Comparison Of Finding Her Way And Kylie's Project

In her essay “On Being a Cripple”, Nancy Mairs presents her audience with an honest inside view of her life and perspective as a cripple, a word she openly uses to define herself. She brings her world to us by discussing a wide variety of things including language, family, and humor, and how these all relate to her life. Through various stories and insights, she allows her readers to gain an understanding and acceptance of people with disabilities. She examines the public’s view of the disabled, as well as the views they have of themselves, and compares them to her own. She makes it clear that she is not to be defined solely by her disability. In discussing honestly her views, as well as

The moment she got trampled under the stomps and shoves of others, one could identify what she’d been feeling like previously - a witness to her own inconvenience. This incident not only exemplifies but also symbolizes the burden she feels having been born handicapped, unable to provide assistance or gain to the world. These feelings Adahs has for her life are later rebutted by her longstanding dreams of attending medical school and improving science. By achieving her academic potential, she finally recognized herself as an important asset to the world- no longer being seen as handicapped, physically or mentally.

People with disabilities are not completely gone. They are still there and have a mind of their own. They feel emotions and sometimes have a more complex mind than others. Two authors help enlighten this idea that disabled people are much more than helpless bodies. Both Christy Brown and Jean-Dominique Bauby perfectly illustrate their lives and what it is like to be disabled, and they prove by their stories that they think and feel, and can even develop enough to share what they feel with the world. My Left Foot is about the journey of a boy suffering from cerebral palsy. His entire life he was labeled as a loss cause by doctor after doctor, but his mom never gave up hope. Slowly, he started showing signs of development by random movements responding to certain situations. In the end he ends up being able to communicate with his left foot. The next story, The Diving Bell and the Butterfly, is about an individual who suffered a stroke at the age of 43, leaving him paralyzed, only able to blink his left eye as communication. He develops his own alphabet inspired by the French language in order to exchange conversations with others. His thoughts in the story jump from the present, him currently disabled, and the past, when he was not. Both memoirs, with very different stories, show the lives of two individuals that are not like others. One who had their disability since birth, and the other who obtained one after a tragic event. In My Left Foot by Christy Brown and The Diving Bell and the Butterfly by Jean-Dominique Bauby, both authors use characterization to show readers the struggles of disabled people and help them understand that just because they can’t use motions such as hand gestures to express how they feel, doesn’t mean that they don’t think and feel.

The article Redefining Normal: A Critical Analysis of (Dis)ability in Young Adult Literature by Jen Scott Curwood discusses the importance of proper disability representation in young adult literature for the benefit of school children. Curwood writes "young adult literature should not only provide accurate portrayals of individuals with disabilities, but must offer themes that are not 'didactic, condescending, or pedantic" (Curwood, 18) because " 'literature about disabilities and differences can be a powerful tool to heighten the achievement of all students by broadening attitudes and perceptions of self and other '" (18). She also argues that if schools don 't include diverse characters and topics, then that "effectively condones prejudice and stereotypes" and continues to further the "othering" aspect. In contrast to Me Before You, the book Accidents of Nature by Harriet McBryde Johnson is a book that provides readers with both a positive representation of life with disability as well as showing a wide range of disabilities. Accidents of Nature is set in the year 1970 and is about a seventeen year old girl named Jean who has cerebral palsy and uses a wheelchair to get around. Despite her condition, Jean has always thought of herself as the same as everyone else as she goes to a "normal", abled-bodied school and has "normal" abled-bodied friends. She has never even known another disabled person before going to Camp Courage for a week, a camp solely for disabled youths.

In the essay “On Being a Cripple” by Nancy Mairs reflects her life as a “cripple” because of MS, and her recognition of it. Mairs purpose is to inform individuals on her perspective on being a cripple. She describes how she views herself and how others look at her. Mairs use of word choice, tone, and examples of her life experience provides a better understanding to the goal of this essay.

