoms; however,

because one is labeled as having a mental disorder, does not mean they are by any means

disabled or less well-off than those without any significant mental differences. In his

autobiography titled Living the Good life with Autism, Edgar Schneider has never

believed that him having Asperger Syndrome has been a disability: “autistic [sic] (and

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AS) people have a way of creating their own happiness, even if it is not in ways that the

NT would consider as being happy” (27). On the outside, most of the “NT” that have a

basic knowledge of this syndrome proclaim that it must be terrible to be “trapped inside

that terrible disability” (12), when in reality, AS people can be both very happy and far

from being disabled. Even so, Schneider himself has admitted that he and most people

with AS have suffered from the social impairments of the syndrome at one time or

another. Nevertheless, many the benefits are incredible, and while the social impairments

can hinder some areas of an AS person’s life, they are justly known as thinking with the

“head as opposed to the heart” (Schneider 15). The most notable benefit is the above

average to superior IQ, which most researchers of the syndrome today have highly agreed

to be present in many people with AS (DuCharme and McGrady 5). Moreover, people

with AS are incredibly accurate at perceiving and observing details that many “NT”

would not see or recognize, and are known to have a “good eye for detail” (Lyons and

Fitzgerald 47). As well as an excellent “rote” memory, people with Asperger Syndrome

are highly superior in systemized thinking, which involves math, science, engineering,

computer programming, and even music (Lyons and Fitzgerald 47). True, people with

AS are not known for their “emotional reciprocity” (APA 387), but many contain strong

skills in a particular field, known as “savant skills” (Lyons and Fitzgerald 43). Savant

skills are the incredibly strong techniques where one knows, memorizes in its entirety,

and becomes an expert at specific areas (Lyons and Fitzgerald 43). While these skills are

not only superior to that of an “NT” person, how is having expertise in a certain area any

different than what people do in their jobs and occupations every day? In defense to the

recognizable communication impairments, Schneider describes his lack of eye contact as

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“taking advantage of the fact that I can see both (a person and surroundings) quite well”

(Schneider 22). Lastly to mention, there are a significant amount of intellectual giants

who some believe had or had traits of Asperger Syndrome. One in particular, Albert

Einstein, had “no library, no laboratory, and no colleagues with whom to discuss things”

(24). The perceptiveness to “discern similarities and differences that many others tend to

miss entirely” (23) helped Einstein develop his own scientific theories, and can be

observed in people with AS. In conclusion, the many skills mentioned above represent

many areas of superiority a person with Asperger Syndrome has over “NT” persons, and

while the social aspects of their syndrome may negatively affect them at times, many

“have a zest for living that it’s [sic] very hard to duplicate” (123).

As observed throughout my essay, I have described the various ways that Oskar

Schell shows many of the definitive traits of having Asperger Syndrome in Jonathan

Safran Foer’s novel, Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close. Not only this is true, but in

addition to Oskar having AS, I believe it has helped him grown and mature throughout

his journey, as it has to many other people with the syndrome. After the death of any

loved one, people do become severely depressed and emotionally distressed. Oskar

Schell is no different: in losing his father and mentor, Oskar was extremely hurt as most

children his age would be (Foer 8). To begin, Oskar’s narrow ideas and obsession with

finding what his father had left behind is what first led him on his journey to find what

was missing (295). Oskar’s obsessions relating to the attacks on the World Trade Center

and the inventions he builds in his mind to help people, save lives, and keep him going all

seem to stem from the urge to save his father, which he could not (301). His narrow

interests and obsessions gave Oskar the drive to continue his journey (Gerhardt 162).

