Geographies of dwarfism: socio-spatial experiences of short stature

Abstract

ABSTRACT The study of dwarfism continues to offer unique opportunities for understanding the socio-spatial experiences of bodily difference and impairment. This review essay focuses on the latest book on dwarfism written by a geographer. Erin Pritchard situates the experiences of people with dwarfism within the social model of disability and addresses the ways in which public spaces in the UK can be disabling to people of extremely short stature. Her book describes how people with dwarfism adapt to environments that are not intended for their body types. Her interviews with people with dwarfism provide rich descriptions of the ways in which historical and contemporary representations of dwarfs influence interactions between average-height people and people with dwarfism. As an academic and as a person with dwarfism, Pritchard makes a strong argument for increasing accessibility to public spaces and reimagining environments that better accommodate bodily diversity.