Disability and Dissensus
In: Disability and Dissensus: Strategies of Disability Representation and Inclusion in Contemporary CultureSearch for other papers by Katarzyna Ojrzyńska in
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Search for other papers by Maciej Wieczorek in
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Abstract
The chapter offers an introduction to the entire collection of essays and places them in the context of Jacques Rancière’s concept of “dissensus.” It opens with a discussion of a mural in Lodz, Poland, which depicts a casual, flirtatious ocular interaction between a female wheelchair user and a non-disabled man. The artwork is used as a pretext to open a brief discussion on the politics of representation, which demonstrates that artistic works are a fertile breeding ground for dissensual ferment, which may, eventually, unsettle the fossilized norms and ways of thinking about non-standard embodiment. The chapter also briefly situates and discusses disability art and culture in the context of concepts such as Otherness, hegemony, or counter histories. It also explains how works of art may have a profound impact on the social imaginary and the power to determine who is included in the society, and who is excluded from it. The preface ends with a brief outline of how each of the individual chapters approaches the vexed questions of representation and participation.