SSC 6640 Disability: Philosophical,
Historical and Social Perspectives
Classroom: KSC 101A
Time: Monday
CRN 20303
Contact Info:
Email: perringc at dowling.edu (Put SSC6640 in subject line)
Phone: 631 244-3349
Office Hours: Monday
Albrecht,
Fleischer, Doris Zames
and Frieda Zames. The
Disability Rights Movement: From Charity to Confrontation.
Other
possible books of particular relevance:
Thomson, R. G. (1997). Extraordinary bodies: Figuring
physical disability in American culture and literature.
Goffman, E. (1963). Stigma: Notes on
the management of spoiled identity.
Branson, Jan and Don Miller, Damned for Their Difference:
The Cultural Construction of Deaf People As Disabled (
Groce, Nora Ellen. Everyone Spoke Sign Language: Hereditary
Deafness on
Padden, Carol and Tom Humphries,
Deaf in
Stiker, H. (1999). A history of disability (W. Sayers, Trans.)
A Note on Language and Etiquette
It is a fundamental assumption of this
course that people with disabilities deserve as much respect and have as many rights as the rest of the population. While participants in the seminar are free to
hold and defend any views they please, it will be essential to treat other
participants with full respect. It is
important to pay particular attention to language and the phrases we use to
refer to groups of people with disabilities, since there has been such a
history of stigma in attitudes towards people with disabilities. One commonly accepted way to show respect is
to use "people first" language, so for example rather than using the
phrase "the blind," you would refer to "people who are
blind." However, there may be
occasions where it is appropriate to use expressions such as "the
blind," "the mad," or even "cripples." For example, when discussing historical
attitudes to people with disabilities, one can quote the language. Furthermore, some disability rights activists
refer to themselves using language that has had a derogatory connotation as a
way of reclaiming it, or possibly for ironic effect. In a philosophy class, all approaches and
assumptions are up for scrutiny, so you should not feel that you cannot
question certain ideas. As a community
of enquiry, it is essential that we explore ideas and tolerate disagreement and
discussion about sensitive topics, and in order for this to be possible, we
express ourselves in ways that allow this.
Student
Learning Outcomes
Students will be better able to
• understand the experiences of
disability and how it affects the lives of people.
• explain the history of the treatment of
the disabled.
• question whether current policies
towards the disabled perpetuate past discrimination.
• evaluate portrayals of disability for
their implicit or explicit value judgments.
• examine the success of laws designed to
protect the rights of the disabled.
• engage in ethical debate concerning our
current policies concerning disability and difference.
• articulate the relations between
different approaches to disability, including social, literary, personal,
political, philosophical, and ethical.
Expectations
·
In addition to being a graduate course supplying
3 credits on your transcript, this is a seminar in which the participants form
a community of inquiry. Thus we have
responsibilities to each other.
·
You
will be respectful to everyone in the seminar.
·
You
are free to argue for any point of view you choose, but you cannot make ad hominem arguments to any other person in class or on
the discussion board.
·
If
there are people in the class with special communication needs, we will adapt
the seminar to those needs.
·
You
are expected to come to class. You
should arrive before
·
If
you have to miss a class, you must explain this to me and provide appropriate
documentation.
·
To
communicate with each other and me by email about matters concerning the class,
you should use your Dowling email.
Contact the Dowling Computing Help Desk if you have trouble activating
this.
·
You
should check you Dowling email at least once a week for class messages, and
preferably more often.
·
We
will use a discussion board, probably through the Dowling Blackboard facility
at blackboard.dowling.edu, so you should make sure you are able to access
this. If you have difficulty, contact
the Dowling Computing Help Desk.
·
You
will do the required reading. You should
not limit yourself to only the required reading, and I expect students to read
other materials relevant to the course.
·
All
writing needs to be grammatical and clear, even on the discussion board.
·
All
references in required written work must be cited in APA format.
·
Standards of academic honesty apply to all
written work, including submissions to the discussion board.
·
The
final paper will be submitted via turnitin.com.
·
I expect students to engage in the readings and participate in
the discussion, and to make strenuous efforts to understand the demanding
readings. If you have difficulties
understanding the readings or writing a good paper even after making efforts on
your own, you should consult with me or form study groups with each other.
Work Requirements.
