A wider sense of normal? Seeking to understand Pierre Rivire through thelens of autismArtemi Sakellariadis*Centre for Studies on Inclusive Education, The Park Centre, Daventry Road, Bristol BS4 1DQ, UKarti cle i nfoArticle history:Received 10 March 2011Received in revised form4 March 2012Accepted 9 March 2012Keywords:AutismAspergers syndromeAutistic spectrumTheory of mindPierre RivireIdiosyncratic behavioursabstractThis paper opens up the conceptual space of autism and Aspergers syndrome. Drawing on the work ofFoucault and his colleagues on an extraordinary case of parricide in 19th century France (Foucault, 1975),it proposes a retrospective framework for inquiring into the mindset of the perpetrator, Pierre Rivire,andexploringhisidiosyncraticbehaviours. Althoughseeminglybizarrebehavioursof peopleontheautisticspectrumarestill consideredpathological bysome, current literaturequestionsestablishedboundaries of normality and suggests that autism is a condition better understood as one expression ofthehumancondition. Inlinewiththeoriginal workofFoucaultandhiscolleaguesthispaperresistsprivileging the professional voice, in an attempt to disrupt conventional hierarchies of knowledge andauthority. Instead, it drawsonmodern-dayautobiographical accountsof peoplewithadiagnosisofautism or Aspergers syndrome who describe, and explain from their personal perspectives, their ownidiosyncraticbehaviours. Indoingso, thispaperpresentsanacross-the-centurieslayeredaccountasaframeworkforexploringPierreRiviresmindsetandtroublingestablishedlegal processesforpin-pointing criminal responsibility. 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.1. IntroductionThis paper explores the story of Pierre Rivire, convicted of themurder of his mother, sister and brother in rural France in 1835. ItstemsfromaseriesofworkshopsattheUniversityofBristol inspring 2010, during which a multi-disciplinary team revisited theaccount of these murders presented by Foucault (1975) andcriticallyengagedwiththeevidenceavailable, seekingtobringcontemporaryinsightsintopreviouslyinconclusiveaccounts. Mypersonalinterestintheprojectwascaptivatedbytheseeminglyindeterminate identity of Pierre Rivire: his contemporaries, as wellas Foucault and his team, noted clear evidence of advanced and ofimpaired intellectual capacity. Unable to see this as anything butincommensurable, they rendered themselves powerless to answerthe mador bad binarytheyconstructed. Pierredidnot denycommitting the triple murder. The trial centred on the question ofwhether he was insane or not, as the former would call for leniencyand the latter for the death sentence. Expert medical opinion wasdivided, Pierre was considered sane and was sentenced to death.Soonafter, someof thejurorsdrewupapetitionformercy, ongrounds of mental deciency; this was upheldandPierrewasimprisoned for life. This paper considers the possibility that Pierremight have been on the autistic spectrum, a viewpoint consistentwiththeconcurrentevidenceofadvancedandimpairedmentalabilities.The paper has been constructed as a series of email exchanges,re-presentingthe words ofpeople whohave writtenabouttheirlived experience of being on the autistic spectrum. None of theseemailshaveeverbeensentandnoneof thequotedtextsweregeneratedinresponsetoanycall impliedinthispaper. Conse-quently, the messages presented as responses do not directly referto Pierre Rivire. I have created this text formas a means of grantingprominence to voices of people with diagnoses of autismorAspergerssyndromeandasadevicetobringanexplorationofideas to life. I know of no other author who has used this text formbut propose it on the strength of previous experience of innovativewritingforms that havebeenpositivelyreceived(Sakellariadis,2007, 2011).I havedrawnfromthewritings of Gunilla Gerland(2003),Temple Grandin (1996, 2008), Luke Jackson (2002), Liane HollidayWilley(1999, 2001)andDonnaWilliams(1999a,1999b, 19961).These are mostly autobiographical texts, in which the authors have*Tel.: 44 117 353 3150.E-mail address: artemi@csie.org.uk.1Threebooks listedintheorder originallypublished(1992, 1994and1996respectively).Contents lists available at SciVerse ScienceDirectEmotion, Space and Societyj ournal homepage: www. el sevi er. com/ l ocat e/ emospa1755-4586/$e see front matter 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.doi:10.1016/j.emospa.2012.03.003Emotion, Space and Society 5 (2012) 269e278indicated that their publication was motivated, at least in part, bya desire to raise awareness about autism and Aspergers syndrome.It seems appropriate, therefore, to replicate their words in a paperthatseeks, atleastinpart, todothesame.2All extractsappearaccuratelyreproduced. I haveintervenedinveryfewinstances,mostly to make the text meaningful in the context of this paper;whereI havedoneso[mywordsappearinsquarebrackets]. Inorder to make it absolutely explicit that the email exchange pre-sentedhasnot takenplace, I haveascribedpseudonyms toallauthors whose texts are being quoted and have avoided fabricatingadateandtimeforeachmessage; instead, messagescarrythereference to the original text (authors initials, publication date andpagenumbers). SpecicreferencedetailsforFoucaultswritingsappearinmessagesscriptedbyme. Myoriginal thoughtwastoconstruct this paper as a face-to-face conversation drawing mate-rial from peoples published words, but later rejected this idea onthegroundsthatitwouldbeanunlikelye and, therefore, inap-propriate representation ofe communication among people withdiagnoses of autism or Aspergers Syndrome.The email exchange constructed for this paper follows a patternof questions, scripted by myself, each followed by relevant extractsfromtheautobiographical textsmentionedabove. I haveinten-tionally drawn from texts which put forward a counter narrative ofdifference, in an effort to build on the existing body of knowledgeon the autistic spectrum, to raise questions about societies toler-ance of difference and to call into question conventional percep-tions of impairment as pathological. Sidonie Smith refers to ways inwhichautobiographical texts canchallengebinaryoppositionssustainingthediscourses of raceandgender (1993: 406). Toparaphrase Smith, this paper affords a further opportunity for theautobiographical texts it represents to challenge binary oppositionssustaining the discourse of (dis)ability.The paper begins with an overview of the autistic spectrum andcurrent methods of identication, as articulatedbythosewithdiagnosesofautismorAspergerssyndrome. Descriptionsoftheautistic spectrumfroma scientic perspective can be