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deaf culture and its impact
deaf culture and its impact
american deaf culture research paper
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Unlike many other persons with physical disabilities, people with deafness have the abilities to use their own language and hence create their own culture. The deaf communities have perceived themselves as a minority, rather than disabled, in their society. I will explore on the deaf community of Korea. I will look at their language, interaction, education, and accommodations.
Before you read on further, I want note that the word that I will use mostly is Deaf rather than deaf. The difference between the two words is the capitalization. The non-capitalized “deaf” is to refer the physical disability as in the inability to hear. The capitalized “Deaf” refers to the culture as an identity (Deaf or Deaf?, 2006).
I was asked if I wanted to spend the week with a group of Deaf students from Korea that were coming to visit NTID. I accepted and was looking forward to meet with them. As time had come, I became both excited and nervous. It was on Sunday morning. A few of my friends and I walked to the Radisson hotel to meet them. When we got to the Radisson hotel, we saw them. You could tell it’s them because they were signing, but I have no idea what they were talking about. Their sign language is completely different. I noticed that they use their fingers more to communicate rather than gesture and facial expression. They could not recognize that my friends and I are Deaf American students because we were not signing yet. We were nervous to how to address to them. We would just wait for the right time. We noticed that many of the Korean students left back to their rooms. There were a few female Korean students in the lobby. I was comfortable enough to go up and introduce myself. I was told that they were le...
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..., H.-K. (2009, September 3). South Korea Association of the Deaf - Amazing Video! [Video file]. Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6PGZdwJXZZE
Clark, D. K. (2000). Culture and Customs of Korea. Retrieved from http://site.ebrary.com/lib/rit/docDetail.action?docID=10018029
Deaf or deaf? Can a Capital Letter Make a Difference? (2006, June 22). Retrieved January 29, 2010, from Associated Content website: http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/38664/deaf_or_deaf_can_a_capital_letter_make.html?cat=5
Korean Manual Alphabet [Pictures of Korean Manual Alphabet]. (2009, December 16). Retrieved January 29, 2010, from Wikipedia website: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Korean_manual_alphabet
Soh, C. S. (n.d.). Linguistic Affiliation. In South Korea (par. 2-3). Retrieved January 29, 2010, from Every Culture website: http://www.everyculture.com/Ja-Ma/South-Korea.html
Spradley, T. S., & Spradley, J. P. (1978). Deaf Like Me. Washington, DC: Gallaudet University.
Paul Scearce’s De’VIA piece titled “Deaf Alien Visitors from Eyeth” is a great example of a piece of resistance artwork. The scene depicts several themes prominent in De’VIA such as the misconceptions of deaf people, the judgmental behaviors of those who do not understand deaf culture, a lack of communication, and the lack of a sense of belonging in the community as well as the alienation of deaf people and the negative view on ASL. There are also a few more subtle themes that relate to affirmation, such as the deaf people’s search for Eyeth, and their attempt to educate others about the merits of ASL for deaf individuals.
When it comes to disabilities of hearing, there is some significant division between people over whether hearing impairment and/or deafness constitutes a disability or a culture. Though Kisor has no residual hearing whatsoever, he did not lose his hearing until age three, and his parents raised him to be a lip reader rather than a user of sign language. He never associated with Deaf culture; he has always felt he belongs with those who can hear. He discusses this in his memoir several different times, saying, for example, at one point, “[TDDs] enabled
Many hearing people do not take the time to listen to the Deaf community as they just assume that they are being “selfish” as they do not want to change. The Deaf community does not want the hearing community to change them. If we try to change the Deaf community, we are trying to change their language and culture. The Deaf community relies on American Sign Language just as many of us rely on English. We would not want anyone to try to convince us to change our language just so we can communicate with the general population. Being deaf is not a disability, but rather a culture that most of the hearing community is going to have to
In the book Seeing Voices, the author describes the world of the deaf, which he explores with extreme passion. The book begins with the history of deaf people in the United States of America, the horrible ways in which they had been seen and treated, and their continuing struggle to gain hospitality in the hearing world. Seeing Voices also examines the visual language of the deaf, sign language, which is as expressive and as rich as any spoken language. This book covers a variety of topics in deaf studies, which includes sign language, the neurology of deafness, the treatment of Deaf American citizens in history, and the linguistic and social challenges that the deaf community face. In this book, Oliver Sacks does not view the deaf as people having a condition that can be treated, instead he sees the deaf more like a racial group. This book is divided into three parts. In the first part, Oliver Sacks states a strong case for sign language, saying it is in fact a complete language and that it is as comprehensive as English, French, Chinese, and any other spoken language. He also describes the unhappy story of oralism (this is the education of deaf students through oral language by using lip reading, speech, and mimicking the mouth shapes and breathing patterns of speech)) in deaf children’s education. In addition, the first part is about the history of deaf people as well as information about deafness. It also includes the author’s own introduction to the world of the deaf.
