Wheelchair

known as MS. MS is a disease in which the immune system eats away at the protective nerve coverings of the central nervous system, also known as the CNS. MS is often a disease that causes a person to have limited mobility may even be bound to a wheelchair. However, MS is not the only disease that may cause a person to lose their mobility, many other diseases such as Parkinson’s as well as cerebral paisley, both affecting the mobility of someone and ultimately being disabled or crippled. Although…

After embarking upon a “handicap” adventure, it is clear that Lycoming College is in fact handicap acceptable, with a few exceptions. Being able to take a walking tour of the campus opened my eyes to the harsh realities that disabled humans face every day. It is the simple tasks that one takes for granted such as, using the bathroom, water fountain, and stairs. Furthermore, being a handicapped student at Lycoming College is manageable, but would still be a struggle at times. Additionally, I was…

workplace, there are instances of ableism in the school setting. Just as the company buildings are required to follow ADA standards, school buildings must as well. Unfortunately, many lack the funding to be able to install elevators for students with wheelchairs or crutches, and while this inability to accommodate for students is not solely the fault of the individual school, it shows the inherent ableism in the education…

During the rest of our course after they left I thought why would it surprise me that they were in a wheelchair? I felt that nothing is wrong with them running the facility because obviously just because something is wrong physically doesn’t mean they don’t have the mental ability to be successful. I realized that the influence may have been caused by the…

Before the modern forms of media were invented, misrepresentations of disabled people existed in countless amounts of works of literature. Although the ableism in television and film is incredibly prevalent today- it is built off of the hundreds of years of creative work that depicts people with physical, mental, and cognitive disabilities as an object used to produce certain emotions from audience. It is a common practice to tell a person offended by this ableism to not read, watch, or listen…

than sympathetic. While Mairs wrote her essay using pathos with humor, Soyster wrote his essay to imply a more sympathetic appeal. Soyster’s gradual decline of his legs started with only having to rely on a cane, then eventually having to use a wheelchair after “many thigh-bruising falls and a numbness so intense it turned [his] legs to driftwood” (1). The diction in this essay creates strong emotions the readers feel, thus supporting Soyster’s argument. Using these words creates a more visual…

In America today, there are over 54 million disabled citizens (LIFE Center for Independent Living). They are the nation’s largest minority, transcending barriers of class, race, sexual orientation, and gender. Some of them are born this way while others acquire their disabilities later in life. They are the victims of accidents, diseases, and genetic conditions. They are your neighbors, your family members, and - should you live long enough - they are also you. At best, the human body is only…

Robert M. Hensel, a Guinness World Record holder with a disability, once said, “There is no greater disability in society, than the inability to see a person as more,” (Langtree). When thinking of people with disabilities, many individuals think of the things they cannot do rather than the achievements that they have made or the contribution that they have on humanity. Why is this the perspective that so many humans have? After reading Rosie Anaya’s “Mental Illness on television” and comparing…

“People with disabilities have abilities too and that is what this course is all about, making sure those abilities blossom and shine so that all the dreams you have can come true” - Mary McAleese. This quote connects with the Disability Act because they both explain that even though a person may have a disability the still have abilities like everyone else. The Disability Act is a very important act in U.S history because of what it states, the history of the act, and the challenges faced.…

In the short essays “On Being a Cripple,” by Nancy Mairs, and “Living Under Circe’s Spell,” by Matthew Soyster, two different authors expose what their life was like after being diagnosed with MS (multiple sclerosis). The first essay is a piece that discusses years of dealing with this chronic degenerative disease, reflecting on what it has taught the author, how it has made her a better person, and also talks a lot about how society should treat the disabled as normal people. The second is a…