Is everyone upright? Erwin Straus’ “The Upright Posture” and disabled phenomenology

• Authors: Thomas Abrams
• Languages of publication: EN

Abstracts

EN

This paper provides a close reading of Erwin Straus’ “The Upright Posture” from a disability studies perspective. Straus argues that the upright posture dominates the human world. But he excludes those who dwell in it otherwise. By reviewing phenomenological disability literature, this paper asks what a disabled phenomenology would look like, one rooted in the problem of inclusion from the outset. Disabled phenomenology addresses ‘subjectivity’ critically, asking: what socio-material arrangements make subjectivity possible in the first place? This project is, I argue, equal parts political economy and existential phenomenology. I conclude with some suggestions for future research.

Keywords

EN

disability; phenomenology; Erwin Straus; embodied difference

• Publisher: Sciendo
• Journal: Human Affairs
• Year: 2014
• Volume: 24
• Issue: 4
• Pages: 564-573

Dates

published

2014-10-01

online

2014-10-02

Contributors

author

Thomas Abrams

• Carleton University

References

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Identifiers

DOI

10.2478/s13374-014-0249-2