Contextualizing the 'Cultural Model of Disability' in Veronica Roth's Divergent Trilogy

Disability studies cannot neglect the rising need for interdependence among power and politics in disability culture and the identification, consumption, and representation of disablism in the study of ableism. While researching this topic, it became apparent that a conceptual framework that functioned as a guide for these interwoven processes was required. This study seeks to integrate the Cultural Model of Disability (CMD) with Stuart Hall’s ‘Circuit of Culture' (1980) to evaluate the cultural aspects related to the construction and administration of disabling culture, as portrayed in the selected fiction. While examining the consumption of ableist representation, Veronica Roth's Divergent (2014) trilogy. The objective of this research is to provide insight into the inherent contradictions in the production and consumption of a text that both criticizes disability and facilitates the Darwinian notion of the fittest, advocates for 'normalcy,' and vehemently rejects the ubiquitous idea of the difference. Through this interdisciplinary approach, this study endeavors to illuminate the complexities of power, production, identity, and representation within society.