29. Disorders of the form and content of language

29. Disorders of the form and content of language

There are times in AS people's youth when language can pose problems. There comes a time when the gap between the desire to communicate and the technique of speaking is out of balance. Producing sounds and conveying them appropriately, articulating and lining words up require the AS person to understand what the other can interpret.

The breath is too weak, or the words do not come out of the mouth; mumbling with the head down, in a monotonous voice without nuance: everything can be learned. Be patient, start practising, listen to beautiful voices. AS people can easily reproduce the pronunciation and intonation of those around them; one need only create a model environment for the AS person to develop a vocal identity.

From a very young age, I expressed myself in refined, surprising sentences, imbued with dignity and poetry. Yet this excess of eloquence inevitably attracted mockery from both children and adults, who did not hesitate to ridicule this pretentious little boy.

This is a common aspect of AS people that is not often mentioned: affected speech, one of their various characteristics. Josef Schovanec adopted a Swiss-German accent; he spent time there in his youth.