Material Bodies

302 RüdigerKunow

greatwithmylife.'...[W]hat'sthenextgoalIcanachieve?What'sthe

next challenge?'... I just remind myself, 'You've gone through some

challengesin your life, kid. You can get through anything.

You'vejustgottokeepyourpersistence,perseverance [sic] and have

passionandvigor,andyoucandoanything!'"(qtd. inKustern.pag.)^130

It would certainly be a mistake to set too much store by such PR
pronouncements which are in all likelihood motivated by commercial
considerations. But even a sober look from the distance, as in a feature
fortheNewYorkTimes,notesthatasidefromthe"gawkfactor,"^131 there
are"[a]cceptanceandadaptation...therealthemesrunningbeneaththe
show's mimosa-and-gossip scenes" (Angelo n. pag.). The fact that the
show has included a young character whose impairment occurred but
recentlyisseenbysomeasproofoftheseriousnessofintentbehindthe
show. There even seems to be a transnational appeal to such formats as
is evidenced by a host of shows with a similar focus such asThe
Undateables,aBritishrealityTVprogram(2012)aboutthevicissitudes
experienced by men and women with disabilities in looking for a
partner, or by BBC'sBeyond Boundaries(2005-2008) which follows a
group of disabled persons as they travel around the world and across
someofitsleasthospitableareas.^132
Push Girls has so far been on the air for just two seasons (23
episodes). I could not find any material explaining management's
decision to discontinue the program, but the very fact of its short-lived
existence may also serve as a cautionary signal against overrating its

(^130) Reviewing a similar program from the same producer forThe New York
Times,Virginia Heffernan wrote, "We get to stare at unusual bodies while
pretendingtodosomethinggoodforus"(qtd.inAngelon.pag.).
(^131) G.ThomasCouserhascriticizedsuchpop-culturalformatsforencouraginga
"mediated staring" (Couser, "Disability" 456) which once again objectifies
ratherthanempowersPWDs.
(^132) Among the more recent pop-cultural appropriations of PWDs are "disability
dolls," a product of British toymakerMakies. These dolls come with simulated
hearingorwalkingaids,orotherfeatures.Thecompanyproudlyannouncesthat
it has used 3D-printing technology to produce realistic facial marks. For details
cf. "World's First Line of Dolls with Disabilities Are Flying off the Shelves."
Distractify.Distractify,Inc.,25May2015.Web.28May2017.