is your cass 3 years old? genuine question bc she has never sounded like that, she struggles with complex words and long sentences but she doesn't baby talk or get words wrong like that
I assume you mean in this post
First of all - thanks for asking! Feel free to ask any other questions here or a comment on fic.
Second - No, my Cass isn't 3 yo.
I'm talking about Cass from my fanfic (the first chapter has an extended version for clarification, as I understand pre-verbal communication is heard to understand).
Psychology, Language, and development
Cass was raised as a weapon, and wasn't allowed to speak as a child¹ - wich had a massive impact on the way her thinking and communication has developed².
She was also isolated, and only learned the concept of language at the age of ~8/9³ (with Jason). First by using signs⁴ (ASL, spesificly), and later starting speech - though she STILL struggles with pronunciations⁵.
According to canon, when she was about (17? 18?), a fight with a magical/alien made her "understand language".
But I take canon and think about the implications. I especially consider it as Cass is a very visual/kinetic thinker. She think in pictures and movements.
What adding words for this would do? And what "understanding language" even means?
My personal answer to that, was "sort of an auto-reader you can't turn off", and a LOT of overstimulation. Because it's too much.
This doesn't change much. It DOES mean Cass need to take time off, to understand what happened. It's also not a good thing.
(This isn't a magical fix-it, and I made sure to make it very clear it has serious issues, most importantly Cass didn't want/needed a "cure", as they aren't broken. There's nothing to fix.)
Cass still prefer using non-verbal communication, like AAC app, emojis, Jestas, ASL, body language, etc.
And the family is. Mostly okay with it.
Also, Cass is autistic. Like me. And some of this experience is based on my personal experience. For example, sometimes I struggle with speaking. I have sensory issues. My thinking is very visual. When I'm overwhelmed, I need small and simple sentences.
1. Can be seen in chapter 1 ("A weapon"). This part was inspired/research by comparing to articles and development of children who grew up in extreme abuse and neglect (for example, "Jenny").
2. For example, self-identifing as a weapon (not a person). Understanding few words (come, stay) but not being able to speak, or understand speech. Think about the way dogs may understand some commands/words, but not a fairytale. Let me be clear - this refers to any kind of organised language, including verbal, signed, other kind of visual, tactile, etc. The issue here isn't the "not learn to speak". Many CoDA grow up perfectly fine and healthy and well. The issue here is the lack of any way to make sense of her caos.
3. Not growing up with language means that her experience and personal narrative are. Not sorted that way. A series of incoherent photos and scents. This was partly inspired by (I study psychology, I focus on trauma, there's. A lot.) and Helen Keller's story. Even before Anne, she had home signs and was able to partly communicate with some people. But she was hearing until 19 months, and therefore had 19 months of language (including several spoken words).
4. This part in the fic was inspired, again, by Helen Keller. Especially her description of what it was like to understand there's such thing as language:
I stood still, my whole attention fixed upon the motions of her fingers. Suddenly I felt a misty consciousness as of something forgotten—a thrill of returning thought; and somehow the mystery of language was revealed to me. I knew then that w-a-t-e-r meant the wonderful cool something that was flowing over my hand. The living word awakened my soul, gave it light, hope, set it free!
(from Keller's autobiography "The Story of My Life")
(Also Jason's "food is love language". Something about sharing when you have little. Something about kindness and trust.)
5. Speech is hard. Like, there's a REASON so many ppl need speech therapy. Speech patterns ("native language", grammar) are all getting set by the age of 7. Do you speak another language? How old were you when you learned it? How close it is to your first language? How well do you speak it?
