The way disability is presented in Greek mythology can be compared to and assisted in shaping the way disability is presented today. Although the way disability has been viewed has shifted throughout time, the way the ancient Greeks viewed disability can be directly related to some of the ways disability is viewed today. It has even influenced the way we interact with Greek mythology in some ways, like in the book series Percy Jackson by Rick Riordan, where Chiron, a centaur, and a main character, Grover, a satyr, both disguise themselves as disabled when they have to interact with the non-mythological world to protect the main character, Percy Jackson. However, there are canonically disabled figures in Greek mythology, such as Tiresias, the blind prophet of Apollo, or Hephaestus, the Greek god of craftsmen, carpenters, and metalworking. Hephaestus is also thought to have invented the wheelchair in Greek mythology.
In some myths, Hera throws Hephaestus off of Mount Olympus because he is disabled. He was born with clubbed feet, which upset Hera because her child was not born “perfect.” There are parents in current society that give up their children if they are born with a disability, either mental or physical, because they do not want to raise a disabled child. Women are also shamed for having children when they are 40 years old or older because the chances of having a disabled child go from about 1/400 to 1/70. Even though a 1/70 chance is still only a 0.014% chance, people are so averse to the idea of disabled children that they will bully women for wanting them. There are also individuals who will harass disabled people who want to have kids because those individuals do not believe that disabled people should have kids. They believe that the chance of disabled people having disabled kids is too high to risk it. Individuals like this commonly believe that disability is something that should not exist, that it is something that should be cured and eradicated.
In ancient Greece, disability was thought to be a punishment from the Gods, and it was thought that it could be cured by making it up to them and worshipping them more. Some people today still believe this, except they believe it is a punishment from the Christian God. In the case of Tiresias, the blind prophet of Apollo, his disability was a divine punishment, but he was also gifted a divine blessing to go along with it. Tiresias is said to have settled a bet between Zeus and Hera; having declared Zeus the winner, Tiresias angered Hera, who blinded him in retribution, and in return, Zeus blessed Tiresias with the ability to see the future. The average person, though, is not in this situation and cannot be cured through prayer or divine blessing. There are individuals who will pray over disabled people, even complete strangers, without consent in an attempt to rid them of their disability. This is, unfortunately, not an uncommon occurrence even today. Some religious people believe that disability stems from sin and that atoning for that sin will cure folks of their disability, and if they are not cured, then it is their own fault for living in sin or something along those lines. These religious people believe that everyone is meant to walk in the light of God, and as long as people do that, they will be happy and healthy, but this is not a true sentiment.
In ancient Greece, there was a concept called Kalos Kagathos, which meant “beautiful and good.” This concept referred to how people thought beautiful people were naturally good and ugly people were naturally bad. This has been seen in semi-modern society with the existence of Ugly laws. The Ugly Laws were policies in place from 1867 to 1974 in various parts of the United States that prohibited visibly disabled people from being in public. Disabled people could be punished for simply existing in any public space while these laws were in effect. Similarly, in some myths, Hephaestus was thrown off of Mount Olympus, not because he was disabled, but purely because he was ugly, and Hera did not want an ugly child. This further demonstrates that ugly and disabled were interchangeable descriptions in the eyes of the ancient Greeks.
Disability has existed within the mythology of many cultures because disability has existed for as long as humanity has existed. It is not something that can be made out to be evil or ugly, as it is a natural occurrence. Being disabled is not a punishment or curse, but it also is not a blessing; it is just something that happens to some people. It can make life harder, but there are always bright parts about being disabled as well. Bright parts like finding community, finding new ways to express oneself, and finding validation in historical and mythological figures, like a cool god that invented the wheelchair.
Bibliography
Graham, Haley. Disabled Gods: A Critical Disability Studies Analysis of Ancient Greek Myths. 2019.
“Hephaestus.” Wikipedia, 7 Nov. 2022, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hephaestus#:~:text=H%E1%B8%97phaistos)%20is%20the%20Greek%20god.*
“Ugly Law.” Wikipedia, 2 May 2022, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ugly_law.*
*Wikipedia was used for basic facts such as Hephaestus’ domains and the years that the Ugly laws were in place.
Sprockets and Springes 