Have you noticed that most “bad” characters in film, TV or literature have their flawed character manifested physically in some way?
So, there is the James Bond villain with a scar or in a wheelchair or with metal teeth. There’s Quasimodo, the Hunchback of Notre Dame and there’s Captain Hook in Peter Pan.
From a very early age when we are told about Long John Silver, we are brought up to accept that the way people look often gives clues to their characters. We then, even subconsciously, carry that attitude with us into our adult lives.
This can be a real problem for disabled people. Of course, on the one hand there is the “helpless” disabled victim. But equally, there are those in a less fortunate position, whose less-than-perfect bodies hide less-than-perfect characters
