Elijah Price (Jackson) is born with Type I osteogenesis imperfecta, a rare disease in which the bones lack collagen of sufficient quality and/or quantity, and break very easily. He is even born with broken bones, as shown in the first scene of the movie, and later receives the nickname "Mr. Glass" due to his fragility. He lives his life searching for a reason for his own existence. Early on in the movie it is shown that his mother tried to encourage him to go outside by placing gifts (in the form of comic books) on a park bench opposite their house. Drawing on what he reads in those comic books, Price theorizes that if he is at one extreme end of the spectrum, then perhaps there is somebody at the other end, someone with greater than usual strengths.