Ann Millett reviews Finding Nemo for the Disability Studies Quarterly much better than we could. An excerpt:
In “Finding Nemo”, I discovered sunken treasure—a multifaceted representation of disability. The protagonist, Nemo, displays a small, or “deformed,” fin that is a congenital result of a fatal attack on his mother and sibling eggs—a corporeal characteristic that the story surrounds, yet does not drown in. In an aquatic natural world where species maintain characteristic, standardized appearances, Nemo is marked as visually and socially different, yet hardly inadequate. He explains that he has a “lucky” fin when questioned by his classmates, who then offer their own explanations of distinctive physical quirks: a squid confesses to having a lazy tentacle, a seahorse boasts of his “H2O intolerance.” Nemo’s peers accept him, even admire his self-confident attitude and plucky spirit, because in this diverse “school” of fish, everybody’s different.
Give it a read!
Friendly young clownfish Nemo embarks on an epic journey.