Author: cwoods

Claudia Woods
Dr. Foss
5/2/19

Selene dePackh challenges people’s understanding of autism through the formidable heroine Dax. Dax’s autistic variance and individuality is set apart from autistic representations we are accustomed to seeing in media. Dax defies stereotypes of how we conceptualize autism–and how we perceive gender and sexuality in autistic people–through her androgynous and queer identity and her relationship with sex.

From the opening of Troubleshooting, dePackh introduces the readers to Dax’s queer and autistic identities. In this dystopian novel, Dax grows up in a world where people with disabilities are forcefully marked, sterilized, institutionalized, and ‘healed’ in torturous ways. Dax’s story begins when she is diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder and inevitably branded with a blue puzzle piece to symbolize her autism. Dax’s mother is drowned in her desire to find a “cure” for Dax, forcing Dax into “treatments” which really consists of “chelation injections, pills that cause fevers, vomiting, and brain stimulation” (dePackh 17). Dax is reduced to an object, solely defined by her diagnoses. Because her autism marks both the beginning and the end of her humanity, Dax is not seen as a human. She is often berated with nicknames such as “small-stuff” “girly” and “little girl” even though she is both surprisingly strong and rejects anything that could encompass femininity. Most importantly, Dax is nameless. Her name–possibly the core of her identity–is repeatedly changed throughout the novel from Sophia, to Archer, to Dakini, and finally to Dax. Despite the discrimination Dax faces throughout her adolescence and adulthood, she still significantly deviates from usual representations of autism. This variation accurately portrays autism in that no two autistic people are exactly alike, but rather they vary tremendously. Dax struggles with accepting how other people view her and her autism: they believe her to be either too functional to be autistic or too slow to be human. She finds motivation in the hatred she experiences to change the world’s ableist perception of her. From a young age, Dax is a target for violence because of her autistic identity; however, unlike her autistic peers she refuses to accept this hatred in girly passivity. Dax’s self-love manifests itself in physically aggressive ways. Dax confesses that “kids on the autistic spectrum draw bullies like flies to roadkill, but I fought back. I was beaten up harder for it, but I could look at myself in the mirror without shame” (dePackh 2). Dax does not feel shame or self hatred for her autism; rather Dax finds power in knowing that she did not accept this hatred from anyone.

One way in which Dax stands apart from other autistic individuals is her direct eye contact with people. Dax receives her first nickname, Archer, as a young child for scrutinizing people’s faces “as if they were under a microscope” (dePackh 2). She finds solace in being a ‘bad’ autistic. By diverting from stereotypical expectations, Dax is able to reclaim her autistic identity. She declares, “I’m autistic, but I don’t look down and away like a good autistic, I stare” (dePackh 3).

Unfortunately, Dax also experiences horizontal ableism from other people with disabilities–even her own friend, Chill. Chill accuses Dax of not being like “other autistics” but Dax refuses “to be categorized without a fight…” (dePackh 2). Dax doesn’t struggle with her Autism, she struggles with how other people perceive her Autism. She struggles with the compulsion that she must effectively change the way other people view and treat her. Whether these expectations stem from genuine or hurtful places, Dax deals with both.

Dax is used to being underestimated by others, but she experiences the opposite with Petra. After Petra, Dax’s lover and advisor accuses Dax of “forging her identity,” Dax is quick to defend her autistic identity, “I’m autistic as hell, actually, test out more severe than a lot who don’t talk. ‘Mild’ autism isn’t how I experience being autistic, it’s how you experience my being autistic” (dePackh 78-79). Dax ferociously holds onto and defends her own understanding of her autism. Despite neurotypical people explaining to her what autism is and how it should be experienced, she never loses touch with her own conception and experience of her autism. Despite Dax’s vulnerable identities, she emerges from the beginning as an untouchable force that cannot and will not be defined nor measured by others.