found aplenty(for example Attwood, 2008; Baron-Cohen, 2008; Frith, 1989;Wing, 1996). Nonetheless, in this paper, I wish to eschewthe formsof dominance involved in addressing someone as subaltern(Lather, 2008: 224) and foreground the voice of those who, perhapsnotunlikePierreRivire, havebeenconsistentlymisunderstoodand often excluded from, and by, their local communities. In doingso, I intentionallyresist conventional academic discourses andresort to decolonizing methodologies (Smith, 1999) in an attemptto disrupt the politics of traditional knowledge exchange.Aspects of Pierre Rivires behaviour identied by hiscontemporaries as deviating from the norm are addressed in theorder in which they appear in the legal documents presented byFoucault(1975). Firstthispaperexploresissuesrecordedinthereport fromthe district prosecutor following Pierres arrest:relationshipswithparents;tormentingothers;issues ofprivacyandseekingsolitude;talkingtoonesself;furtivegazeandanunusual gait; andstartling lack of emotion. Two further issuesrecorded in the Bill of Indictment are then explored: relationshipswith peers and Pierres extraordinary memory. Finally, the paperconsiders additional issues that arise inPierres memoir: hisacknowledgement of difference fromothers and consequentefforts tocomplywithsociocultural norms; andidiosyncraticmeaning-making.2. DiscussionFrom: ArtemiSubject: autistic spectrumDear Authors with a diagnosis of autism or AspergersSyndrome.I write to you because, having read the account of Michel Fou-caultandhisteam(1975)ofPierreRivire, Iwasstruckbyhowlikely it seems that Pierre might have been on the autistic spectrum.Theconditionhadnotbeenidentiedintheearly1800swhenPierrelived. Legalandmedical experts ofhistimewereutterlybafed by the clarity of writing and evidence of rational thinking inthe memoir of a young man thought to be of limited intelligence.Knowledgeof autismandthepossibilitiesit affordsfor under-standing Pierres behaviours seems to have escaped Foucault andhis teaminthe1970s. For thebenet of readers insufcientlyfamiliarwithautism, pleasecouldyousaysomethingaboutthecondition, in your own words?From: MatthewRef: LJ2002:21Subject: re: autistic spectrumApparentlyfor bothautismandAsperger Syndrome, peoplehave a triad of impairments. I only know bits about this fromwhatI have read(and frompersonal experience, of course). Theseimpairments are in communication, social interaction and imagi-nation. Repetitive behaviours, obsessions and sensory problems arealso often part of the problem, though not always present.From: StellaRef: DW1996:7Subject: re: autistic spectrumAutism existed long before it got its label (...) [and] was aroundlong before the American, Leo Kanner, discovered it or theGerman, HansAsperger, discovered itsmorehighfunctioningcousin, Asperger Syndrome, back in the 1940s. (...) Over the yearsautism has been considered a formof spiritual possession,a mental illness, an emotional disturbance, a personality disorder,a communication disorder, a mental handicap, a social communi-cation disorder, a developmental disability and, more recently, aninformation processing problem. (...) Like dinosaurs some profes-sionals have believed their ideas are the only ones which are right.From: JuneRef: LHW2001:17-8Subject: re: autistic spectrumWe are a mixed group of men and women; boys and girls; talland short; dark and light; average, smart and super smart peoplewho experience the world in ways just beyond the regular. To us,life is best understood through our intellect rather than ouremotional sets, through knowns and givens rather than hypothet-icals and maybes. Facts call us. Clear-cut answers to pointed ques-tions make sense. Words clothed in too many layers of puns andidioms and euphemisms remain hidden and far from oureld ofunderstanding. We prefer sameness and routines to surprises andspur of the moment changes in the day. Though some would say wearerigidthinkers, we woulddescribeourselvesassolidthinkerswho are simply certain of our own opinions. (...) But when we areaccusedof beingblunt andrudebecausewehaveprovidedanhonest assessment and straightforward answer to a problem, we sitmisaccused and misunderstood.From: StellaRef: DW1996:8Subject: re: autistic spectrumLooking atautism as a collection of symptoms, at a very basiclevel, people with autism could apparently be distinguished from2Promptedbyananonymousreviewerconcernedabout theethicsof appro-priating other peoples words in this manner, I sent thenal draft of this paper tothe authors quoted in it. Their responses appear at the end of the paper.A. Sakellariadis / Emotion, Space and Society 5 (2012) 269e278 270people withother types of problems onthe basis of sharinga handful of basic features:(a)an impairment in the ability to interact socially(b)a communication disorder(c)certain bizarre behaviours(d)bizarre responses to sensory stimuli(e)impairment in the use of imaginary play.From: ArtemiRef: MF1975:124-141, 163-166Subject: identicationMedical opinion presented before the jury at Pierre Rivirestrial was divided. The local doctor testied that Pierre wasevidently sane, on the grounds that current scientic knowledgecouldneitheridentifyanycauseofdamagetohisbrainsfunc-tions, nor classify his mental state in any of the known categoriesof deviationfromthenorm. Anurbanphysicianinchargeofalargeasylum, examiningthesameevidence, concludedthatPierrehadbeeninsanesinceearlychildhoodandtheapparentproof of rationality evident in his memoir could be accounted forbythe powerful moral shockadministeredbythe bloodheshed (Foucault, 1975: 136). Agroupof medical experts fromParis, expressingtheiropinionwhenapetitionformercywaspresented after Pierres conviction, came to the unanimousconclusionthat Pierrehadshownclear signs of mental de-ciencyfromtheageof four andthat this persistedafter thehomicides. Pleasecan youshareyourthoughtsonthecapacityof todays medical experts to apply, or not apply, labelsconsistently?From: JackieRef: TG2008:49Subject: re: identication[WhenI rst wrotemybookinthe1990s, therewas still]confusion in diagnosing between autism and schizophrenia. Someprofessionals claim[ed] that children with autism develop schizo-phrenic characteristics in adulthood. Like autisms, schizophreniascurrent diagnostic criteria are purely behavioural, though both areneurological disorders.From: MatthewRef: LJ2002:181-182Subject: re: identicationI wonder whether people that are labelled as schizophrenic orother things are actually on the autistic spectrum and no one hasunderstood them properly. I dont know a lot about schizophreniaor other