In this thesis I argue that despite the post-modernist assertion that we no longer have a shared understanding of humanity we are still driven by the instinctive desire to survive. We have created value-systems that stigmatise disability. I view disability as a community taboo that reduces our capacity to reflect on the nature of human being. If we engineer humans by reflecting the fashions of a particular culture we risk creating community desensitised to difference and diversity. Using liberation theology as a methodological tool, I understand people with disabilities as an oppressed group. I argue that people with disabilities perform a similar function to those who live with poverty. They represent the anawin - God's little ones with a special place in creating the Kingdom of God. I examine Nietzsche's philosophy as the antithesis of this position. Finally, I establish some characteristics of a disabilist hermeneutic through the exegesis of John 9. I conclude that without disability, we become less effective as a community in offering a commentary on life.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:bl.uk/oai:ethos.bl.uk:555854 |
| Date | January 2001 |
| Creators | Wallman, Jane. E. |
| Publisher | University of Birmingham |
| Source Sets | Ethos UK |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Electronic Thesis or Dissertation |
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