The media often depicts disability using negative stereotypes that can influence public perceptions. Disabled characters are commonly shown as pitiable victims, as sinister villains whose impairments make them evil, or as "super cripples" whose disabilities magically enhance them. These stereotypes portray disability as an abnormality to overcome or something that isolates people from society. While some works frame disability as empowering heroes, they often still rely on the trope of characters using disability as something to escape. Overall, media representations frequently reinforce the idea of disability as a misfortune rather than a natural part of human diversity.

1. Disability

2. The media and disability
• When it comes to disability the media often influences our perceptions of it, as it is a huge part of everyday
life.
• In the media, disability is often depicted using the medical model - the disability of the character is
something that objectifies them and enforces the need to get rid of this disability because it isolates them
from society.
• In addition to the medical model, disabled characters often fall into stereotypes (which Collin Barnes
identified) some of which include the disabled person as: pitiable and pathetic, an object of violence,
sinister or evil, a burden, a super cripple or incapable of participating in community life, etc. These
stereotypes often reinforce a negative image of disability or make it appear supernatural or a challenge to
overcome.

3. Media representations – heroes.
The media often represents heroes using the “super cripple”
stereotype- where their disability actually enhances them or
the characters have some sort of supernatural power, for
example Professor X from the X-Men franchise or Bran Stark
from Game of Thrones. It promotes a positive, but ultimately
fantastical image of disability.
In addition to this, the medical model of disability is also
used with disabled heroes- their primary goal in the film is to
either escape or overcome their disability. For example Jake
in the film Avatar, he used his Avatar body to escape his
disability. Often disability is either shown to be something
that enhances a character or has to be overcome.

4. Media representations – villains.
Disability is also related to villains often in the media, putting
them into the stereotype of being sinister or evil. This
representation of disability makes people associate an
imperfect body with imperfect morals – reinforcing a negative
image of disability. Well known villains like Dr. Strangelove,
Darth Vader, Davros and Freddie Kruger are all disfigured or
otherwise disabled- suggesting that it’s their disability that
makes them evil or sinister, reinforcing the stereotype.

5. Media representations – victims.
Disability in films is also shown to victimise a person, their
disability makes them pitiable and pathetic, a burden or isolates
them from society. This reinforces another negative image of
disability as it’s representation makes it appear that a person’s
quality of life is lessened because of their disability. For example;
in Forrest Gump his disability gave his peers a reason to bully him-
isolating him, or Arnie Grape’s (What’s Eating Gilbert Grape)
disability means that he’s unable to be independent and is always
going to have to rely on people to care for him- he’s seen as a
burden. This victimisation promotes another negative image of
disability.