mental illnesses but I can imagine how adults that havegone all their lives confused and misunderstood would seem as ifthey had a severe mental illness.From: JuneRef: LHW2001:17Subject: re: identicationThe words used to label the diagnosis quite literally depend onwhere you happen to live in the world, which kind of expert you seeand what characteristics the individual affected exhibits.From: StellaRef: DW1999b:22Subject: re: identicationToo often those who have trouble linking thought to action orwords, or vice versa, are thought retarded or disturbed, when theproblem may not be in the capacity so much as the mechanics.From: ArtemiRef: MF1975:9Subject: relationships with parentsI would like us to reect on representations of Pierre in ofcialdocuments of 1835 and explore the extent to which any idiosyn-craticbehaviourshemayhavehadcouldbebetterunderstoodthrough the lens of autism. The report from the district prosecutorfollowing Pierres arrest, which draws upon the statements of hisimmediate family, states that Pierre had beenobstinate and taci-turn andnever [showed] a sons affection for his [parents]. Doany of you resonate with this?From: StellaRef: DW1999a:13Subject: re: relationships with parentsI never hugged either of [my parents]; neither was I hugged. Ididnt like anyone coming too close to me, let alone touching me. Ifelt that all touching was pain, and I was frightened.From: JackieRef: TG2008:62-3Subject: re: relationships with parentsFromas far backas I canremember, I always hatedtobehugged. I wanted to experience the good feeling of being huggedbut it was just too overwhelming. It was like a great, all-engulngtidal wave of stimulation, and I reacted like a wild animal. (...) I wasoverloadedandwouldhave to escape, oftenby jerking awaysuddenly.From: LouiseRef: GG2003:13Subject: re: relationships with parentsNo one around me seemed to have the slightest idea of what myneeds were. So I was totally at the mercy of my own judgement indoing those vital things. (...) My family and I did not live in the sameworld. We scarcely came fromthe same planet. It was always calleddeance. And if it looked like deance, it had to be deance. Theymeasuredmeaccordingtothewaytheymeasuredthemselves.They started from the premise that I was the same as they were,and if I wasnt really like them, then I ought to be.From: LouiseRef: GG2003:19Subject: relationships with parentsAs I grew older,I did occasionally sense my mothers need toconsole me, and I realised that a sickly kind of voice had somethingto do with it. Then I was sometimes able to let it conquer my needto be left alone, to pretend to be comforted for a while because sheneeded it, because it was simply like that: endure thisrst and beleft in peace afterwards.From: LouiseRef: GG2003:22-23Subject: relationships with parentsI sometimes felt my mother wanted something of me, but I didntrealise what she wanted was my love. (...) If I did have some inkling ofwhatshewasafter, herideaofhowitshouldbeexpressedwastotallyincomprehensible tome. That people should wanttohaveother peoples feelings, want to force them out, seemed to me just asincredibleasif theyhadwantedeachothers internal organs. Ithought my mother intruded on me. (...) I didnt think anyone hadanything to do with me, especially not my parents. So neither did Ithink I had to obey them. (...) I thought it offensive that grown-upsnot onlydecidedthings for me, but alsothought theyhadtheright to do so. I wanted to be left in peace, but I also wanted to beloved. I justdidntknowhowthingsweresupposedtobe. (...)Ithought I had a right to be as I was, that I had a right to have my senseof integrityrespected. I thought it was other peoplewhowerebehaving so incomprehensibly and strangely, not me.A. Sakellariadis / Emotion, Space and Society 5 (2012) 269e278 271From: LouiseRef: GG2003:42-3Subject: re: relationships with parentsIwasfour andahalfwhenmyfathermoved out. (...)Ineveraskedafterhim, notonce, andI neverwonderedwherehehadgone. I didnt know that you were expected to have fathers all yourlife. (...)Hemovedbackhomeagainsixmonthslater. (...)I wasconfused and angry when I sawhimagain. This newfather who hadmovedinlookedsofamiliar. Ididntunderstandthatitwasthesame one I had had six months earlier. (...) I didnt knowthat peoplecouldnt look identical.From: ArtemiRef: MF1975:10Subject: seen to torment othersThe district prosecutors report goes on to say that Pierredis-playedaharshnessof characterinall hishabitsandreferstorecollections of him crushing young birds between two stones andpursuing children with instruments with which he threatened tokill them. Can you please share any thoughts on why he might havedone this?This space has been left blank intentionally.3From: ArtemiRef: MF1975:10-11Subject: privacyPierre is said to have sometimes ed his parents houseandsought refugeinquarries andspent thenight there. Hehad reportedly asked his father if a man can live in the woods onplants and roots. It strikes me that Pierres potential needfor solitude has not been accounted for.Inthe context of life in19thcenturyrural France, whenovercrowdedhomes literallyofferedlittleroomforprivacy, someofPierresbehavioursmaybecome easier to understand. I wonder what you all think aboutthis.From: ArtemiSubject: re: privacyIamsorrythatIdidnotmakemyrequestquiteclear. Pleasecould you let me know your thoughts about Pierres potential needfor privacy?From: JuneRef: LHW2001:72, 65-68Subject: re: privacyIf ourhomewerenotdesignedsothatweall haveseparatebedrooms, (...) we would assign everyone pieces of the home wheretheycoulddowhattheywilled. Thismightmeaneveryonehadnothingmorethanabookcase, desk, orevenasetofcardboardboxes to call their own, but they would at least have something.Control. We have to control our environment. Even if just a tiny partof it.In our home, we have several special spots. (...) Experience andmy explanations have taught [my family] that when I head to myroomormyofce(...)theyneedtoletmego. Whentheycan.Sometimes theycannot resist following me about, telling mewhichsister hitwhom [or]whichsisterignoredwhat. On thesedays, I do what any savvy parent would do. I hide. I go to one or twoof my most secret places the kids have yet to discover. (...) I can stillheareveryword(...)but[am]farenoughawayfromthemlongenough for me to regroup. I go to my secret spot, assume a relaxedposition, closemy eyes, breathedeepandhumorsing orcountover and over to twelve and back. I de-stress. Not at all an unusualresponsetoachargedatmosphere. Well, unlesscrawlingundera bed or cramming myself into the corner of my closet is