While Dax varies from the typical representation of autistic people, she also rejects femininity and its gender roles. Dax rejects femininity in her presentation, her friendships and romantic relationships, and her spunky aggression. Dax proudly professes, “My sexual wiring was in place, and the touch of androgyny from the surgery didn’t necessarily hurt an edgy attractiveness” (dePackh 33). Dax’s androgynous appearance – with her shaved hair and hatred for the color pink – and queer identity sets her apart from other female characters. Dax never pretends to be someone she is not. Reflecting on her childhood, she recounts: “No matter how many disgusting pink dresses my mother tried to keep me in, I never wanted to be the princess; I wanted to be the one who won her” (dePackh 18). As a young girl, Dax understood her queerness and harnessed her sexuality. Dax takes on a role within lesbian relationships as sexually dominant. However, autistic individuals are rarely seen as “desiring subjects or objects of desire… And when sex and disability are linked in contemporary American cultures, the sexuality of disabled people is typically depicted in terms of tragic deficiency” (Mollow, Mcruer 1). Representation of sexuality in autistic people, like Mollow and Mcruer suggest, autistic people are represented as asexual and inexperienced. Dax’s character defies these narrow-minded and inaccurate portrayals, redefining what it means to be an autistic person and a sexual being. Often dePakch challenges this asexual expectation of autistic individuals and gives readers an autistic character with not only sexual desires but queer sexual desires. As dePackh is suggesting, individuals with ASD have sexual needs and desires, are interested in romantic relationships, and have similar experiences and behaviors just like neurotypical people (Dekker 2017). dePackh’s scenes even border on pornographic at times, in Dax’s sexual encounters with Petra. Dax initiates their first sexual relation quite dominantly. Right before consensually jumping on Petra, Dax reflects, “I kissed her before I knew what I was doing, but I knew exactly what I was doing when I slid my hand down…” (dePackh 82). This incredible sexual desire surpasses all expectations of autistics. In dePakh’s representation of Dax, she provides a new, more encompassing depiction of autism.

This kind of linguistic awareness provides the groundwork for new understandings of people with disabilities as fully human. It follows from that theory that people with autism are empowered by constructions of their identity are that individualized, affirming of difference, reinforcing of personal dignity, and dynamically interpreted in the context of everyday living situations (Bumiller, 971).

By writing a queer, autistic character like Dax, dePakh is challenging societies representations of autistic people and redefining gender and queerness as they relate to autism. This reclamation has the ability to broaden neurotypical people’s perceptions of autistic individuals and empower the identities of autistic people. Although Dax’s identity as a queer, autistic woman is repeatedly targeted throughout Troubleshooting, by presenting herself androgynously, exhibiting behaviors unlike autistic stereotypes, physically defending herself, and engaging in queer, sexual relationships, she reclaims her vulnerabilities and redefines what it means to be Dax.

Word Count: 1233

Works Cited
Bumiller, Kristin. “Quirky Citizens: Autism, Gender, and Reimagining Disability.” The University of Chicago Press Journals, vol. 33, no. 4, 2008, pp. 967-991.

Dekker, Linda P et al. “Psychosexual Functioning of Cognitively-able Adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorder Compared to Typically Developing Peers: The Development and Testing of the Teen Transition Inventory- a Self- and Parent Report Questionnaire on Psychosexual Functioning.” Journal of autism and developmental disorders, vol. 47, no. 6, 2017, pp. 1716-1738.

dePackh, Selene. Troubleshooting: Glitch in the System. San Francisco: Reclamation Press, 2018.
Kafer, Alison. “Feminist, Queer, Crip: Imagined Futures.” 2012, pp. 1-17.