Hamill, A.C. & Stein, C.H. Culture and empowerment in the Deaf community: An analysis of
What I found most interesting about Jarashow’s presentation were the two opposing views: Deaf culture versus medical professionals. Within the Deaf culture, they want to preserve their language and identity. The Deaf community wants to flourish and grow and do not view being deaf as a disability or being wrong. Jarashow stated that the medical field labels Deaf people as having a handicap or being disabled because they cannot hear. Those who are Deaf feel as though medical professionals are trying to eliminate them and relate it to eugenics. It is perceived that those in that field are trying to fix those who are Deaf and eliminate them by making them conform to a hearing world. Those within the Deaf community seem to be unhappy with devices such
Stepping into a room filled with both students who were deaf and others who were not, I was instantly met with smiles and hugs. While most people sat cross legged in a circle on the floor, the warm and amiable atmosphere imitated how Deaf culture is founded on a collective mindset and not on a separated
The documentary of “Through Deaf Eyes” has open my eyes to the deaf culture. The movie has made it “click” that deaf people are just that people and individuals like me. Deaf community has its struggles just like everyone else. They struggle with growing into who they are as a person, harmful situations, and feeling a sense of belonging. They just speak a different language like Italians and Hispanics. Communicating with a different language does not make them lesser than a hearing person. When able to learn to communicate, the deaf are able to learn and gain knowledge just like a hearing person. The only difference is they have to learn more and work harder to achieve their goals and gain knowledge, which a hearing person learns just by hearing their surroundings.
There is a difference between the way those that are deaf define themselves within their own culture. If society was more educated on this fact the society of Deaf culture may make a breakthrough and eliminate its label as a “disability”. Those who are deaf refer to themselves as part of
In the following chapters, there is an extensive amount of knowledge to learn about how Deaf culture is involved in our modern world. The pages assigned give us an outlook of how Deaf people are treated in our daily life, and how we should learn from it. Its gives a clear line between what are myths and what are facts, to those who are curious about the Deaf community or have specific questions. This book has definitely taught me new things that I could put to good use in the near future. In specific chapters, my mind really opened up to new ideas and made me think hard about questions, like “why don’t some Deaf people trust hearing people,” or “do we need another ‘Deaf president now’ revolution?” I realized many new things in the course of reading this book, and have recommended this to my family.
National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders. (November 2002). Retrieved October 17, 2004, from http://www.nidcd.nih.gov/health/hearing/coch.asp
Throughout the course of the semester, I have gained a new understanding and respect of Deaf culture and the many aspects it encompasses. The information supplied in class through discussion, movies, and guest lecturers since the previous reflection have aided in the enhancement of my knowledge of Deaf culture and nicely wrapped up all of the information provided throughout the semester.
National Institute of Health. (2011). National Institute on Deafness and other communication disorders: Improving the lives of people who have communication disorders. National Institute on
Provided with the viewpoints on both the medical model and social model of disability, it is clear that these two concepts differ in terms of the definition of disability as well as the attitude of society towards people with disabilities. It is evident that people with disabilities veer towards the social model rather than the medical model. It is essential to acknowledge that Deafness is categorised as a medical disability within the individual as well as a societal disability, as society is not equipped enough to deal with the communication barriers that stem from hearing impairments.