The enigma of the subjective constitution in autism: A psychoanalytical analysis of Temple Grandin’s autobiography

Abstract

This research aims to analyze the autobiography of Temple Grandin, based on the theory of alienation and separation elaborated in the first teaching of Lacan during Seminar 11. The study relied on the qualitative method, from the documentary analysis of the book "A girl Strange: Autobiography of an Autistic ". The results of the analysis point out that although each author has a particular reading of autism, which still generates debates, they converge in some aspects, such as the differential diagnosis of autism and psychosis and that in the subjective structuring of the autistic child, the heart of the matter is of alienation, being possible to observe signs of autism from the early childhood. In conclusion, although there is no better theory about autism, considering case by case of the patient in question, the analysis of Temple Grandin's autobiography points to Maleval's hypothesis of partial alienation.