Davis, Introduction - Disability, normality, power

world of norms

curated + historical

old ideals of perfect

‘ideal' = mythical - only gods

impossible = less social pressure

current ideals of perfect

paradox - ideal = average on a bell curve

normal distribution + quadrants = ideal vs disabled

end of bell curve = disabled

fingerprints

standardised by numbers

identity through body

Francis Galton

eugenics - social darwinism for improving the social race

human evolution with only good genes (disability + race)

enlightenment on disability

focus on science

need for able bodied workers

national identity and social order

restrictive migration polity

migration based on ability

order of desired / undesired bodies

undesired grouped together

criminality

Disabled representation

as villans

problem of disability

not with the person but with the way normalcy is constructed