Geography Reference
In-Depth Information
Normalizing “Different” Bodies: The Power of the Privileged Body
Averted and silenced, the disabled body presents a threat to the very idea of the
body. (Porter 1997, xiii)
The nondisabled or “able” body is rarely characterized as privileged. However, open
public spaces with little or no seating, many stairs, and poor signage mark social ex-
pectations of physicality (Chouinard and Grant 1997). Systems of segregated housing,
education, transportation, and employment keep those who do not fit the mold in their
place (Baird 1992). This process effectively privileges able bodyness.
Themedicalmodelframesdisabilityassomethingwrongwiththebodyandthuscon-
structs disability as a medical problem that must be addressed to minimize the notice-
abledifference,suchasphysicalappearanceorbodyfunction(BarnesandMercer2003;
Swain, French, and Cameron 2003). This “normalization” process may be regarded as
a form of governance and control; indeed, disabled people may be subjected to medical
intervention without being consulted or involved in the decision-making process (Bas-
nett 2001). Normalization of the body has become naturalized as a logical and advant-
ageous measure as unnoticeable difference equates with ordinary bodies, meaning that
ordinariness is inextricably linked with social acceptability and humanness (Michalko
andTitchkosky2001),whereasphysicaldifferencesignifiestheextraordinaryandsocial
unacceptability (Hansen 2002; Bruegemann 2001).
Normalization of the body's physical appearance or function may be prioritized over
all other aspects of an individual's life. For example, Ellen was selected for surgery by
anorthopedicsurgeononaregularvisittoherspecialschool.AsaresultEllenspenttwo
and a half years in hospital, and during this time her education and relationship with her
parents were adversely affected. Societal pressure to minimize physical difference also
led to Elizabeth's parents undertaking an extreme treatment widely believed in the late
1950stoimprovecirculation.Elizabethhadclearmemoriesofthepainfulandsomewhat
barbaric practice of applying rags soaked in boiling water to her leg:
I remember lying on the kitchen table, I'd be about four or five at the time, and
this went on for years … really boiling hot, he had to use the washing tongs to
get it out. He'd throw this rag on the top of my leg and I would be lying there
screaming, covered in blisters, but they thought that they were doing good. (El-
izabeth 51-56 years)
In an attempt to normalize Hannah's appearance she was advised to hang from the
wall bars in her school gym each break-time, and she was also instructed to swim
the backstroke. Her PE teacher's words convey a social misconception that disabled