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Also previously mentioned, Oskar has a great capacity to memorize many different

pieces of information and from the very beginning of the novel he is seen to have a very

high IQ for his age (Foer 40). His intelligence was how he mapped out his journey: first,

finding New Yorkers with the last name of “Black,” then alphabetizing and mapping

them out for spending his weekends most efficiently (51). Another trait to mention on

the social end of the spectrum is Oskar not being able to understand others’ feelings and

motives (Shaked and Yirmiya 106). Indeed, Oskar has been bullied in his school because

of his differences, but the fact that he is not affected or hurt by any words of hate from his

enemies has showed that he can remain strong in times of distress (Foer 190). To

conclude, it is true that Oskar has had trouble developing relationships with his peers, but

he has throughout the course of his journey gained the trust, respect, and friendship of

many people older than him (254). His elderly companion, A.R. Black, even stated, “I’ve

loved being with you…you got me back into the world. That’s the greatest thing anyone

could have done for me” (254). Oskar not only gained an old, tired man’s

companionship, but he showed him what he was missing in his life. Oskar could not

have changed his new friends without his important trait seen in Asperger Syndrome: the

fact that he reaches out to others, even complete strangers, albeit sometimes clumsily

(Schneider 17). This trait has most definitely aided him the most in his story, and

because he has such a trust in newly-met people, they have trusted him and have given

back (Foer 286). So, while some of Oskar’s traits of Asperger Syndrome have negatively

affected noticeable aspects in his life, many have accelerated his life and have allowed

him to conclude the journey of him maturing and growing as a person.

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As seen throughout this essay, people with Asperger Syndrome do face many

challenges in their life, most significantly in the social aspect, but these people live just as

happy and fulfilling lives as anyone else (Schneider 123). There is not a cure that is

needed, as there is not necessarily anything to cure. The best thing that someone with

this syndrome can do is to realize their uniqueness, and use that knowledge to their

advantage in their growth and career (Schneider 108). In summary, I believe that no

average person could take on the journey that Oskar Schell did. Oskar had the drive, the

mental capacity, and the unique social skills to talk to every person he met about

finishing his journey that, in the end, matured him and allowed him to come to terms with

his father’s death. In the conclusion and most touching part of the novel, Oskar, finally

realizing his uniqueness, cries, “I don’t want to be hospitalized… I promise I’m going to

be better soon… I’ll be happy and normal” (323). His mother, who has known of her

son’s unique personality reassures him and tells him the truth: “there’s nothing wrong

with you” (323). Thus, I ask the ultimitate question: when do disabilities become

abilities? The answer is right in front of you.

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Works Cited

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American Psychiatric Press, 1995. Print.

Bogdashina, Olga. Communication Issues in Autism and Asperger Syndrome. London:

Jessica Kingsley Publishers, 2005. Print.

DuCharme, Raymond W. and Kathleen A. McGrady. “What is Asperger Syndrome?”

Asperger Syndrome: A Guide for Professionals and Families. Ed. Raymond W.

DuCharme and Thomas P. Gullotta. New York: Kluwer Academic/Plenum

Publishers, 2003. 1-20. Print.

Foer, Jonathan Safran. Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close. Boston: Houghton Mifflin

Company, 2005. Print.

Gerhardt, Peter F. “Transitional Support for Learners with Asperger Syndrome: Toward

Successful Adulthood.” Asperger Syndrome: A Guide for Professionals and

Families. Ed. Raymond W. DuCharme and Thomas P. Gullotta. New York:

Kluwer Academic/Plenum Publishers, 2003. 157-171. Print.

Lyons, Viktoria and Michael Fitzgerald. Asperger Syndrome – A Gift or a

Curse? New York: Nova Biomedical Books, 2005. Print.

Mayes, Susan Dickerson and Susan L. Calhoun. “Relationship between Asperger

Syndrome and High-Functioning Autism.” Learning and Behavior Problems in

Asperger Syndrome. Ed. Margot Prior. New York: The Guilford Press, 2003.

15-34. Print.

Schneider, Edgar. Living the Good Life with Autism. London: Jessica Kingsley

Publishers, 2003. Print.

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Shaked, Michal and Nurit Yirmiya. “Understanding Social Difficulties.” Learning and

Behavior Problems in Asperger Syndrome. Ed. Margot Prior. New York: The

Guilford Press, 2003. 104-125. Print.

Tager-Flusberg, Helen. “Effects of Language and Communicative Deficits on Learning

and Behavior.” Learning and Behavior Problems in Asperger Syndrome. Ed.

Margot Prior. New York: The Guilford Press, 2003. 85-103. Print.