Not everybody takes their differences the same way. People react differently. Everybody is not the same. They all have their special unique abilities. In both of the text/interview, “finding her way” and “Kylie project” both show different ways people react to themselves. Everybodys also has their special abilities.

3. People with disabilities are often told they can’t do the things they want to do. Show how the saying “fake it until you make it” is a common theme throughout the book.

In the text Kylie states “I don’t want to bring attention to myself. I just want to be treated like everyone else”. This shows that Kylie doesn’t want all of the attention to her just because she has a wheelchair. In the text it states “I can go places I could never go in my chair, like this path through the woods. Do you know what those bumps and twigs would do to my wheels?”. This shows she feels better about her disability because she found a way to resolve

I believe that any obstacle or disadvantage can be made into something positive. The story of Corrie ten Boom, a Polish holocaust victim, and two homeschooled friends I know with cerebral palsy prove this point in many ways.

This film brought awareness to the evolution of disabilities in our society. From when Willowbrook opened its doors to present day, we see many of the same problems regarding individuals with disabilities in our society. The social model is the impact of the medical model and how it impacts the lives of individuals with disabilities. In the film, there was a lot of mention of individuals with disabilities being labeled as ‘mentally retarded’. In today’s society, this has become less of a problem. Many individuals believe in person first language, making the individual more than just a disability. In the film, many of the families and others in their society had very little on mental illness, and they were often taught that individuals with

Not only do they face extra challenges in order to function in society, but they also have to face their own inner doubts about keeping up with their peers. When Ms. Long spoke about wanting to keep up with her peers in the interview with PBS, it showed me how motivated and positive people with disabilities have to stay while trying to reach their goals. Unfortunately, today’s society still has some negative stigmas towards people who have disabilities. The Paralympic games impact the public’s perception of individuals with disabilities by showing them how strong people who have disabilities really are, and hopefully dispelling any negative thoughts. The Paralympics also change the perception of individuals within the disabled public, by providing children and possibly adults with role models and aspirations that could help them become more motivated to strive for

The awareness and care that is now available to children who have disabilities has not always been so accessible. In the early 19th Century people that displayed sighs of a disability in the United Kingdom would be sent to housing institutions, received little to no education and where hidden away from society (Dossetor, White, Donna, Watson, Lesley, 2011, pg. 178.)

As a future educator I may have a student with a disability and I will always take careful consideration with particular decisions in the classroom to make all people feel welcome and comfortable. As a teacher I do not want children beginning their lives taking a deficit approach towards ‘disability’. A positive perspective of disability is portrayed through ‘Welcome to Holland’ (1987) as it is a beautiful way for people and families to see ‘disability’. This aspect also links directly to families and their role on perceiving disability in a constructive light.

Disability status presented a very real, significant barrier to the Gil-Rostovich family in forming positive relationships and engagement with the school. All members of the family either had an identified disability or a suspected disability (Leah). Dannie, who is in the 2nd grade, has been diagnosed

You might believe that “having a disability” and “being disabled” are one in the same, but I can assure you, that is not the case. “Having a disability” means that a weakness exists, but a person who has a disability does not have to allow their weak points to define them. In fact, I've gone to some lengths to hide mine and transform my weaknesses into strengths. In contrast, a person who views themselves as disabled allows their disability to determine who they are and what they will be. Even through times of discouragement, I have never allowed my deficits to deter me from going after the life I’ve dreamed for myself. Ever since I was 8 years old, I’ve known that I wanted to be a doctor when I grew up. I also know that becoming an M.D. is no simple feat, so I have immersed myself in my studies. I am aware that it takes me twice as long to go half as far as my peers, so I work three times as hard and long. I have grown to know myself and my disability on a more intimate level, and as a result am able to compensate to the point where most people have no idea I struggle so much. Through hard work, perseverance, and the occasional bout of tears, I’ve worked my way into the top 20% of my class. “Proud” doesn’t even begin to describe my feelings toward that achievement!