Essay On Disability And Identity

In the essay “On Being a Cripple”, Nancy Mairs has multiple sclerosis and describes her life being a cripple. She talks about how the disabled is not accepted to society. She doesn’t want to be identified because she is disabled; she doesn’t want to be called “handicapped” or “disabled”. She wants to be named cripple but would never use it to call others. She feels as the cripple describes her the best, she doesn’t see herself as disabled or handicapped because she believe she is able to do things even though she have disease.

Claim: Beyond conventional sense, there is pride and beauty to be found in disabled bodies despite traditional societal contempt for such bodies. In conversation with Waldemar Januszcak: Indeed, the timeless artistic style that was used in sculpting Allison Lapper is criticism of long-standing exaltation of impossible physical ideals. It is the contrast in Lapper’s form and the idea of misrepresentation that exemplify the desperate human struggle towards a certain notion of beauty, and an equally subjective notion of ugliness. The irony is that in a sense, both types of bodies are exceptional: one because it can never be achieved, and one because it will never be desired, leaving humankind caught in the middle.

He shared the stories of a wide variety of people while he embarked on a journey across the country in a short bus. By revealing the common issues and judgment within society, Jonathon’s book advocated for the people who have any sort of disability, and he brought to light the beauty of each difference. For those who would want to learn about the thoughts and feelings of people who have experienced rejection because of a label, Jonathon Mooney’s book would be an excellent selection because of the real accounts and stories. The book offered an emotional connection that other texts could not provide. Therefore, The Short Bus: A Journey Beyond Normal should be a common read for everyone in order to learn about the real accounts of people labeled as having learning

People with disabilities are often viewed as less capable, less intelligent and not available to cope well in society. Mairs uses the different persuasive strategies such as ethos, logos and pathos to create a conscious awareness to build a world in which despite the differences everyone is treated with equality and dignity. She imagines her body as something other than problematic, but a reason to fight to build a world in which people wants her in. Mairs mentions in page 169 “I imagine a world where people, allowed the space to accept- admit, endure, embrace- their diverse and often difficult realities.” As Robert M Hensel, a famous Guinness world champion and a man with spina bifida said once “There is no greater disability in society, than the inability to see a person as

The Body Silent, by Robert Murphy, was published in 1987. The story is about Murphy’s personal account of the physical and social changes he underwent after becoming a quadriplegic. Robert Murphy was an anthropologist at Columbia University. In his early career, he spent a year observing indigenous tribes in the Amazon with his wife. In 1972, Murphy experienced a muscle spasm that was later realized to be a symptom of a growing tumor in his spinal column stretching from the C2 vertebra to the T8 vertebra, leading to partial paralysis; he underwent a few surgeries to reduce the size of the tumor, but eventually his paralysis spread until he was fully quadriplegic in 1986.

In the essay, “On Being a Cripple,” Nancy Mairs uses humorous diction and a positive tone to educate people about life as a cripple and struggles of people with disabilities. She does this to show how hard it is to be disabled and how it differs from the life of someone without a disability. She talks about the struggles and the fears that disabled people must deal with on a daily basis. Mairs use of rhetoric creates a strong sense of connection and understanding for the reader. Nancy Mairs is successful in using detailed imagery, diction, and tone to educate her readers about the difficulties of living with a disability.

In “Unspeakable Conversations” she details her experience. Harriet McBryde Johnson effectively uses the rhetorical appeals of ethos and pathos, along with her uses of first-person narrative and descriptive language, to support her argument that contrary to stereotypes, a person living with a severe disability can live a happy and fulfilling life. Harriet McBryde Johnson was born in 1957 with a neuromuscular disease. At the time of this essay, she had been disabled for over four decades. Born to parents who both taught foreign language, they were able to afford hired help but she knew it could not be for her whole life.

When people hear handicap they think not able to care for themselves. Nancy wants to be known as a tough individual able to take care of herself. The reader can feel the agony of what Nancy is feeling. The tone of this passage is determination and agony. Nancy feels that cripple is more stronger word than “handicap” or ‘disabled.”

In “The Social Construction of Disability,” Susan Wendell briefly discusses how the fast pace of American life impacts the social construction of disability through an inability for people with “disabilities” to maintain expectations of a high-performance level. Wendell also claims that the pace of life causes disability in many people’s lives, but quickly moves on to another topic, referencing chapter four of Barbara Hillyer’s Feminism and Disability in the footnotes as a place for more information on this argument. In Hillyer’s chapter “Productivity and Pace,” she writes to the feminist and disability communities, analyzing how the pace of life affects them both in similar ways. Through an analysis of how people with disabilities are forced to set their own daily pace, Hillyer hopes to encourage others to learn about the necessity of slowing down.

In Thomas J. Gerschick’s chapter, he argues that a person’s appearance can be measured on a scale with most normative on one end and least normative on the other. People who are most normative, or most attractive, are treated the best by society and therefore, are more successful. People who are least normative-looking (i.e people with disabilities) are seen as unattractive, invisible, and asexual (Gerschick, pg. 76). Additionally, Gerschick argues that the medical community has furthered stereotypes about people with disabilities being asexual by failing to discuss sex with patients (Gerschick, pg. 78). However, he also points out some social forces that encourage people with disabilities to explore their sexualities such as ‘devotee communities’

n Nancy Mairs essay, “Disability”, she illustrates the lack of representation of people with disabilities in the media. While disability plays a major role in Mairs’ life, she points out the various ways her everyday life is ordinary and even mundane. Despite the normalcy of the lives of citizens with disabilities Mairs argues the media’s effacement of this population, is fear driven. She claims, “To depict disabled people in the ordinary activities of daily life is to admit that there is something ordinary about the disability itself, that it may enter anybody’s life” (Mairs 14). Able bodied people worry about the prospect of eventually becoming physically impaired.

People with disabilities by nature are frequently closely tied to the medical field and become labeled by what he/she cannot do. It has been displayed that with positive reinforcement and encouragement, the things that seem difficult are often possible and the goal is sometimes surpassed if given the opportunity. This is especially true for people with disabilities. In the YouTube video “The Power of Words – Deaf girl,” the words have a positive effect on an individual. A simple Post-It it saying “you are still beautiful” makes the girl feel that her disability cannot keep her from being beautiful and intelligent.

Self-identity is defined as the recognition of one's potential and qualities as an individual, especially in relation to social context. In other words, self-understanding. Finding self-identity is more more difficult for some people than others. In the autobiography Black, White, and Jewish: Autobiography of a Shifting Self by Rebecca Walker, the author reflects on her identity as a mixed raced individual which is illustrated through Walker’s reflections. People define themselves in many different ways.

The Crisis of Personal Identity Why Identity Matters? Why its connected to our life? Many questions can be asked while keep thinking about this topic. Identity is not just how can I represent myself in front of everyone else so that I can prove that I have values. Many of us thinking of arguing about including identity in every aspect.

Disabled people are people who have mental or physical limitation so they depend on someone to support them in doing their daily life needs and jobs. Although disabled people are a minority and they are normally ignored, they are still a part of the society. The statistics show that the proportion of disabled people in the world rose from 10 percent in the seventies of the last century to 15 percent so far. The number of handicapped exceeds a billion people all over the world, occupied about 15 percent of the world's population, as a result of an aging population and the increase in chronic conditions such as diabetes, heart disease, blood and psychological diseases that are related with disabilities and impairments. Every five seconds someone