I have an of mice and men reading; George is also on the spectrum, however he simply represents the “acceptable” or “good” aspects of it.
George and Lennie are repeatedly shown throughout the story to be two sides of the same coin, but always are roughly together on it. Like when their physical appearances are directly contrasted, but they wear the same exact outfit. With this in mind, my theory makes more sense symbolically.
Adding on, as of mice and men discusses social inequality between minorities in our society as its main theme, this reading adds an extra layer onto this with how autistic people are treated when they can “cover up” their traits as opposed to when they can’t.
Some reasoning, since I believe autism (or any disorder) headcannons are better with evidence:
-he gets agitated easily, and when he gets agitated it’s in short, almost rapid-fire spurts (not directly a signal that he is autistic, but something that I and many of my high-masking autistic friends related to.)
-he has a strong sense of justice, and will be up in arms quickly if something he doesn’t agree with morally is said.
-he is very straightforward, refusing to sugarcoat anything he says (with the exception of with Lennie, who he feels most secure with.)
Anyways, high masking and no masking George and Lennie duo is cannon in my heart 🥹🙏
