Justin Mascardo Professor Gerber ANTH105_01FA14 25 November 2014 Good Kings, Bad Kings “Disability culture” can be defined as people with different kinds of disabilities who share many things in common such as beliefs or expressions. People with disabilities created these beliefs or expressions in order to provide descriptions of their experiences in life. Disabled people have experienced oppression due to their disabilities no matter what kind of disability they have or where they are from. In the novel Good Kings Bad Kings, by Susan Nussbaum, the perspectives and views of several patients and caretakers described situations within their surroundings and environment and how they coped with it while at the Illinois Learning and Life Skills Center. Many emotions, which consisted of friendship, love, abuse, corruption and even the sense of belonging, was portrayed and stated in multiple perspectives from characters that have disabilities in the book. This brings together the definition of what disability culture really is. The caretakers and teenagers in this institution shared many similarities …show more content…
Each and every person used vivid details in order to grab the reader’s attention leaving you with sympathy and breathtaking and shocking moments. One character that truly grabbed my attention when reading this book was Joanne Madsen. She worked at ILLC as an entry clerk who collected data and was the only employee that was handicapped. She treats the children with respect and tries her best to make changes to those who were institutionalized and have been through pain and other obstacles that may have been in their way. She can be considered a role model because she was living an independent life while being handicapped, which is what most of the children there wanted to be, thus relating them in a way and sharing common things that those with disabilities can