Inspiration is power: Voices of information and advocacy for the reader of autism narratives

The central idea that the article engages with is that there are at least two fundamentally differing rhetorical positions on autism. The rst position is that of the authoritative biomedical voice which identi es and pathologises a collection of behaviours, labels it as ‘located within the autism spectrum’ and then seeks either to measure its degree of severity or to medicate it. The second position is that of the parent of the autistic child who characterises the disorder as a demonised invader of their child, thief of their future and which through acts of heroic intervention can be exorcised. The most potent difference for the lay reader in engaging with these two discourses is the degree to which they limit or enable the reader to act or to respond. Inspiration is Power critiques the roles of biomedical and pathographic texts in telling the stories of autism.