Claudia Woods
4.9.19
Dr. Foss
Disability and Literature

Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird is famously known for making people uncomfortable. Lee tackles societies many failures from an intersectional perspective.  Specifically, Lee explores disability, gender, and race.  Arthur “Boo” Radley,  Tom Robinson, and Mayella Ewell all experience discrimination because of their marginalized identities. Tom Robinson becomes disabled, is wrongfully accused, is tragically killed because he is a Black man; Mayella is sexually and physically abused because she is a woman; and Arthur “Boo” Radley is isolated and ostracized from society because he is disabled. All characters are betrayed by their community.  Additionally, the significance of this novel being told from the perspective of an impressionable 7 year old girl, Scout and her brother, Jem and the emotional and physical mark the injustices they witness, leave on them, is an important aspect of To Kill a Mockingbird. In To Kill a Mockingbird, “Boo” Radley, Tom Robinson, and Mayella Ewell, hold marginalized identities which disable them. Harper is suggesting that those who hold marginalized identities likely are disabled because of the environment they live in and the treatment they receive from others. 
“Boo” Radley is the primary character that came to mind when discussing disability in Dr. Foss’s Disability and Literature course. This may be because Scout presents him as being the most “obviously” disabled. In her perspective, he is a mysterious, non-verbal, disengaging recluse. Jem describes Boo to jem, “Boo was about six-and-a-half feet tall, judging from his tracks; he dined on raw squirrels and any cats he could catch, that’s why his hands were bloodstained—if you ate an animal raw, you could never wash the blood off. There was a long jagged scar that ran across his face; what teeth he had were yellow and rotten; his eyes popped, and he drooled most of the time” (Lee 47).  However, as readers we see little by little, that Boo is actually quite good natured. Throughout the novel, Boo leaves the children little gifts and notes in a tree, he places a blanket over Scout during the fire, he returns Jem’s pants, and at the end of the novel he saves the children from Bob Ewell’s violent attack. Jem recalls “When I went back, they were folded across the fence...like they were expectin' me” (Lee 96).  Although Boo does not engage with society like able bodied people would, he communicates with his friends from afar. It is unclear exactly how Boo is intellectually disabled, but it is possible that he may have Autism Spectrum Disorder as well as other disabilities. Boo clearly feels most comfortable and safe in his own home, away from others. He never leaves his home, except when he can venture out invisibly. It is also implied that Boo was physically and emotionally abused by his father, explaining his fear of other people. Boo may not engage with people in a typical way; however, he nevertheless shows his humanity through his small acts of kindness. Towards the end of the novel, Atticus tells Scout and Jem not to shoot the mockingbirds. “Remember it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird. That was the only time I ever heard Atticus say it was a sin to do something, and I asked Miss Maudie about it. ‘Your father’s right,’ she said. ‘Mockingbirds don’t do one thing but make music for us to enjoy . . . but sing their hearts out for us. That’s why it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird” (126). This line introduces the novel’s title and is a key theme in To Kill a Mockingbird. Boo Radley for example, is an example of a mockingbird in this context. Boo does not (intentionally) harm anyone, rather, he selflessly embraces Scout and Jem when they are ostracized by the rest of the town. Despite being hurt by his own family, Boo still gives unconditional love to the Finch’s, while the rest of the town gives up on them. Boo nevertheless, still manages to do what he is able, when it comes to caring for his friends. I believe this quote applies not only to Boo but to Jem and Scout as well. 

