Application Essay...Minor issue [Political Correctness]

[nvk89]

It's a very small part of my application essay, but I need to convey how I am lucky to have my health and full physical capacity to not only be a doctor, but a military doctor.

My grandfather suffered from polio, and was left with a "hunchback" and slight limp, preventing him from continuing his medical education in China when the communists converted it into a military medical school (with more physical requirements) in his second year. I know the correct term for "hunchback" is kyphosis, but the word hunchback has pretty much escaped the scrutiny of my generation and I don't even know if it would come off as offensive if I said it was a hunchback rather than a kyphotic spine. I ask this because I was told to avoid medical jargon, especially those that involve more esoteric terms.

Thoughts? Again, it's a very small part of the essay, but nonetheless part of my essay. Most importantly, I must respectfully describe my grandfather.

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[The Poet Sings]

It's a very small part of my application essay, but I need to convey how I am lucky to have my health and full physical capacity to not only be a doctor, but a military doctor.

My grandfather suffered from polio, and was left with a "hunchback" and slight limp, preventing him from continuing his medical education in China when the communists converted it into a military medical school (with more physical requirements) in his second year. I know the correct term for "hunchback" is kyphosis, but the word hunchback has pretty much escaped the scrutiny of my generation and I don't even know if it would come off as offensive if I said it was a hunchback rather than a kyphotic spine. I ask this because I was told to avoid medical jargon, especially those that involve more esoteric terms.

Thoughts? Again, it's a very small part of the essay, but nonetheless part of my essay. Most importantly, I must respectfully describe my grandfather.

how about something like this?

"As a result of surviving polio, he developed kyphosis. Due to the hunch in his back and a slight limp, he could no longer continue his education because he could not pass the health requirements."

or something of the sort. i think it would be important to NOT call him a hunchback. just as we don't call people ******ed. people have diseases/disorders, but are not to be defined by them. so you would say someone has kyphosis/a hunch or hump in their back/mental ******ation (or even developmental delays)/dementia. not she's ******ed or he's demented. i hope this helps.

 

[nvk89]

nevermind. I found something that definitively confirms that hunchback is actually a derogatory term...I think my confusion in lies the fact that the only time I've ever heard anyone actually use hunchback was in reference to the Disney movie. Logic follows, if it's in the title of a Disney movie, how bad can it be? Apparently, Disney's a lot more sinister...but that's a whole other discussion.