·
In
the first 3 weeks of class, you must read a memoir of disability from the list
on the Disability
Resources page. You should write a
1000 word reflection on this, partly summarizing what happens in the book, but
also discussing the point of view of the writer, and how it compares with your
point of view. The point of this is to
expand your understanding of the experience of being a person with a
disability, and consider how you relate to it.
You should post your reflection on the discussion board for the rest of
the class to read. (10%)
· 2 reflection pieces on the readings, posted to the discussion board. At least 1000 words each. You must do your first one by March 21, and the second one by May 2. (10% each)
· Participation in class and in the discussion board (10%) (On average, at least one substantial comment in class or post to the discussion board each week.)
· Final paper, at least 6000 words. (50%). Due by May 8. You must submit your own paper topic to me in writing by April 4 for my approval. (If you want to write a draft and get comments on it, you must get it to me by April 10).
Assigning grades to students in a course like this is not determined by very precise standards, but it will be important for you to do all the required work in order to get a passing grade. As a rule of thumb, for this course, A means excellent, B means good, C means satisfactory, D means enough to pass, and F means fail.
|
Date |
Topic |
Required
|
Presentation Topics |
|
M 1/30 |
Introduction |
|
|
|
M 2/6 |
The History of Attitudes Towards the Disabled. · Old ways of thinking: stigmatizing attitudes · Eugenics |
"An Institutional History
of Disability" by David Braddock and Susan Parish, pp 11-68 of HDS. "'Wheelchair Bound'
and 'The Poster Child,'" pp. 1-13 from DRM.
|
Histories of treatment of particular groups and disabilities: blindness, deafness, paralysis, mental illness, cognitive impairment. |
|
M 2/13 |
The Representation of Disability · memoirs · novels · films · TV drama · documentaries · news reporting · artwork · photography |
"Signifying Bodies: Life Writing and Disability
Studies" by G. Thomas Couser, pp. 109-117, and
"The Politics of Staring: Visual Rhetorics of
Disability in Popular Photography,: by Rosemarie Garland-Thomson, pp. 56-76,
both in Snyder, S. L., Brueggemann, B. J., &
Garland-Thomson, R. (Eds.). (2002). Disability Studies: Enabling the
Humanities. |
Summary and discussion of particular memoirs, novels, movies, or other representations. |
|
M 2/20 |
|
"The Uneasy Home of Disability in Literature and Film" by David Mitchell and Sharon Snyder, pp. 195-218 of HDS |
Summary and discussion of particular memoirs, novels, movies, or other representations. |
|
M 2/27 |
Stigma, Discrimination and Resistance (2 weeks) · language used in describing disability · the iconography of disability · "people first" language · political correctness |
"The Social Experience of Disability," by Carol Gill, pp. 351-372 of HDS. "Disability and
Community: A Sociological Approach," by Michael Kelly, pp. 396-411 of
HDS. "Advocacy and Political Action," by Sharon Barnatt et al., pp. 430-449 of HDS |
Explaining particular groups that fight for the rights of the disabled. What visual images have been used to depict people with disabilities in stigmatizing ways? What TV shows have had success in fighting the stigma of disability? |
|
M 3/6 |
· the disability rights movement · the social theory of disability · disability groups on the Internet |
"Theorizing Disability," by Gareth Williams, pp. 123-144 of HDS "Disability Culture: Assimilation or Inclusion," by Colin Barnes and Geoff Mercer, pp. 515-534 of HDS "Identity Politics, Disability and Culture," by Lennard Davis, pp. 535-544 of HDS "Making the Difference: Disability, Politics, and Recognition," by Tom Shakespeare and Nick Warren, pp. 546-564 of HDS. |
What kinds of groups are active in discussing disability on the Internet? What sorts of discussions do they have? Is there a consistent explanation of "people first" language in different sources? How widespread is it? |
|
M 3/13 |
The Legal Rights of the Disabled · IDEA (Disability Education Act) · Americans with Disabilities Act · The law in other countries |
