The article describes a little girl's struggle with a leg that did not function properly, and surprisingly enough the girl and her parents were seeking amputation to remedy this. Wait a minute...Amputation? My initial reaction was something close to confusion and dismay. Now I have all of my limbs, and other than my own laziness, I believe they work well, so for me to fully understand the psychology of somebody missing a limb or with a "defective" limb is not possible. I can imagine it, but it wouldn't be the same. Why would somebody want to remove a limb, and the logic becomes clear. If we have a flat tire on a car, or a broken component in a computer, what do we do? Replace it of course!
Following the same idea, the little girl could not use her leg the way other children did, but by having the leg amputated below the knee a whole new world of leg choices and possibilities opened up. The new upgraded leg could offer mobility and movement the girl had only dreamed of. In a world where we constantly upgrade, repair, and create it's surprising that I had the reaction I did, however it seems that there is a stigma about prosthetics. Ironically, my protagonist will loose a limb and gain an upgrade, and after reading Aimee's article I have to wonder, how will my characters and the world they live in view prosthetics?
I'm not sure how I'm going to shape the world around it, and thankfully I haven't written to that point yet either, so I still have time to make a decision and follow that path. Thank you Aimee Mullins and Gizmodo for offering a little more insight into one of my own creations. Until next time...
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