Counterfactual Bodies, Ableism, and Oppression as Possibilia

ABSTRACT

This article proposes a novel way to understand the oppression of ableism through the modal device of counterfactual bodies. I begin with an overview of counterfactual bodies, defined here as the reimagining of disabled individuals without their disability. Some counterfactual bodies become vehicles of oppression when distorted by the imperative of cure, under which striving to actualize a counterfactual body becomes a morally laden aim for disabled bodies. Next, I outline some of the material, psychological and physical costs of striving to actualize a counterfactual body, which includes the disproportionate distribution of resources, suspended body grief, and pain and suffering. Finally, I consider the conditions under which a counterfactual body becomes a manifestation of ableism.