Adam, Lynne, Shelley and Debs,
Maybe it would help if we stopped viewing language as some by-product of
society that operates independently of it. Language is part of situated
social practice, part of the social processes that disable and I would
argue strongly that it is (a big) part of the material reality of disabled
people's lives. However, I don't think it's helpful to view the material
'body' as some sort of fixed 'site' or 'surface'. This makes Lynne's work
as valid as that of people who look at housing for disabled people etc.
I agree strongly with Shelley's comments, and have argued this position
myself from a slightly different disciplinary perspective over the years -
and disciplinary perspective does make a difference. I think it would be
helpful for this discussion if Shelley were to identify examples of the
kinds of analysis she takes issue with so that we can place her analysis
alongside these examples so that we can see what she's getting at.
Best wishes
Mairian
Mairian Corker
Senior Research Fellow, School of Education and Social Science, UCLAN;
Visiting Senior Research Fellow, School of Education, Kings College London.
Address for correspondence:
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"To understand what I am doing, you need a third eye"
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