unusual.Tome, itisasnormal aslyingbackinaloungechaironahotsunny day.From: JackieRef: TG1996:143Subject: re: privacyAll of us need a private place. Autistic children need their secretplaces, too, in which they can hide and retreat to their own world.After all, autism is awithin-ness disability, and autistic childrenneed the security of their own hideaways. I had mine and it wasa place for me to think and recharge myself.From: LouiseRef: GG2003:16Subject: re: privacyMyconsolation, mysaferetreat intheworld, was abrownarmchair in one corner. I could justt in behind it. With my faceclose to the back of it, I would stare into the upholstery so that Icould see every tiny little bit of it. I became absorbed in the brownmaterial, in its threads, in the minute holes between the threads.Then the scratches on my soul would heal a little. I never turned toanyone for consolation. There was a self-consoling unit inside me,the only form of solace I knew, and that is where I went. I didntknow you were meant to get that from other people.From: JackieRef: TG2008:44Subject: re: privacy[Asachild]Icouldsitforhoursonthebeachwatchingsanddribbling through my ngers. Id study each individual grain of sandas it owed between my ngers. Each grain was different, and I waslike a scientist studying the grains under a microscope. As I scru-tinized their shapes and contours, I went into a trance which cut meoff from the sights and sounds around me.From: LouiseRef: GG2003:20Subject: re: privacy[Asachild] I oftensat inthegardenlookingat something,absorbed in aower or a leaf. Then I felt neither wrong nor right. Ijust was, and that never stopped. I never suddenly wanted to dosomethingelse. Nothingwas happeningthereinsideme. I satlooking, observing.3I am not aware of any relevant writings from theve quoted authors, but haveanecdotal evidenceof achildwithautismwhofrequentlychasedasiblingandsubsequently explained that this was prompted by the sensory pleasure of hearinga door slam and by the sense of control from the predictable pattern of behaviours(and, therefore, the temporary reassurance that nothing unexpected would happen).I wonder if Pierre may have drawn satisfaction for similar reasons, rather than fromthedistress his actionsbroughttoothers. Thereis little evidence intheacademicliterature of any link between autism or Aspergers syndrome and violent behaviour.Although some claims to such a link had been made (Baron-Cohen, 1988; Tantam,1988) subsequent studieshavecast doubt overthem. Anearlyliteraturereview(Ghaziuddinetal., 1991) sought toidentifyall papersontheclinical featuresofAspergers syndrome and autism published since Hans Aspergerrst described thesyndrome in 1944. Twenty-one publications were explored and the authorsconcluded thatresults do not support the speculation that violence is common inAsperger Syndrome. A more recent review of the literature (Bjrkly, 2009) reporteddivergent estimates and suggested that attempts to assess violence rates in peoplewith Aspergers syndrome werehampered by problems pertaining to reliable andvaliddiagnosesof AspergersSyndromeandaccuraterecordingsof violence.Ata time when diagnostic criteria for autism and Aspergers syndrome remain heavilycontested(www.dsm5.org)itseemsunlikelythatanythingotherthanspeculativeclaims can be expressed. Furthermore, any claimto links between autismorAspergers Syndrome and violence would be highly controversial, due to the implicitassumption that predisposition to violence can be physiological.A. Sakellariadis / Emotion, Space and Society 5 (2012) 269e278 272From: MatthewRef: LJ2002:64Subject: re: privacyI oftengetengrossedinonethingoranotherandlosetrackof time. I think its a pity that time exists at all, but then I supposeat least we know when to have meals. I can spend hours lookingat thepatternsandshapesinthingsaroundme. I carryinmyhead my own little show of patterns and prisms and shapes andcolours. They intermingle with shapes from the outside world. It isveryhardtoexplain, but maybe other AS or autistic peopleunderstand.From: ArtemiRef: MF1975:10Subject: talking to selfThe district prosecutors report also says that Pierre sometimestalked to himself and became excited and passionate. Do any ofyou ever talk out loud to yourself?From: JuneRef: LHW2001:75Subject: re: talking to selfI asked my girls and my husband to list the various ways I am a,well, not quite normal mum. [One of the things they all said was:]You talk to yourself in public. Loudly!From: JackieRef: TG2008:98Subject: re: talking to selfIlearned[toread]withphonics, becauseIunderstoodspokenlanguage.It tookme along time to learn to readsilently, though.Saying the words out loudhelpedme to keepthe sequence organized.I alsousedtotell myself storiesat night. Sayingthemout loudgave eachstoryasequence, whichmadethemseemmorereal. EveninhighschoolIwoulddiscussphilosophicalconceptsoutloudwithmyself.From: ArtemiRef: MF1975:11Subject: unusual gaitThe district prosecutors report summarises notable traits[which] emerge from a study of Pierre Rivires physique, whichincludeobservationsthat heconstantlykeepshisheaddown,and his furtive glances seem to shun meeting the gaze of others(...); his gait is jerky and he moves in bounds, he leaps rather thanwalks. Avoiding eye contact is now widely understood as a char-acteristic of autism, but doanyof youhavethoughts onhisunusual gait?From: StellaRef: DW1999b:29Subject: re: unusual gait[WhenI workedinaspecial school I cameacross] childrenwhose ways seemed similar to my own. (...) Jackitted about theyard like Peter Pan. His movements were petite, sharp and precise,his eyes never stopping long on anything. The wind blewJacks longwispy blond fringe as he effortlessly walked the tightrope acrossthe top of the playground climbing frame.From: ArtemiRef: MF1975:11Subject: emotionThe district prosecutors report concludes by referring to whatwas seen as a startling lack of emotion following Pierres crime. Hereportedlywent out unconcernedly and,hishands stainedwithblood spoke of his crime to a couple of people and then went onhisway calmly as ifnothinghad happened;hispruning bill wasdripping with blood. Pierres contemporaries may have observedthat he did not express emotion in ways most people would expect,and assumed that he felt none. I aminterested to hear howyou dealwithemotion. Canyoucomment ontheextent towhichyourthoughts and actions are governed by emotion?From: JuneRef: LHW2001:86Subject: re: emotionI rely on my logic. It makes sense. I amuncomfortable in the armsof emotions. Neurotypicals might argue emotionis the key tounderstanding, that throughtheheart comes