Disability Nancy Mairs Summary

Lorena Campos
“Disability”

Nancy Mair’s “Disability” shows us the view a disabled woman has on how the world perceives people with disabilities. Nancy is “a forty- three year old crippled woman.”(Bedford Reader 13).Nancy is a woman who spends most of her time in a wheelchair. A woman that can be easily spotted in a crowd. She notes that she has not 3show that illustrated her so that people would feel sorry for the woman. They show the woman trying to make one lat trip before she gets crippled. Nancy thinks the show depicts her as unable to make her own choices. She wanted to go to Kenya but her doctor would not let her. Mairs sees the show only showing the fact that she’s disabled but “excludes the complexities that make her a whole.”(Bedford Reader 14) Mairs considers herself an American Consumer. She uses things that everyone uses in day-to-day life. She’s bothered by the fact that no advertisement ever includes disabled people. The
reasoning she thinks behind it is that if they show disabled people doing everyday activity, it will demonstrate how disability can affect anyone. This will make people fear their reality. She thinks that this isolation of disabled people is harmful and even dangerous to the disabled. It makes them feel invisible and almost as if they did not exist. She thinks the only way to integrate disabled people is as quietly and as naturally as possible into people’s everyday life. In “Disability” Nancy Mairs is trying to show that disabled people are just like regular people.
(Bedford reader 14) .And therefore they should be treated as regular people. Mair’s trouble is with advertisers and how they refuse to include the disabled even though the disabled also use their products. She hates the fact that society is obsessed with appearance and normality. She concludes that they don’t use disabled people because of they fear it will cause people. It can show them that disability can affect anyone and everyone. Although Mairs is disabled she prefers to be called crippled. She does not like people feeling sorry for her and that comes along with the word disabled. And the fact that someone might only be nice to her because of her being disabled scares her. Although Mairs needs help from everyone around her she thinks she can perform everyday tasks just like everyone else. She thinks that if you are crippled that life can still be great and that really it all comes down to you and what you make of
life. On a personal note I think Mairs is a great example to follow. She embraces how she is and makes the most of it. She does not complain for the regular things like everyone else. She complains about things that are important and makes her points. She lives her life to the fullest and I think a lot of people could use some of that. People without disabilities do not see or appreciate the things they are able to do each and everyday with ease. They only complain about things that do not matter. But people like Mairs live everyday as it were her last. I would like to read more of Mairs, and I think anyone who complains all day and does not see what other people go through should read what Nancy Mairs has to say.