Absent a stable and coherent definition with which to unify what is otherwise a disparate assortment of intellectual and physical conditions, a number of theorists have suggested a different approach that takes disability as its starting point. Rather than consider disability as a from a presumed this approach reverses this construction such that “deviation normal center,” becomes the rule rather than the exception. On this view, an awareness of the ways in disability which we are all dependent on others calls into question the boundaries that render disability as unimaginable other. Insofar as disability is characterized by a heightened dependency ability’s on others, so the story goes, then we are potentially disabled. Far from occupying the space of all the disability becomes a universal category of which we are all members. “radically other,” then, In this paper, I examine what I identify as the in disability studies; namely, “ethical turn” the recent emphasis on reimaging disability as a universal category that invites a heightened sense of obligation to the disabled Other (who is Notwithstanding also, potentially, one’s self). the value of acknowledging vulnerability and dependency as aspects of the human condition, I argue that this approach does fundamentally alter the way we already think about disability, not nor does it necessarily address the around questions of human that disability is “unease frailty,” said to provoke. However valuable an ethics grounded in the acknowledgement of vulnerability and dependence might be in thinking differently about disability, it has so far failed to connect this ethical practice to collective action. It is more often the case that disability becomes to “good to the extent that it enables what Lauren Berlant calls an of think”—useful “aesthetics compassion—the cultivation of the senses toward a more nuanced and capacious engagement with scenes of human activity.” I will begin by providing a brief overview of recent developments in disability studies in order to better understand what precipitated this ethical turn and why it has appeared as a
Absent a stable and coherent definition with which to unify what is otherwise a disparate assortment of intellectual and physical conditions, a number of theorists have suggested a different approach that takes disability as its starting point. Rather than consider disability as a “deviation from a presumed normal center,” this approach reverses this construction such that disability becomes the rule rather than the exception. On this view, an awareness of the ways in which we are all dependent on others calls into question the boundaries that render disability as ability’s unimaginable other. Insofar as disability is characterized by a heightened dependency on others, so the story goes, then we are all potentially disabled. Far from occupying the space of the “radically other,” then, disability becomes a universal category of which we are all members. In this paper, I examine what I identify as the “ethical turn” in disability studies; namely, the recent emphasis on reimaging disability as a universal category that invites a heightened sense of obligation to the disabled Other (who is also, potentially, one’s self). Notwithstanding the value of acknowledging vulnerability and dependency as aspects of the human condition, I argue that this approach does not fundamentally alter the way we already think about disability, nor does it necessarily address the “unease around questions of human frailty,” that disability is said to provoke. However valuable an ethics grounded in the acknowledgement of vulnerability and dependence might be in thinking differently about disability, it has so far failed to connect this ethical practice to collective action. It is more often the case that disability becomes “good to think”—useful to the extent that it enables what Lauren Berlant calls an “aesthetics of compassion—the cultivation of the senses toward a more nuanced and capacious engagement with scenes of human activity.” I will begin by providing a brief overview of recent developments in disability studies in order to better understand what precipitated this ethical turn and why it has appeared as a
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