Toph Beifong and Proper Disability Representation: A thread

Here's a disclaimer: This thread doesn't give parents of disabled children/people who've worked with disabled children permission to write about our experiences.

Okay? Okay. Let's get started.

#ATLA

We officially meet Toph in Book 2: Earth. She's the only child of a wealthy, prominent family in the Earth Kingdom. She's also very sheltered. Her parents are incredibly overprotective of her. Not because of their social status.

Because their daughter is blind.

Because growing up as a disabled kid is complicated, I never really thought about Toph much when I watched the show growing up. (I completed it as an adult.) But now?

Toph is one of the few (and greatest) examples of proper disability representation ever presented.

The reason? There are numerous. But let's start at the beginning: Her upbringing.

Plenty of disabled children are sheltered, sometimes even in situations similar to Toph's, where parents are overprotective of them. But Toph rebels against her parents' expectations.

She does this by secretly competing in Earthbending tournaments. Events her parents would be horrified by her competing in. But why? She's an excellent Earthbender (more on that in a bit).

Because Toph's parents view her as fragile. Unable to fight for herself.

Being viewed as fragile? All too common for disabled kids. Bryan Konietzko and Michael DiMartino could have written her as submissive to her parents' (and by extension, society's) expectations. Except? They didn't.

Toph simply does not sit still and obey her parents' rules and expectations. Why? Because she knows she's more than they perceive. She's an incredible Earthbender who bests opponents more than twice her age and size.

How does she do this? By using her disability to her advantage. That may seem strange to non-disabled people, but trust us: When you're disabled, you have to.

Since Toph is blind, she uses her feet to sense movement in the earth and manipulate it that way.

And again, the creators could've written her off as a disabled character to be pitied. That's way too easy and convenient for a plot, unfortunately. Except, she is the epitome of strength and badassery on a level disability representation hasn't seen since.

And the fact that she learns Earthbending from the badgermoles WHO ARE ALSO BLIND?! There are so many metaphors in this, but all I'll say is that it was an EXCELLENT choice. Toph didn't master her bending from an abled bender. She learned from other blind characters.

Not ONCE is Toph touted as disability sensationalism, or a character to be pitied by Katara, Sokka, Aang, or Zuko.

She was written to be complex because she is.

Toph is what disabled characters deserve: to be written as respectfully as abled characters. Not from some point of inspiration, but because great characters stem from great writing.

We have plenty of stories where disabled characters are pitied. But we have Toph, too.

Conclusion: Watch Avatar for many reasons, be it Zuko's masterful character arc (which is the best in the history of western animation; I'll write an essay), a commentary on war, or Toph's brilliant representation.

Enjoy it, learn from it, and respect its achievements.