empathy. I woulddisagree. In my terms, emotions are too vulnerable. They can easilyget muddledandcolouredbyeveryones perspectiveandotherpeoples agendas. They can easily undo me. When I am logical, I ndthere is muchinmy children I can tolerate, much I amable to fathom,and much I amable to help themthrough. But when I amemotional,thelogicdisappearsandthenI amlefttoohighstrungandtoodemanding. Only my intellect, so it seems, can guide me to the end ofmy problems.From: JackieRef: TG2008:103Subject: re: emotionMany people have difculty deciphering howpeople withautism understand rules. Since I dont have any social intuition, Irely on pure logic, like an expert computer program, to guide mybehaviour. I categorize rules according to their logical importance.It is a complex algorithmic decision-making tree. There isaprocessofusingmyintellectandlogical decision-makingforevery socialdecision. Emotiondoes notguide my decision; itispure computing.From: StellaRef: DW1999b:61Subject: re: emotionThe assumption had begun long before I knew the words knowandfeel weremorethancombinations of sounds. Thewordsknow andfeel were likeit andof andby e you couldnt seethemortouchthem, sothemeaningwasnt signicant. Peoplecannot showyou a know and you cannot see what feel looks like.I learned to use the words know and feel like a blind person usesthe word see.From: JackieRef: TG2008:87-95Subject: re: emotionSome people believe that people withautismdonot haveemotions. I denitelydohavethem, buttheyaremoreliketheemotions of a child than of an adult. (...) I dont know what it is liketo feel rapturous joy. I know I am missing something when otherpeopleswoonoverabeautiful sunset. IntellectuallyI knowitisbeautiful, but I dont feel it. The closest thing I have to joy is theexcited pleasure I feel when I have solved a design problem. (...) Ionly understand simple emotions,such as fear, anger,happiness,andsadness. (...)I still havedifcultyunderstandingandhavingarelationshipwithpeoplewhoseprimarymotivationinlifeisgoverned by complex emotions, as my actions are guided byintellect. (...) I relate better to scientists and engineers, who are lessmotivated by emotion. (...) Myrst inkling that my emotions weredifferent came in high school, when my roommate swooned overthe science teacher. Whatever it was she was feeling, I knewI didntfeel that way toward anyone. But it was years before I realised thatother peopleareguidedbytheir emotions duringmost socialinteractions. For me, the proper behaviour during all social inter-actions had to be learned by intellect.A. Sakellariadis / Emotion, Space and Society 5 (2012) 269e278 273From: StellaRef: DW1999b:90Subject: re: emotionI sat with my arms around me on my red carpet and waited forthe impact. After twenty-six years I had learned that this was notdeath coming but emotions. Which one, which one? screamed thewordless impulse within me. If I could only name these monstersand harness them, link them to the places and faces and times theyhad come from, I would be free.From: ArtemiRef: MF1975:49Subject: relationships with peersThe Bill of Indictment presents further information about Pierre,which also seems worth exploring through the lens ofautism.Itstates that he was known to avoid young persons of his age. Whatdid you do as children?From: LouiseRef: GG2003:41Subject: re: relationships with peersOn my birthdays, my mother invited [some children because Ihad no friends of my own.] Perhaps she thought I would feel lesslonely then, but instead I was offended. I couldnt understand whythose childrenshouldbe inmy house, inmygarden, onmybirthday, playingwitheachother. I couldnt takepart intheirgames. (...) They frightened me and wore me out. (...) I would sit outon my own somewhere, eating sweets, or detaching myself fromthe system, pulling out the plug and sinking into myself. When Igrew older, as I couldnt be with other children, I occasionally triedtobewithadults. Runawayandplay, theysaid. But I couldneither run nor play.From: StellaRef: DW1999a:33-4Subject: re: relationships with peers[A newgirl once moved to our neighbourhood.] I was eight. Shewas ten. I used to watch her. She used to watch me watching her. Idid not know how to make friends, so I would stand there callingthis girl every four-letter word I knew. As my mother had a hugevocabulary of swearwords, I did this pretty well. Eventually this girlwould take to her feet and chase me for several blocks. Id always goaway and Id be back the next day to do it again.From: StellaRef: DW1999b:69Subject: re: relationships with peers[Even as a teenager I often had difculty understandingeveryday interactions.] Were off to the caf, announced someoneinadriftingcloudof people. Yes,I repliedandwaitedtobeinvited. They didnt ask if I was coming. Why were they doing this?Why were they telling me they were going but not inviting me?Were they showing off howthey were all friends going offtogether? Was I supposed to assume I was meant to come along?From: MatthewRef: LJ2002:164Subject: re: relationships with peersI am always being told off for standing too close to people andfollowing them around all the time, but it is very difcult to knowwhen it is right to followsomeone around and carry on talking andwhen the conversation has ended and I am to leave them alone. Iwill never be able to tell if someone is bored unless they tell me.From: LouiseRef: GG2003:157Subject: re: relationships with peersI had no inkling of the effect I had on other people, that theywere provoked by my unmoved exterior.From: ArtemiRef: MF1975:49Subject: memoryThe Bill of Indictment also mentions that Pierre speaks little eonlywhenheis questioned eandhis answers arebrief andprecise. This, too, is now understood as a characteristic of autismbut I am not aware that any of you have written about this. Next,Pierres extraordinary memory is mentioned: Gifted witha memory on which everything is readily engraved and fromwhichnothing fades. Indeed, central tothe court case was Pierresmemoir of an estimated 27,000 words, which he wrote within 10days while in custody. In it he commits to paper his parents lifesince their marriage in 1813, his own rationale for the murders andhis experiences sincecommittingthem. Not onlydidhecovertwenty-twoyears of events inextraordinaryamount of detailwithout access to any notes (he mentions, for example, in whosepresence important documents were signed or precisely howmuchhis parents owed to whom at various points in time), he also wovein most of the incidents that had come up in recent interrogations.Outstanding memory is also associated with the