Disability (Differently Abled) Representations and Stereotypes -

Disability - 

Dramas Featuring People with Disabilities :

• Silent Witness : Clarissa Mullery

• Breaking Bad : Walter JR

• Walking Dead : Herschel

• Game of Thrones : Hodor, Bran and Tyrion

• American Horror Story : Freak Show characters/ Pepper

• The 100 : Raven

Disability Information:

• Almost 1/5 People of the British population are disabled (7 million or 18.6%)

Paul Hunt (1991) 10 Disability Stereotypes : 

• Pitiable or pathetic
• An object of curiosity or violence
• Sinister or evil
• The super cripple
• As atmosphere
• Laughable
• His/her own worst enemy
• A burden
• As non-sexual
• Unable to participate in everyday life

Shakespeare (1999) The Medical Model :

• The media throughout history has depicted disability as an impairment, Shakespeare point out in his article about disability in film.
• "impairment is made the most important thing" and disabled characters are "objectified and distanced from the audience".

'The Inbetweeners' Disabiltiy Frisbee Clip : 

• The clip is humorous as it depicts failure and actions not going as intended resulting in accidental injury. It is slapstick comedy that depicts injury which people, due to the human condition, naturally find humorous.
• The disabled girl is represented as pitiable as she cannot interact in the same way as others, laughable due to the misfortune of the protagonists, unable to participate as they were simply sat in the park not involved in the activities.
• We are not intended to laugh at the disabled character but instead the main protagonists due to their misfortune and stupidity.
• The disabled character can be perceived as the "butt" of the joke as the victim but also the main protagonists, specifically Will who threw the frisbee, are also the "butt" of the joke for their stupidity.
• Disabled people may feel conflicted about the sketch as it finally depicts a disabled person in modern television when they are under-represented although it depicts them in a negative stereotype as helpless and abused. 
• The Medical Model can be applied to the example as pitiable, laughable and unable to participate in everyday life.
• We as members of society may have been conditioned to perceive disable people as pitiable due to under-representation, negative stereotyping and as characters in more comical roles.

'Warwick Davies and the Washing Machine: Life's Too Short' Clip : 

• The clip is humorous as it depicts the struggles of modern humanity.
• Warwick Davies is depicted as a man who is attempting to maintain his everyday life whilst others surround him with stupidity.
• We are not meant to laugh at the disabled person but instead at the actions of others which are examples of stupidity and annoyance to the main protagonist Warwick.
• Warwick is the "butt" of the joke as others stupidity impacts upon him but this is not as a result of his disability.
• Paul Hunt's theory, in my opinion, does not fully apply to the clip. Warwick is pitiable as a result of others uselessness not his disability. He is depicted as his own worst enemy due to his anger which is a stereotype attached to dwarf's or those with the condition achondroplasia. 
• Shakespeare's theory applies as Warwick has to contact others such as plumbers and handymen to help him fit and adapt his home due to his disability.