Jem and Scout are both innocent characters, easily impressionable by their surroundings. They grow up in a racist, sexist, ableist town, and manage to maintain their acceptance and openness because of Atticus’s values. Their witnessing of Tom Robinson’s unjust sentence and murder, Mayella’s sexual and physical abuse by her father, Boo’s ostracisation, and their own social rejection and hatred from the town, emotionally and physically scars them. Jem confides in Scout, “If there’s just one kind of folks, why can’t they get along with each other? If they’re all alike, why do they go out of their way to despise each other? Scout, I think I’m beginning to understand something. I think I’m beginning to understand why Boo Radley’s stayed shut up in the house all this time . . . it’s because he wants to stay inside” (Lee 187). Jem changes after seeing the case, he leaves feeling angry, hurt, and let down by the racist values of his town. He also becomes physically disabled when Bob Ewell attacks him out of feeling spite for Atticus. Claudia Johnson states in her article, “The Importance of to Kill a Mockingbird,” “Jem survives the attack but carries a permanent scar, a symbol of the disabling power of hatred and injustice. Scout says that as a result of the attack, ‘Jem’s left arm is slightly shorter than his right.’ In this way, Jem shares a bond with Tom Robinson, for Robinson’s left arm is shorter than his right.” Although, Jem is born and grows up as an able bodied individual, it is the toxic, hateful climate of his own town that gives him this new disabled identity. Nevertheless, the novel ends with Atticus manipulating the death of Bob Ewell in a way that will protect Boo Radley. Jem, of course, agrees even if it means that he will be at fault for Bob Ewell’s death. Atticus consistently teaches the children that doing the right thing always trumps being accepting by others.“The novel suggests that it is a moral imperative to act in accordance with one’s own conscience, even if it means social ostracism” (Jill May). Even after, Jem bears the psychological, emotional, and physical consequences of standing of realizing his own race’s privileges, prejudices, and violently discriminatory acts, he still chooses ostracism and takes responsibility for Boo’s protection, if it means protecting someone less privileged than himself. Possibly one of the most notable aspects of To Kill a Mockingbird is Lee’s portrayal of race.
Harper unapologetically, represents the racism Black people faced in a predominantly White, racist town in the 1930’s, primarily through Tom Robinson’s court case. To Kill a Mockingbird could not be more unfiltered when accounting the unjust atrocities the Black characters experienced; whether it was Alexandria Hancock’s consistent racism towards Calpurnia, the town’s regular use of the N word, or most notably, Tom Robinson’s false rape accusation, conviction, and violent death. “The novel also reflects the reality of racism in segregated towns in the 1930’s. Blacks are commonly referred to as ‘niggers’ and are considered below the law. Many members of the White society feel justified in inflicting their own form of justice on Blacks” (May, Jill). Tom Robinson, a young, Black man, like Jem, came into the world able-bodied and left the world disabled. As a poor, marginalized, child he had no option to survive, except to do dangerous work that left him with a handicap. As was revealed, in the court case by Atticus, his left arm was significantly shorter than his right arm after an accident. “He looked oddly off balance, but it was not from the way he was standing. His left arm was fully twelve inches shorter than his right, and hung dead at his side. It ended in a small shriveled hand, and from as far away as the balcony I could see that it was no use to him” (Lee 248). Tom Robinson got used to this disability and still managed to find work and support his family made In the end it was societies treatment towards him because of the color of his skin that was most disabling to him. Throughout the case, Atticus made it very clear that Tom Robinson did not sexually or physically abuse Mayella Ewell as she claimed. More and more, he proved that there was no physical way that Tom could have assaulted her. There was also no logic to the narrative of her story. It is very strongly revealed that Bob Ewell sexually and physically abused her, not Tom. However, because Tom is a Black man, and Bob Ewell is White, Tom is wrongfully convicted and not Bob. There is a noticeable pattern in To Kill A Mockingbird, the intersecting of various identities plays a critical role in the formation of these characters roles and treatment in society. One interesting example of this intersection of these identities is Mayella Ewell.
Mayella Ewell is a complicated character as she is both the victim and victimizer, the oppressed and the oppressor. As the oldest daughter of nearly a dozen siblings, in the notably poor Ewell family, she is essentially the mother and caregiver in her family. INSERT QUOTE Mayella is isolated from the rest of the town; however, Tom Robinson passes by her “house” every day. Out of loneliness, she begins requesting help of Tom Robinson. Finally, after several interactions, she makes a pass at him. Tom Robinson respectfully, refuses; however, they are caught by Bob Ewell. Bob Ewell reacts by raping and beating his daughter. My interpretation of the situation is that Bob Ewell forces Mayella to accuse Tom Robinson of rape and battering when he sees the two of them together as punishment. I am in no way justifying Mayella’s actions, that she agreed to wrongfully accuse a Black man of rape. I do see; however, that she did not have any power or choice in her relationship with her father. Like Tom she has limited choices, limited pathways that she can take in order to survive. Her survival, her access to food, to housing, to people, rests on her family, specifically her father. In order to maintain her survival and connection to family, she assumes the role of servant. The only way that she could keep that connection, is by acquiescing to the demands of her father, in this case accusing an innocent, Black man of rape. Although, it is made clear throughout the case that Bob Ewell was in fact the abuser, Mayella nor Tom Robinson receive justice, Tom Robinson is convicted and Bob Ewell remains free, which inevitably means Mayella will continue to be raped and battered. Additionally, Mayella cannot seem to understand Atticus’s sensitivity towards her. “Atticus raised his head. ‘Do you want to tell us what happened?’ But she did not hear the compassion in his invitation” (166). Instead, she responds defensively and believes him to have conflicting intentions. This shows just how negatively she is being treated at home. Mayella’s identity as a woman disables her, contrastly, her identity as a White person, empowers her.
Lee did not want to write a novel with typical characters. Instead, Lee writes an honest story that criticizes the status quo of society, revealing how marginalized people experience life in a town that only acknowledges and accepts white, male, able bodied people. Lee goes even further and suggests that the indifferent, hateful values of the town are physically and emotionally disabling to the young generations, reflecting a need that these values need to be changed to create a brighter, more loving future.

