Editing Disability (section)

===== Supercrip =====
The supercrip trope refers to instances when the media reports on or portray a disabled person who has made a noteworthy achievement but centers on their disability rather than what they actually did. They are portrayed as awe-inspiring for being exceptional compared to others with the same or similar conditions. This trope is widely used in reporting on disabled athletes as well as in portrayals of autistic savants.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Representing Autism Culture, Narrative, Fascination|last=Murray|first=Stuart |publisher=Liverpool University Press|year=2008| isbn = 978-1-84631-092-8 |location=Liverpool}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |author1= Hardin, Marie Myers |author2= Hardin, Brent |title=The 'Supercrip' in sport media: Wheelchair athletes discuss hegemony's disabled hero |journal =Sociology of Sport Online |volume=7 |issue=1 |date=June 2004 |publisher=School of Physical Education, University of Otago | issn = 1461-8192|url=http://physed.otago.ac.nz/sosol/v7i1/v7i1_1.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040819191636/http://physed.otago.ac.nz/sosol/v7i1/v7i1_1.html |archive-date=August 19, 2004 |access-date=April 19, 2016}}</ref>

These representations, notes disability scholar Ria Cheyne, "are widely assumed to be inherently regressive",<ref>{{Cite book |last=Cheyne |first=Ria |url=https://library.oapen.org/bitstream/id/e541dbd4-c418-4250-bf50-4c84e3cbbe54/external_content.pdf |title=Disability, Literature, Genre: Representation and Affect in Contemporary Fiction |publisher=Liverpool University Press |year=2019 |isbn=978-1-78962-077-1 |edition=1 |location=United Kingdom |publication-date=2019 |pages=62–3 |language=en |quote=Although the authors do not expand on their analysis in depth, they do not need to: supercrip representations are widely assumed to be 'inherently regressive' (Schalk 75). To label a representation as deploying this stereotype is 'the ultimate scholarly insult', a form of critical dismissal which decisively locates that text as unproductive from a disability studies perspective (Schalk 71). |via=OAPEN |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240221192952/https://library.oapen.org/bitstream/id/e541dbd4-c418-4250-bf50-4c84e3cbbe54/external_content.pdf |archive-date= February 21, 2024 }}</ref> reducing people to their condition rather than viewing them as full people. Furthermore, supercrip portrayals are criticized for creating the unrealistic expectation that disability should be accompanied by some type of special talent, genius, or insight.<ref name=":9">{{Cite journal |last=Schalk |first=Sami |date=2016 |title=Reevaluating the Supercrip |s2cid-access=free |url=https://samischalk.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/Schalk_Reevaluating-the-Supercrip_JLCDS-2016.pdf |journal=Journal of Literary & Cultural Disability Studies |language=en |volume=10 |issue=1 |pages=71–86 |doi=10.3828/jlcds.2016.5 |s2cid=147281453 |issn=1757-6458 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221108013753/https://www.samischalk.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/Schalk_Reevaluating-the-Supercrip_JLCDS-2016.pdf |archive-date= November 8, 2022 }}</ref>

Examples of this trope in the media include Dr. Shaun Murphy from ''[[The Good Doctor (American TV series)|The Good Doctor]]'', Marvel's [[Daredevil (Marvel Comics character)|Daredevil]], and others.

Scholar [[Sami Schalk]] argues that the term supercrip has a narrow definition given how widely used the term is. As a result, Schlak provides three categories of supercrip narratives used:<ref name=":9" />

# The regular supercrip narrative in which a disabled person gains regulation for completing mundane tacts. This is commonly seen as a disabled person being able to accomplish something despite their disability. 
# The glorified supercrip narrative in which a disabled person is praised for succeeding at something even a non-disabled person would not be able to do. This narrative form is commonly used to talk about disabled [[Paralympic sports|Paralympic athletes]].
# The superpowered supercrip narrative which appears in functionalized representations of disabled characters. Characters of this narrative type gain superpowers due to their disability. Common examples of this narrative form in action are prosthetics limbs that make one more powerful than expected or have futuristic technology that makes one a [[cyborg]].<ref name=":9"/>