Maybe because I had a sister with a disability I was already sensitised to and fascinated by people who think or develop differently.
Interpretation
The quote reflects the speaker's awareness and appreciation for diverse ways of thinking shaped by personal experience with a disabled sibling.
In this quote, Simon Baron-Cohen expresses how his relationship with his sister, who has a disability, has influenced his perception of individuals who think or develop differently from the norm. This connection fosters a greater sensitivity and fascination towards the diversity of human cognition and development, highlighting the importance of personal experiences in shaping our understanding of others.
In practice
In a speech about inclusivity, I might say, 'As Simon Baron-Cohen reflects, our experiences with those who are different can deepen our understanding of diversity.'
When I first started in this field there were all kinds of stereotypes about autism, as if these were children from another planet, or children who had been brought up by wolves, that they weren't part of our population and were somehow separate.
Empathy is like a universal solvent. Any problem immersed in empathy becomes soluble. It is effective as a way of anticipating and resolving interpersonal problems, whether this is a marital conflict, an international conflict, a problem at work, difficulties in a friendship, political deadlocks, a family dispute, or a problem with a neighbor.
Brains come in different types and they're all normal.
Well, in the general population, we find differences between the typical male and typical female. For example, males seem to be more interested in systems and females seem to be more interested in people and particularly people's emotions.
Empathy is a skill like any other human skill - and if you get a chance to practice, you can get better at it.
There are people with Asperger's whom I've met who certainly would be very upset to learn they'd hurt another person's feelings. They often have very strong moral consciences and moral codes. They care about not hurting people.
We have failed to practise ourselves the kind of behaviour we expect from other people.
I think a lot about our globalized world, our global interconnectedness, and it really saddens me when I see people 'othering,' when I see people who are willing to live narrowly.
It's amazing that people still feel, 'Oh my gosh, it's a black guy.' We've been here for a long time; let's get used to it. Let's get used to other cultures.
It's not just the number of friends you have, and it's not whether or not you're in a committed relationship. It's the quality of your close relationships that matters.
Life cannot be without relationship, but we have made it so agonizing and hideous by basing it on personal and possessive love. Can one love and yet not possess? You will find the true answer not in escape, ideals, beliefs but through the understanding of the causes of dependence and possessiveness.
You married me...but you didn't marry what you could make out of me.
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