Abstract: Disability scholars have read stories in the form of manga to see how their depictions of disabilities can be harmful or helpful to those possessing disabilities. Most manga examined in this way usually consists of a story where either only one character is present with a disability, or the story falls within the “supercrip” narrative. Yoshitoki Ōima’s A Silent Voice differs from this trend as it displays multiple characters with different types of disabilities and falls into the slice-of-life genre. This thesis exists to do a critical disability reading of A Silent Voice as a piece of disability literature. I argue that the text is unique in how it depicts the othering process through linguistic and cultural othering, how we define disability, and why overtly defensive or violent responses under the guise of disability justice fail to help anyone.

Citation: Dickey, T. (2023) Connecting Bridges: A Critical Disability Reading of A Silent Voice. Thesis.