Narrative Prosthesis: Disability and the Dependencies of Discourse (Corporealities: Discourses Of Disability) by David T. Mitchell


Narrative Prosthesis: Disability and the Dependencies of Discourse (Corporealities: Discourses Of Disability)
Title : Narrative Prosthesis: Disability and the Dependencies of Discourse (Corporealities: Discourses Of Disability)
Author :
Rating :
ISBN : 0472067486
ISBN-10 : 9780472067480
Language : English
Format Type : Paperback
Number of Pages : 229
Publication : First published January 9, 2001

Narrative Disability and the Dependencies of Discourse develops a narrative theory of the pervasive use of disability as a device of characterization in literature and film. It argues that, while other marginalized identities have suffered cultural exclusion due to a dearth of images reflecting their experience, the marginality of disabled people has occurred in the midst of the perpetual circulation of images of disability in print and visual media. The manuscript's six chapters offer comparative readings of key texts in the history of disability representation, including the tin soldier and lame Oedipus, Montaigne's "infinities of forms" and Nietzsche's "higher men," the performance history of Shakespeare's Richard III, Melville's Captain Ahab, the small town grotesques of Sherwood Anderson's Winesburg, Ohio and Katherine Dunn's self-induced freaks in Geek Love.David T. Mitchell is Associate Professor of Literature and Cultu

Narrative Prosthesis: Disability and the Dependencies of Discourse (Corporealities: Discourses Of Disability) Reviews

  • Kate

    4/5stars

    super interesting theory that seems to come up a lot in other books on disability and literature so I'm glad I read it!

  • Wouter

    A foundational text in disability studies and literary theory, incredibly informative and extremely lucid. At times the arguments Mitchell and Snyder make become a bit repetitive, and while I agree with most of what they say and I don't find all of their readings equally convincing. This is undoubtedly a great book though, and it's given me a lot to think about in terms of my own research.

  • Matt

    This book has fantastic information and impressive research, but is somewhat inhibited by being too broad to prove useful in specific work.

  • Tucker

    Representations of disabled bodies are very common in literature and carry a lot of associations and stereotypes. Is the person "monstrous"? Are they socially secluded? Obsessed? Is their life path predetermined? Does their disability overshadow other parts of their identity? Does it set them radically apart from what is considered normal human existence? Does the disability need to be transcended or forgotten, and, if neither of those things happen, will the disability swallow them? In academic language, this book explores these questions.

  • Ella Louise Schalski

    Read for comps.

  • Mia

    Possibly my favourite book on disability discourses that I've read so far. Mitchell and Snyder are two of the best in this area, and this comes through in Narrative Prosthesis. Straight forward yet sophisticated; a great break down of the topic.