Representing Autism examines how we use the word autism and what this reveals about how we think about it. A form of literary criticism or cultural anthropology, this original book fills an important gap. Too often, scientists believe that they have direct, unmediated access to the object of their study. Stuart Murray reminds us that autism is not an unambiguous 'natural kind': our scientific taxonomy is also prone to biases. Autism lies on a spectrum, and comprises two major subgroups: people with classic autism and those with Asperger's syndrome. These groups share the combination of social-communication difficulties, narrow interests (pejoratively called obsessions) and a love of sameness (known clinically as resistance to change).
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