Citations

Johnson, Claudia Durst. “The Importance of to Kill a Mockingbird.” Children’s Literature Review, edited by Jelena Krstovic, vol. 169, Gale, 2012. Literature Criticism Online, http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/QBWATH243301480/LCO?u=viva_mwc&sid=LCO&xid=7ea711be. Accessed 8 Apr. 2019. Originally published in To Kill a Mockingbird: Threatening Boundaries, Twayne Publishers, 1994, pp. 13-19.

May, Jill. “In Defense of to Kill a Mockingbird.” Children’s Literature Review, edited by Jelena Krstovic, vol. 169, Gale, 2012. Literature Criticism Online, http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/OELDZU886764873/LCO?u=viva_mwc&sid=LCO&xid=485f97c0. Accessed 8 Apr. 2019. Originally published in Censored Books: Critical Viewpoints, edited by Nicholas J. Karolides, et al., The Scarecrow Press, Inc., 1993, pp. 476-484.

Lee, Harper. To Kill a Mockingbird. New York :Harper Perennial Modern Classics, 2006.

Word count: 2,081

I pledge. Claudia Woods.

One theme I have consistently noticed throughout reading our course material on Disability is the selectivity and hierarchy of disability by both able bodied and disabled people. I like to compare this to colourism within people of color. This is an issue among the African American community, with my own culture as a Lebanese woman, and in East Asian cultures. People with disabilities experience horizontal discrimination within the community. For example Deaf people don’t want to be associated with Limbless people, Limbless people don’t want to be associated with Schizophrenic people, Schizophrenic people don’t want to be associated with Autistic people, Autistic people don’t want to be associated with Alcoholics, but at the end of the day every one of these disabilities are disabilities. Every single person has to overcome their own challenges and discrimination along with it.

In John Steinbeck’s novella, Of Mice and Men Lennie Small is intellectually disabled while Candy is physically disabled. Both men are disabled but because Candy’s disability is a physical disability and not an intellectual disability he is valued more as a person while Lennie is dehumanized and babied.

Again, in Banner’s short story The Wedding of Tom to Tom both Tom’s are intellectually disabled while Raquel is an Alcoholic, Archie is a drug addict, “Dad” is on Disability for a back injury, and Anita is co-dependent on her drug addict ex-fiance. Yet not one of these other characters, all of whom have disabilities are dehumanized, controlled, and babied the way the two Tom’s are.

I would also like to specifically explore Anita’s horizontal discrimination with the intellectually disabled people in the home, specifically the Tom’s.

