Inbetweeners - Disability in the media

Why is the clip funny?

The clip is funny as Will (who is the main character in this scene) accidentally throws his Frisbee at two women, one of which is disabled. All 3 characters react in a different way, Will apologizes repeatedly, the disabled woman cries and the other woman shows aggression towards Will. All 3 of these reactions then merge together, to set the scene. Will is generally an intelligent character, however in this scene, he panics and doesn’t know how to react, as unfortunately, out of the two women it hits the disabled one, which is unlucky. We then see Will attempt to take the Frisbee innocently, however to other crowds in this scene, it looks like Will is stealing the girls Frisbee, as the girl is portrayed as pitiable, this then gets Will into trouble with the local youths.

How is the disabled girl being represented?

In this scene, we see that the disabled girl is weak and pitiable, as she cries and moans as soon as the Frisbee hits her. We then see the other women with her, stand up for her, as she is unable to do so herself. At the end of this scene, when Will tries to take his Frisbee away from her, she refuses and holds onto it, this links in with the common stereotype that disabled people have an essence of evil within them, so in return makes Will look like the ‘bad person’.

Are we meant to laugh at the disabled person?

The reaction of the disabled girl adds to the element of humour in the scene, however, the main area of humour is generally focused at Will, as a bright, intelligent adolescent is faced with a tricky situation where he already looks bad and he has to find a way to apologise. Some people may be laughing at the disabled girl, however not in a malicious way, as her reaction is the main focus of the scene to lead up to Wills reaction, both tie in together to add humours elements to the scene.

Are they the 'butt' of the joke?

Depending on your own personal perspective of the scene, we could claim that the disabled girl is the ‘butt’ of the joke as she is the one in which causes all of the embarrassing/aggressive moments in the scene for the other characters through her reaction. However other members of the audience may think that Will is the ‘butt’ of the joke as ultimately, he is the one, which ends up looking bad.

How do you think disabled people respond to this?

This again depends on the perspective of a disabled person. Some disabled people may feel that this is offensive, as not only does it make them look weak and pitiable, but also looks like they make other people look bad, whether that be on purpose or accidental. However some others may feel that it is harmless and just a bit of fun, so that it appeals to the public in order to make them laugh.

Are we as a society cultivated to think we should pity the disabled?

I think that we as a society, generally do pity disabled people, but in a way of respect as we are able to see that they are not as lucky as abled people, as should be treated equal as if they were. We try not to patronize them, as this is also another way in which they may feel that they are not equal, instead with sympathise with them, and help them as we can, ensuring we are very respectful of their disability. TV Sports, such as the Paralympics allow disabled people to contribute to sport on TV, as well as feeling equal to those who are full able.