The human body plays a central role in Classics and cognate disciplines throughout the Humanities. However, many areas, such as the archaeology of the senses, assume a non-impaired body. Not only is this ableist, but there is also a neglect of the alternative ways of experiencing the world via impaired senses, including the various compensatory tactics deployed. While some studies have explored how disabled figures were represented and treated in antiquity, this scholarship has not yet fully embraced the modern field of disability studies.
This ableism writes a significant demographic out of history, given that 15% of people today have some form of disability (as defined in the WHO 2011 World Report on Disability). As importantly, this blinkered approach ignores the innovative substitution strategies that people with impairments develop, which are also part of the human condition.
On the one hand, this project will explore the contribution disability studies could make towards our understanding of the ancient world. On the other, it will investigate the impact the ancient world has had on modern attitudes and medical literature. As a starting point, a conference was held in June 2018, whereby scholars from both Classics and disability studies came together to discuss how bridges might be built.