Similarities Between Rain Man And House Rules

House Rules by Jodi Picoult is a story about a boy, Jacob, who has Asperger’s Syndrome, which is a form of autism. The eighteen-year-old is later convicted of murdering his own social tutor. Like any teenager, Jacob aspires to fit in with a “normal” crowd. However, his Asperger’s Syndrome does not allow him to do so. Rain Man, a film directed by Barry Levinson, also stars a character who suffers from autism. In a manner similar to Jacob’s, the character of Raymond also has a lot of problems in social situations. Just as Jacob’s brother Theo has to deal with his struggle with Asperger’s, Raymond’s brother Charlie, does not understand why Raymond is so attached to his routine.

The plotline of Rebirth is defined as an “optimistic form

of Tragedy”, in which the “villain” goes down a negative path, but allows some sort of redeeming figure to bring him into a more heroic perspective. The redeemer is introduced in order to assist with the hero’s ability to love, and to help him or her see things more clearly as they are, and to reorder his or her priorities accordingly.
The storylines of both House Rules and Rain Man follow the Rebirth plot form in almost every way.

However in both works, Jacob and Raymond’s ability to love, to seeing things as they are and to sort out their priorities are being hampered by autism.

Autism is “a neurobiological disorder which affects development in several different areas,” (Picoult 234). People with autism, such as Jacob and Raymond, want to connect with others but often cannot because they have little sense of empathy, and do not know how to take other people’s feelings into consideration. Instead, they will memorize the definition of love and be able to recite it, but cannot understand how to recognize or portray those emotions.

Another common aspect of autism is the taking of things very literally. Jacob suffers from this a lot in House Rules: “if you asked him to eat with his mouth closed… he’d tell you that’s impossible,” (Picoult 232). On such occasions, Jacob’s mother and his brother laugh because it comes out as more comedic than truthful, since Jacob is really only stating facts, and is simply responding to what was said to him. In Rain Man, Charlie tells Raymond “you bet your butt”, Raymond immediately gets a surprised look on his face, stands up and touches his butt. Autistic people see things literally as they

are.
People with autism, especially Asperger’s, often find something they like and become absolutely enthralled with it. Autism and Asperger’s also make it very hard for a person with the condition to break rules that they are taught. These two things can sometimes get mixed up when they are combined into a single scenario. In Jacob’s case, when he is “setting up” the crime scene of his social tutor Jess for the police, his obsession, and fascination for forensic science get in the way of the “rules” he knows about crime scenes. Although he learned not to touch anything at a crime scene because it can be used as evidence, but since his interest in forensic science was involved, Jacob forgot all the other rules. Raymond, on the other hand, does not have one certain obsession, but instead, is obsessed with following his routine. Ever since Raymond was institutionalized, he has always watched TV before he went to bed at eleven. The first night he stays with Charlie, he was not able to watch TV at his normal time. He heard moaning coming from his brother’s room, but he also heard a TV playing. Even though the door was shut, Raymond walked right into Charlie’s room to watch the TV. Charlie and his girlfriend were in a very intimate situation, yet Raymond paid no attention to that because “I always watch television before lights out at eleven” (Rain Man). Although Raymond had likely been taught that one should always knock before walking in on a closed door, this rule was forgotten when his routine was compromised.
As one of Christopher Booker’s Seven Basic Plots, Rebirth is most often based around a tragic situation with moments that show that the hero is redeemable. The plotline of Rebirth follows five steps in a “basic sequence”:
“-a young hero falls under the shadow of a dark power;
-for a while, all may seem to go reasonably well, the threat may even seem to have receded;
-Eventually, it all approaches again in full force, until the hero or heroine is seen imprisoned in the state of living death;
-This continues for a long time, when it seems that the dark power has completely triumphed;
-Finally comes the miraculous redemption: either where the imprisoned figure is a heroine, by the hero; or, where it is the hero, by a Young Woman or Child.” (Black)

In House Rules, Jacob does not make a life-changing, miraculous Rebirth in the same sense that the plot explains. As a growing teen, Jacob rises and falls based on his Asperger’s Syndrome. The first step is overcome when Jacob is first diagnosed with Asperger’s as a young child. Autism is not necessarily a “dark power”, but is a struggle that causes trouble for Jacob, along with social discomfort. The second step comes to light when Jacob starts meeting with his social tutor, Jess and learns how to act socially. When Jess is killed, Jacob retreats into the imprisonment of his condition, pulling himself away from others verbally, emotionally, and mentally: “Now I push the door open and find Jacob inside his closet, underneath the tendrils of shirt cuffs and sweatpants, rocking back and forth emitting a high, reedy note from his throat”(Picoult 88). The third step hits Jacob again when he is convicted of murdering Jess and is thrown in prison. He goes on a downward spiral that his mother does not think she can pull him out of. At this point, he started harming himself, just like he had done when he was young and had a meltdown. “Jacob’s head lifts a few inches, and then falls. His forehead strikes the metal plate of the counter. Then he does it again” (Picoult 224). Jacob gets pulled out of this awful fall when his lawyer, Oliver, fights to have him under house arrest instead. Both Emma, Jacob’s mom, and Oliver are worried that things are not going to turn out well at Jacob’s trial; which can be compared to the fourth step. Finally, Jacob pulls himself out of this state when he can tell his understanding of the truth to the jury. Being able to tell the truth is what gives Jacob the real sense of Rebirth.
In Rain Man, the main character, Raymond, also follows the first step in a similar way, when he is diagnosed with autism. Raymond was sent away as a young child to a special hospital for disabled people. Being at a place where his condition was understood and where he was able to be taken care of, made life easier for him, which ‘covers’ the second step. The third step comes when Raymond’s brother, Charlie returns to his life. Charlie does not even know what autism is, let alone how to take care of his brother. He does not do it on purpose, but Charlie just keeps upsetting Raymond by his actions. Charlie tries to take Raymond on a plane but Ray keeps explaining why he cannot go on the plane. Charlie calls him a “retard” and gets angry. Raymond ends up creating a scene in the airport screams right in Charlie’s face. This step is met earlier in the storyline before Raymond is sent away. Once, when they were children, Raymond was playing with hot water and burned his brother accidently. That is when he got sent away from his family. The fourth step is not covered very specifically in the movie, except in terms of how long it takes Charlie to understand Raymond and to develop his love for him, though that shines more of a light on Charlie’s character. The final step is met in one of the last scenes when Raymond gives his brother an acknowledgment of his love for Charlie. Charlie hugs Raymond and instead of pulling away and yelling, Raymond leans his head against Charlie.
Both characters in the two stories follow waves and stages of Rebirth. There are points at the completion of both stories that provide greater clarity for the Rebirth plot form at other times in the narratives. Although the three points made in Rebirth –the ability to love, seeing things as they are and to reorder and individual’s priorities- are contradicted by Jacob and Raymond as autistic characters, autism itself turns out to be the twist in the forms of Rebirth shown in House Rules and Rain Man, as something which complicates the plot form but does not detract from its basic structure. The Rebirth plot line coincides well with the study and effects of autism.