Chapter 7 “Never the Twain Shall Meet”: Myth and Miracles in Jessica Hauser’s 2009 Film Lourdes
In: Disability and Dissensus: Strategies of Disability Representation and Inclusion in Contemporary CultureSearch for other papers by James Casey in
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Abstract
While contemporary cinema, on the whole, continues to represent physical disability in terms of lack and deficiency, thus reinforcing the regnant non-disabled ideology, some films illustrate a different, more complex paradigm of disability, one in which identity and culturally prescribed roles are flexible, not fixed. In this chapter, Jessica Hauser’s critically acclaimed Lourdes (2009) is examined through close textual analysis. Drawing upon current cultural disability and film studies, James Casey studies the diegesis, narrative, and characterization in the film. His analysis exposes not only the hypocrisy that surrounds ideological myths of impairment, but also the way in which the cinematic text takes a satirical look at the ideology of ability, and indeed highlights how in the film the non-disabled concept of ‘the norm’ is built upon fragile foundations. In Lourdes, the disabled character of Christine and the other characters’ relationships with her illustrate the complexities and instability of disability itself as a concrete identity. As the evidence will suggest, the film may constitute a nuanced critique of the metanarratives and socially scripted, medicalized notions that surround disability and impairment. Moreover, it offers a reflective, yet subtle, commentary on the role of gender and sexuality in disability representation.