Anita’s language is often belittling when discussing people with disabilities. She uses the slur “retarded” so many times throughout the story that I lost count. She clearly does not value her job nor did she actively look for a job involved in Special Education/Disability. In fact, she states “I was gonna keep this job no matter what. I was gonna stop living like trash”(51). This job is literally the bare minimum for her. She compares Tom A at one point to a cat “he looked at me the way… my cat does. Lonesome inside, without the capability to explain” (54). This act of comparing a human being to an animal is dangerously dehumanizing and lacks empathy. Anita also cooks an elaborate breakfast for everyone; however, this act of giving does not come from a selfless place, but

from an egotistical one. I believe Anita is an egomaniac with an inflated sense of self. She clearly sees herself as superior to the people she aids. Even in the marriage of Tom to Tom (which this scene reminded me of two children playing “make believe”) she is even stated, “Let’s let them get married” (66). Her support in the Tom’s marrying did not feel sincere or altruistic to me, but rather a game or a funny way to pass the time. I think her prejudice, and most people’s prejudice whether they are abled or disabled, stems from a place of insecurity and ignorance.

I like that Banner created an intersection of sexuality and disability in this short story. I couldn’t help but think how this story would have been different if it were a heterosexual, disabled couple couple rather than a same sex, disabled couple who was in love. Disabled people in general are desexualized. This is especially true for people with prosthetics, people in wheelchairs, and people with intellectual disabilities. “Joy” in O’Connor’s short story Good Country People is another example of a disabled character who has been desexualized. Joy is in her mid thirties yet had never kissed anyone before, and Joy’s mother also compares her to a child. Yet, people with disabilities are still human. Additionally, not only are Tom A and Tom B gay and disabled, but they have extremely high sex drives. They enjoy sex, they like sex. I think even able bodied people with high sex drives are shamed for this. They’re not just engaging in a “quickie” every now and then, they are consistently trying to find ways to have sex throughout the short story. Tom A and Tom B also clearly know what they are doing. They are in a very sexual position when Anita first walks in on them, they’ve dimmed the lights, they respond pleasurably to each other. Banner’s characters are calculated and the ending of the story is also calculating. As a co-dependent woman, Anita falls back into the arms of a possibly abusive, manipulative, lying man. She becomes the victim of her own doing and justified this choice as a choice of “love.’ Meanwhile the ending of Tom A and Tom B being torn apart because of their very healthy, but disabled love for each other is a stark contrast, and I believe is meant to be ironic. It is Anita’s co-dependence that hurts her and the ableist communities prejudice that hurts Tom A and Tom B. I really appreciate how Banner is challenging the way disabled people are being represented and how a lot of work needs to be done in how we conceptualize, determine, and value disability.

Another interesting part in Banner’s story is the representation of Alcoholism through Raquel. Raquel is described as a “drunk” by Anita. She often smells of liquor and is drunk when she shows up for work. Anita describes Raquel, “A lot of drunk work in group-homes, like it’s their way of paying penance: a vodka binge then they go in and wipe a retard’s ass and think they don’t have to quit drinking” (56).

I think any recovering Alcoholic would laugh and agree enthusiastically with this description of a drinking Alcoholic. Alcoholics will do whatever they can to justify their drinking. They will point fingers, blame, anything except look at themselves as the problem. I also think it is interesting that Raquel goes to AA but she is still drinking profusely. Not always, but often, people who go to AA are there to stop drinking and stay stopped. So, I found this detail to not be representative of *most* AA going alcoholics.

So, I definitely wrote way too much, but I really, really liked this short story. There was so much to unpack in just 15 pages, I can’t wait to talk about it in class!

Word Count: 1,080

I pledge.

Hello! My name is Claudia, a lot of my friend’s call me claud <3 I love to read, write, draw, paint, and take hikes when it’s beautiful out! I don’t care where I end up in the world as long as there is a beautiful sunset, and I’m by the sea. Some of my favorite authors are Jeanette Winterson, Arundhati Roy, Milan Kundera, Eve Ensler, and James Joyce! I’m currently watching how to get away with murder on netflix. I have an older sister (sophia at UVA) and younger brother (carter in high school) and two dogs back home. <3