Portrayals of Autism Spectrum Disorder in Contemporary Fiction

Literature is an integral medium through which individuals use language to create a shared experience with an audience. Writing as an act is an intimate expression of identity. So, what does it mean that there are some voices who are not equally represented and heard in literature?
There is an interesting juxtaposition between literature and disabilities. Certain people with disabilities such as Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) struggle at communication, articulation, and interpretation. This paper seeks to analyze representations and portrayals of individuals with ASD in fiction, and compare differences in these representations based on whether the author has an ASD diagnosis. The authors who have received a diagnosis of ASD do portray a more nuanced understanding of ASD in day to day life; however, the authors who lack a diagnosis still represented character’s with ASD in an accurate light.