ABSTRACT
This chapter explores how constitutions of Down's syndrome in negative terms connect with cultural ideologies around 'ab/normality' and 'im/perfection' that emerge via social practices (mostly NT scans) and cultural materials. These positionings are primarily established in the early stages of prenatal care. It identifies how constitutions of Down's syndrome and cultural ideals of 'normality' are enacted by discursive shifts in FMD between 'foetus' and 'baby' once a diagnosis of Down's syndrome is established or largely suspected. In Freymarsh and Springtown, the pursuit of perfection/normality (the terms are used interchangeably hereafter) is accomplished in the social practices of the prenatal clinic, and particularly in NT scans. During NT scans, producing perfection emerges not only through the reassuring utterances of 'normal' and 'perfect' but also through the sonographer and parents-to-be engaging in a process of 'collaborative coding' which becomes essential to making the imagery on the screen personally and socially meaningful.
