Representation of Disability – A Space of One's Own in Literature and Cinema

Abstract

The extent of disability studies has indisputably augmented since the field's inception in the 1980s. The discipline has garnered profound academic traction and emerged as a distinct branch of socio-political exploration of the human condition. Over the years, the intelligentsia of disability studies has primarily acquiesced to the discourse of disability as a product of social organisation rather than personal limitation. While this notion has encountered its own set of challenges, it has given exploratory grounds for discerning the hitherto unexpressed individuality of a vast population that is categorised as disabled.

This paper will examine the role of literature and cinema in providing a social space to persons with disabilities. It will analyse how references about disability are hegemonically linked to unique health needs, chronic health conditions, and the resultant construction of identity and roles of people with disabilities. Further, the paper will refer to Raymond Carver's Cathedral, in which the "idea of blindness [disability] came from the movies". It will delve into the cinematic expanse acquired by the impression of disability and how its performance has helped humanise the often-overlooked nuanced realities of disabled people's lives. Indian cinematic compositions like the 2005 drama Black and the 2018 black comedy Andhadhun will be alluded to for examining the performance and representation of disability. The paper will also call for the expansion of institutionalised support for disabled people from health and education to the fields of liberal and performative arts.