Chapters 4-7, pp. 49-131 from DRM Americans with Disabilities Act (Available Online) "Disability, Human Rights, Law and Policy" by Jerome Bickenbach, pp. 565-584, in HDS. "Stigma without Impairment: Demedicalizating
Disability Discrimination," by David Wasserman, pp. 146-162, in Francis,
Leslie Pickering & Anita Silvers (Editors). Americans with Disabilities: Exploring
Implications of the Law for Individuals and Institutions. |
Summarizing important court cases that have tried to use
the The history of IDEA? The implementation of special education law in |
|
M 3/20 |
Disability as Cultural Difference · The Deaf Community · Special Olympics · Special Education |
Chapters 2 and 3, pp. 14-48 and Chapter 12, pp. 200-216 from DRM "Inclusion/Exclusion: An Analysis of Historical and Cultural Meanings," by Jean-Francois Ravaud and Henri-Jacques Stiker, pp. 490-514, of HDS. |
Arguments for treating deafness as difference rather than disability. The success of "deafness as difference" approaches. Why do some deaf parents want deaf children? Case histories. |
|
M 3/27 |
The Definition of Disability Philosophical and Biological Debates · "Social Constructionism" · Controversial cases: alcoholism, people of short stature, cognitive differences, obesity · Chronic illness as disability · Shifting definitions and intolerance of difference |
"Disability Definitions, Models, Classification Schemes, and Applications," by Barbara Altman, pp. 97-122, of HDS. "Philosophical Issues in the Definition and Social Response to Disability," by David Wasserman, pp. 219-251, of HDS. |
|
|
M 4/3 |
Medicine and Disability · Medical Ethics · Health Care Professionals · Health Care Policy |
Chapters 8 and 9, pp. 132-169 of DRM. "Disability, Bioethics, and Human Rights," by Adrienne Asch, pp. 297-326, in HDS. "Health Care Professionals and Their Attitudes toward Decisions Affecting Disabled People," by Ian Basenett, pp. 450-467, in HDS. "The Relationship between Disabled People and Health and Welfare Professionals," by Sally French and John Swain, pp. 734-753, in HDS
|
|
|
M 4/10 |
Genetic Testing, Abortion, and In Vitro Fertilization · The quest for normal children · The ability to eliminate disability · Selecting for disabled babies |
"The Disability Rights Critique of Prenatal Genetic Testing: Reflections and Recommendations," by Erik Parens and Adrienne Asch, pp. 3-43, and "Disability, Prenatal Testing, and Selective Abortion," by Bonnie Steinbock, pp. 108-123, and "Why Members of the Disability Community Oppose Prenatal Diagnosis and Selective Abortion," by Marsha Sexton, pp. 147-164 all in Parens,
Erik and Adrienne Asch (Editors). Prenatal Testing and Disability
Rights. |
What training does a genetic counselor get? What can one expect when consulting a genetic counselor. |
|
M 4/24 |
Intellectual Disabilities and Education · The relation between cognitive impairment and physical disability · Educational Policy · Inclusion and Ethics |
Chapter 11, pp.
184-199 of DRM. "Intellectual
Disabilities--Quo Vadis?" by Trevor Parmeter, pp. 267-296, in HDS "Disability,
Education, and Inclusion.: Cross Cultural Issues and Dilemmas," by
Katherine Seelman, pp. 693-710 in HDS |
|
|
M 5/1 |
Theorizing Personhood: Who Counts as a Person? (1 week) · Cora Diamond, and Inclusive Definitions of Personhood · Quality of Life · Degrees of Personhood and Profound Disability |
Christian Perring, "Degrees of Personhood." Journal of Medicine and Philosophy (1997) 22(2) pp. 173-97. Cora Diamond "Eating Meat and Eating People" in The Realistic Spirit: Wittgenstein, Philosophy, and the Mind (Representation and Mind). MIT Press, 1995. "Making
Quality of Life Judgments," by Peter Singer pp. 106-131, from Rethinking
Life and Death: The Collapse of Our Traditional Ethics. |
The controversy over Peter Singer's ideas about the worth of the lives of people with severe disabilities. |
|
M 5/8 |
Topic to be decided |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Possible other topics:
· Examining non-Western attitudes and conceptualizations of "disability."
· Examining different ways to measure the quality of life and comparing the quality of life of the "normal" and the "disabled."
· The social role of caregivers, and the lack of support for families.
Links:
· Disabilities Resources: A List of Books and Films
· The Disability Studies website
·
NEH Seminar:
2002: Justice, Equality, and the Challenge of Disability