autistic spectrum;would you agree?From: StellaRef: DW1999b:46Subject: re: memoryI used to delight in my memory, which was acute, sometimesperfect to thenest detail. I could set off one part of it and it wouldrun like a serial as I described the pictures, became the narrator ofa silent movie, the verbal animator of a recorded soundtrack. Thiswas part of what I considered conversing and I felt proud of it asa sign of ability and, therefore, intelligence.From: JackieRef: TG2008:24-5Subject: re: memoryBeing autistic, I dont naturally assimilate information that mostpeople take for granted. Instead, I store information in my head as ifit were on a CD-ROM disc. When I recall something I have learned, Ireplay the video in my imagination. The videos in my memory arealwaysspecic; forexample, I rememberhandlingcattleattheveterinary chute at Producers Feedlot or McElhaney CattleCompany. I rememberexactlyhowtheanimalsbehavedinthatspecic situation and how the chutes and other equipment werebuilt. The exact construction of steel fenceposts and pipe rails ineach case is also part of my visual memory. I can run these imagesover and over and study them to solve design problems.From: StellaRef: DW1999b:21-22Subject: re: on memory[I had twenty-ve years of stored up memories which served asmy knowledge of the world.] It may not have been my choice toaccumulateninety-vepercent of thestuff I hadabsorbedonautomatic pilot. In a sleep-walking state I had taken it on withoutlearning, but it was still my memory bank that stored it.From: ArtemiRef: MF1975:101-104Subject: sociocultural normsThere are a number of issues we could explore, with regard tothe way in which Pierre portrays himself through his memoir. I amparticularly interested in the rare yet explicit acknowledgements ofhis difference from others; for example:I displayed singularities.My schoolmates noticed this and laughed at me andI saw quiteA. Sakellariadis / Emotion, Space and Society 5 (2012) 269e278 274well however how people looked upon me, most of them laughedat me. I applied myself diligently to nd out what I should do to stopthis and live in society, but I did not have tact enough to do that, Icould not nd the words to say, and I could not appear sociable withthe young people of my own age. He later says:Two years ago Iwent to Sainte-Honorine all alone on Saint Claires day to observethe talk which the masters and servants held together and to learnfrom it and do as much myself if I had the chance. (...) I often tookastroll throughassemblagesandmarketsall bymyselfwithoutcompanions. I always had ideas about learning things and betteringmyself. I wonder if this is more relevant to dreams of improving hissocial standingortosomepersonal resolvetolearnabout, andconformto, socialnorms.Haveany ofyou soughtto teach your-selves social rules?From: StellaRef: DW1996:105Subject: re: sociocultural normsI got a lot of my life rules and responses from things like TV sit-comsandTVcommercialswherecertainresponsesandphraseswere repeated again and again in a highly predictable way.From: LouiseRef: GG2003:248Subject: re: sociocultural normsObservingwhatotherpeopledohasalwaysbeenmywayoftrying to teach myself to be like them.From: JuneRef: LHW2001:30Subject: re: sociocultural normsMy own father taught me years ago to watch, learn, listen andmemorize. And so I do. (...) Using mental imaging as a virtual diary, Iwrite what I experience e what I see, hear, feel and even smell e onmymemorycards, whichI thencategorizeandstoreinareas I imagineto be neat boxes kept in a giant roomof my brain. When in need I cango to thatroom and unlock the drawer that has the information Ineed to review before I enter the realm of the neurotypical.From: StellaRef: DW1999b:139Subject: re: sociocultural normsThe children had a separate recess purely for play. (...) Instead ofspending this time buried in a book, I hung about and looked for thepatterns in what they were doing. Outside of my face, I smiled forthem. Inside of my face, I cried for me. Sometimes tears rolled downmy peacefully smiling face and I moved my glasses and wiped themaway. I was their teacher and yet I was aware and deeply moved byjust how much I was here to learn from them.From: JuneRef: LHW2001:29Subject: re: sociocultural normsNormies know what to do when company comes to stay for anhour or even a week, whereas I dget and fumble with the fear thatIll surelyservethewrongkindof coffee, or layout thewrongkinds oftowels, or change the conversation topics too quickly, or complaintooloudlyabout thesmells myguests brought withthem, ormisinterpret thewords everyoneelse nods andsmiles at, or talkovertheits-time-to-gosigns theneurotypical will eventuallysendme, orleave the room before the conversation has found a natural end.From: LouiseRef: GG2003:41-2Subject: re: sociocultural normsOne day my sister was playing with a friend at being the VirginMary, Joseph and the infant Jesus. (...) [My parents] cried out withdelight about howcharming it was. I stored that in my memory, andinmystrivingtodowhatordinarychildrento, Itriedtodothesame. I wrappedmyself upina bedspread, put a doll inthenewspaper basket and sat down to wait for my mother or father topass by. I waited and waited. I didnt play with the doll, as I didntknow how to. My patience was endless.From: ArtemiRef: MF1975:46-52Subject: re: sociocultural normsPierres aversion to physical proximity to others seems to havebeen frowned upon by his contemporaries. Do any of you have anythoughts on this?From: JuneRef: LHW2001:26Subject: re: sociocultural normsI am of the opinion that far away is better than near and close. Iam unnerved when people come into my arena and happy whenthey are far enough from me to cause me to put on my glasses if Iwant toseethemsharply. But I amnot theloneaspieonthiswavelength. Loads of other aspies agree with me, they toobecomingquickly annoyedwhenanyoneputsnothingbutafewinches between themselves and our person.From: StellaRef: DW1999b:69Subject: re: sociocultural normsSuddenly something ewaround my shoulder and sat there, likesomefast-movingcat. Gladtondshewouldbewithsomeonefamiliar, Anita hadung a friendly arm around me. I grabbed thething from my shoulder like unwelcome slime and threw it down.Anitas arm returned like a boomerang come home. I sprang backand glared at Anita, solemnly regaining my composure. Likea spitting cat I announced, Im not a touchy-feely person. Anitastood there dumbstruck.From: ArtemiRef: MF1975:20,108; 103Subject: idiosyncratic meaning-makingPierre seems to have constructed an idiosyncratic line ofreasoning, according to