March 22, 2016 - 11:02
"If a writer’s writing constitute a body of work, then my body of work must feel fragmented…that feels good to me. It feels like life, it feels like the world. " Disability brings in new perspectives by broadening our normative idea of what is beautiful and what is acceptable. Reading the introduction, I was struck by the portrayal of fragmented bodies. While non-disabled people would try their best to hide the "flaws" in their bodies, disabled people like Kuppers embrace their bodies and recognize its beauty. They even dance on stage, performing an act that naturally calls for attention to their bodies. Watching the dance between Linton and her husband, I can't help admire how fluid Linton's motions are and how her wheelchair and her husband's roller-skater suit so well together. The dancing speaks to me that the physical reality is okay, and the difference between us is okay as well. There is no need to make up and to look the same. Indeed, even among disabled people, there are many kinds of different characteristics, ranging from culture and ethnicity to gender and sexuality and more. But instead of trying to mold everyone into the same, "normal" form, disability studies offers us the peace of coming in terms with our own bodies and pushing against the negative views society imposed upon us.
Display of sexuality is definitely another form of showing acceptance and appreciation of one's body. But I became saddened when Kuppers mentions "sexual attraction as a political act." Those few words speak so much about the systematic oppression of the sexuality of disabled people: the natural needs and acts are turned into statements and performances that reaffirm their humanity. The fact that people have to prove that they have sexual feelings is incredibly sad. Reading the poem about the "short arm man" and whole finger licking scene, I was amazed by the words and felt slightly uncomfortable about the sexual tension (but that's just me being me). For me, display of sexuality confirms that people with disabilities are desirable, but the need for it other than for self-expression troubles me.