which these murders seemed justiable tohim. During his rst interrogation, whenchallengedwiththeinconsistency between murder and his religious beliefs, heresponded:God ordered Moses to slay the adorers of the goldencalf, sparing neither friends nor father nor son. In his memoir hemakes reference to multiple unjustiable deaths in the context ofNapoleonic wars to satisfy mere caprices and concludes that it isnot right therefore that I should let a woman live who is disturbingmy fathers peace and happiness.Ona different note, Pierrespeaks inhis memoir about anunusual construct he had created and about which the examiningjudge had questioned him. He says:I also resolved to distinguishmyself by making completely new instruments, I wanted them tobe created in my imagination. I resolvedrst to make a tool to killbirds such as had never before been seen, I named itcalibene, Iworked on it for a long time on Sundays and in the evening. (...) Ihad also resolved to make an instrument to churn butter all by itselfand a carriage to go all by itself with springs. It seems as thoughPierrewastryingtoprovehisintellect, inthecontextof beingwidely regarded as the village idiot. He, perhaps understandably,chose not to write about any incidents that led to this identity beingascribed to him. Many of you have described how you sometimesunderstandthingsdifferentlyfromothersandhavereferredtoexperiences of feeling laughed at or rejected. Please could you sharesome examples?A. Sakellariadis / Emotion, Space and Society 5 (2012) 269e278 275From: JuneRef: LHW2001:34Subject: re: idiosyncratic meaning-makingI have sat for hours under the sign that says Your hotel van willpick you up here precisely waiting for the van to show, until a kindstranger somehow noting my ignorance, told me I needed to callthe hotel to tell them I was waiting here.From: LouiseRef: GG2003:36Subject: re: idiosyncratic meaning-makingI wasconvincedthatcraneswerealive. I couldseefrommywindowthat theyhadmovedtheir heads duringthe night. Ithought that people used them in the daytime and then they wereable to live freely at night.From: StellaRef: DW1999b:70-71Subject: re: idiosyncratic meaning-makingThelecturerwasdiscussingwholenumbers, integers, primenumbers, divisibility, and a whole lot of other blaheblaheblah ashe drew numbers on the board. He wrote thegure twelve. Whocan tell me what that is? he asked. People had already noticed Ihad trouble keeping up in this class and I was proud when I felt sureI had the answer to something. My mouth was in gear before myhand ever went up. I called out the answer. Its a twelve. The classroared with laughter. (...) I felt myself sink into my chair and shrinka few inches. I wasnt stupid. By the time he got around to askingthe question, I had lost the context I needed to answer it.From: JuneRef: LHW2001:39-40Subject: re: idiosyncratic meaning-makingFat grandmothers dont ride bikes [I had announced when I waseight.] Let your grandmother ride your new bike, [my mother hadtried to intervene.] No. She is too fat andshe will break it (...) And offI rode, onmy bike, nofat grandmas withme. Gosh, I clearly rememberthinking, why is everyone so mad at me? What did I do this time? (...) Itseems I will go to my grave mystied by a world that thinks it ne totalk about sex and drugs and violence on the open movie screen or inchildrens classrooms, but wrong to tell what dress size Aunt Lucywears or how much money the neighbour makes. Likewise, I willnever understand why people from the regular world are so aghastwhenthe truthfromthe obvious comes at them. For example, coulditreallyhavebeenashockwhenmyaspiedaughterexclaimedtoawaiter: Youshouldwashyourhandsafteryoutouchpeoplesmoney.? Surely the waiter knows money islthy and food is clean.Surely this comment from my daughter is not nearly as offensive asthe waiters dirty hands on our lunch. Why then, are we aspies in theminority when it comes to saying it like it is?From: ArtemiRef: MF1975:54-121Subject: re: idiosyncratic meaning-makingAbove all, I am struck by Pierres apparent conviction that, givena chance to explain his thinking, others will come to share his pointof view. More than implying a hope to convince, he seems tond itinevitable that, if all the arguments are considered in the way hehas presented them, others will arrive at the same conclusion ashim. Can any of you share similar examples of solid thinking?From: JuneRef: LHW2001:60-1Subject: re: idiosyncratic meaning-makingMyhusbandandI areabletodirect [ouraspiedaughters]attention from the things in her environment we know she wouldnd chaotic. We are able to tell her before she heads off to schoolthat it isnot uptohertotell theteacherhowtoarrangetheclassroom andnotup tohertore-organizeherfriends lockers.(...)Shouldouraspiegiveintoherimpulsesandcrossthelineinto someone elses territory, (...) we will listen while sheexpresses shockover thefact that thepersonshecleanedupdaredtoshowangeratherintervention;andwewill holdherwhenshewhispersthroughhertearsthatshedidnotmeantomake anyone mad,that she was only tryingto help themmakethings right again.From: StellaRef: DW1999b:42-43Subject: re: idiosyncratic meaning-making[When I stayed with my dad and his girlfriend, I found it difcultto get on with her.] It was like putting a cockatoo in a cage witha nch; she was very present and I felt cornered and overwhelmed.I needed order. I needed a system. I began compulsively to tidy andsort all of her cupboards and drawers. (...) I thought of it as a favour.The girlfriend found my behaviour very irritating. I sorted, cleaned,tidied, andorderedwhenshewasntintheroom. Herreactionmade no sense. Didnt people think of this as being helpful? (...) Myfather came to me. Can you please try to act normal? He asked.WhathaveIdone?Iasked. Heexplained. Youveignoredherfriends. You leave the roomwhenever she speaks to you. You go outand sleep in the car whenever we try to take you out with us. Hislist went on and on. I could see no crime in any of it. According tomy rules, I had been entirely unimposing. I had treated her with thesame kind of respect I would have appreciated.From: ArtemiSubject: a wider sense of normal?Intodayssocietydiversity continuesto beconsideredpatho-logical insomeinstances but not others. Peoplewithunusualbodies or minds canbe perceivedas defective andare oftenpresumed to suffer from their differences. How has a diagnosis ofautism or Aspergers syndrome affected you?From: JackieRef: TG2008:60-61Subject: re: a wider sense of normal?If I could snap my ngers and be nonautistic, I would not. Autismis part of what I am. (...) I would not want to lose my ability to thinkvisually.From: MatthewRef: LJ2002:164-5Subject: re: a wider sense of normal?Ifyouhave AspergerSyndromethenafter all you are notthesameasothers, butthatdoesntmakeyouworthanyless. Iamactually very proud that I am me. I dont mind my own company atall and have nothing in common with most other boys.From: JuneRef: LHW2001:83-4Subject: re: a wider sense of normal?If neurotypicals are black tea, we aspies are a complex blend ofherbsandspices. Oneisnotpreferableovertheother, botharesimply different in their expressions and different on the palate.From: StellaRef: DW1999b:37Subject: re: a wider sense of normal?[WhenI wasinmytwenties, I agreedtobeassessedbyaneducational psychologist. Headministered] somesort of intelli-gence test, but instead of just showing an overall intelligence level,it showed which areas a person was intelligent in. It seemed I wasexceptional in some areas and very backward in others. I was bothA. Sakellariadis / Emotion, Space and Society 5 (2012) 269e278 276geniusandretarded. Thehighs draggedthelowsup, thelowsdraggedthehighsdown, andthenal guresshowedI wasofaverage intelligence. Dr. Marek explained that extremes in ability intheseparticular areasweretypicalofautisticpeople. (...)Icouldnally understand why I felt this way and had beentreatedsometimes like a genius and sometimes like an idiot; I was, in fact,both.3. ReectionsThe above provides ample evidence of a strong resonancebetweenbehavioursofindividualswithadiagnosisofautismorAspergers syndrome andaspects of Pierre Rivires behaviourwhich his contemporaries perceived as unusual, such as his furtivegaze, jerky gait, apparent emotional detachment, quest for solitude,remarkable memory, extraordinary application of logic and evidentinability to separate his own beliefs from those of others (includinghis expectation that others will conclude his decision was sound ifhe articulates his reasoningclearly). This leads me tosuggesta strong possibility that Pierre Rivire was on the autistic spectrum.I am not aware of any reference to this having been made before,either within or outside the academic literature.I makethisclaimwithsignicant trepidation, forit maybeunderstood in ways I have not intended. Conscious that thelanguagethatdescribesusalsoserves toconstituteus, Iwishtoclarify my viewthat so-called diagnostic labels can serve toenlightenaswellastoconstrictourunderstandingoftheother,especiallyifparticular labelsofdiversity are perceivedaspatho-logical. Myintentionhereis tooffer autismas alens tolookthrough, rather than a conceptual space to situate anyone in, so thatPierre Rivire may be better understood. This paper does not set outto explain the multiple murders; it is solely aimed at betterunderstanding the manwho committed them. Pierres way of beingsuggests that he might have been on the autistic spectrum, whilehis actions on 3 June 1835 have earned him the label of murderer.Toassumeacausal relationshipbetweenthetwowouldseemarbitraryandinappropriate. Mythesisremainsthat autismandAspergers syndrome are particular ways of being, albeit withoutclear boundaries; they may elucidate patterns of internal process-ing or social relations but cannot foretell anyones actions.In proposing that Pierre Rivire might have been on the autisticspectrum, thispaperdeconstructsthemador bad binaryandpresentsanalternativeunderstandingofthisyoungman. Italsoaffordshim somedegreeofretrospectivejustice, assuchadiag-nosisimpliesthathewasrightlyheldtoaccountforhisviolentcrime, but inappropriately suspected of feigning madness beyondthe brief attempt that he admitted. In doing the above, this papermay also serve to raise awareness about the autistic spectrum and,obliquely, to trouble conventional academic writing forms.For readers whomayhaverecognisedcharacteristics of theautistic spectruminpeople they know, the questionof whatconstitutes normality may arise. As the title of this paper implies,myunderstanding ofnormalityisshapedlessby assumptions ofwhat is shared by most people and more by a sense of what can beconsideredanatural expressionof oursharedhumanity. Asforwhat renders a person disabled, my thinking is consistent with thesocial model of disability (see, for example, Rieser, 2000) suggest-ingthat it is not peoples impairments that disablethem, butsocietys failure to provide reasonable adjustments in response toimpairments. Making reasonable adjustments in Pierres casewould have called for a more lenient sentence.Had the possibility of looking through the lens of autism beenafforded to his contemporaries, they might have understood himbetter instead of responding to diversity with suspicion. Across thecenturies professionals noticedPierres feebleattempt tofeigninsanity and,attempting to interpret his actions,ascribed to himmental states andthought processes similar totheir own. Hisadmission of briey considering feigning madness was suspectedto be part of a long-termplan to deceive and mislead. His avoidanceof eye contact was interpreted as manifestation of guilt. Theabsence of expressions of emotion commonly associated with griefor remorse were taken as evidence that he felt neither. Above all,havingsituatedintelligenceandimpairedjudgement inbinaryopposition, his contemporaries were unable to consider thepossibility that he might have possessed both.AppendixPrompted by an anonymous reviewer concerned about the ethicsof appropriating other peoples words in this manner, I approachedall six people quoted in earlier versions of this paper. I was able toemail the nal draft to four people andheardbackfromtwo, towhomI remain most grateful. Donna Williams wrote to say that she has noproblem with her words being used in this way and asked for thereferences to her books to reect the most recent editions. Earlierversions of this paper had included four extracts from the transcriptof a keynote presentation given many years ago by someone who hasautism. This speaker receivedmy nal draft andtelephonedtodiscuss this, concerned that spoken words were about to appear inprint, credited to a person that does not consider themselves to be anauthor. The speaker seemedunaware that the talkhadbeenrecorded,transcribed and published in the conference proceedings, but did notwant me to follow this up when I offered to. I also offered to removefrom this paper all extracts from that talk and this was agreed.This incident promptedmetoquestionwhether myethicalcommitment to the other authors called for insistence fora response or respect for their apparent choice of silence. 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