Inside Deaf Culture Summary

Everybody faces challenges and uncertainties and a daily basis. Fortunately, for hearing people their troubles can be trivial. For those who are in the Deaf and hard of hearing culture, however, challenges and uncertainties are not relatively trivial. Over the past several years, the Deaf community has been enterprising for culture awareness. Historically, the media have played an important role in the portrayal of deaf individuals. “Switched at Birth” is a television show that has helped shed some light on the Deaf culture. "Switched at Birth" has tackled many autistic beliefs toward Deaf people that are false and ignorant such as them not being able to drive, raise kids, and have jobs.

Edward Gallaudet’s work into the creation of Gallaudet University has led to the education of thousands of deaf people along advancements and progress in fields related to hearing status, both scientifically and socially.

The Deaf President Now movement was one of the best things that happened to University, the movement helped the school and the students get a deaf president to lead them. The school has never had a deaf president ever since its been opened. The students of the university wanted a deaf president to lead them so bad they shut down the school until they could get a deaf president. Gallaudet University was the school where all the deaf students went, it was hard for a hard of hearing student to attend a hearing school. The deaf president now was the biggest thing for the deaf and still is unto this day. People to this day celebrate the DPN, Especially the students who shut down the school. Wouldn 't you feel accomplished if you were in their shoes?

Miller put on a workshop for deaf artists to explore works about the deaf perspective which Baird attended. During this workshop the term De’VIA (Deaf View Image Arts) was introduced and the group wrote a program that outlined their vision. A mural was also painted to accompany the program. The group’s historical work was unveiled at the international Deaf Way Festival the following summer. This genre explored the perspective of deaf people and their experiences in a hearing world. Hearing impaired children of really connected with seeing ASL being used in art to express their point of view.

For a Deaf Son is a documentary about Thomas Thranchin, who was born deaf to hearing family. His father, a filmmaker, produced this documentary to offer an intimate look at how parents of a deaf child make decisions. The documentary is compiled together with interviews from audiologist, families of children with hearing loss, other expert in the field, as well as home videos of Thomas. Thomas was discovered to be profoundly deaf at the age of one and could only hear high frequency sound. This meant that with hearing aids on him, he could acquire speech and language with therapy. The other discussion that Thomas’ parent had to make is whether to educate their son in sign language versus strictly verbal speech. Both Thomas’ parents have different opinions on teaching him ways to communicate. The beginning of the movie, his parents had decided to enroll Thomas in hearing school so that he could learn to communicate with the hearing world that his family lived in. His mother also thought that by enrolling him in a teaching based classroom supported by sign would be an easier route for Thomas considering that he was deaf. Thomas’ father had then begun his research to figure out ways to unlock Thomas’ speech capacities and the outcome of those choices. The documentary

Laurent Clerc was considered as one of the first outstanding deaf teachers in the United States, considering that he was born in France. Clerc was born on a village over by Lyons, France in 1835. He was born with hearing, that is until when he was just a year old that he fell into a fire that led to him losing his hearing and smell. It would also leave him with a badly burned face on his right side, plus he would be scarred for life, which would something he would later be recognized for. At the age of twelve, Clerc entered into the Royal Institution for the Deaf in Paris, in which he was excellent in his studies. When he graduated, the school had asked him if he could stay at school and become a teacher, in which he would accept.

Through the deaf eyes is a film about what is like to be deaf; it also tells us about the history, as well as challenges deaf culture has faced. It speaks about Thomas Hopkins Gallaudet and Laurent Clerc the creators of the first school for the deaf, also deaf clubs, and people today who have changed perspectives of the deaf community. Gallaudet University was the first environment where deaf community can come together and begin their history and culture teaching deaf children how to speak would benefit them more in the future; however that was not the case, and many thought it was a waste out time as they got older. They feel that they should have focused on sign language, so that they can learn more instead of spending years on learn to

According to Cristina De Rossi, an anthropologist at Barnet and Southgate College in London, “Culture encompasses religion, food, what we wear, how we wear it, our language, marriage, music, what we believe is right or wrong, how we sit at the table, how we greet visitors, how we behave with loved ones, and million other things.” I think basically culture expresses the ways we live. Every region, every family and everyone has their own culture. For example, people usually call “Western Culture,” “Eastern Culture,” “Latin Culture,” or “African Culture” etc. Therefore, with Deaf people, they also have their own culture, which is Deaf Culture. Deaf culture is the set of tradition, behavior, norm, values and language. Because of that, there are might be some differences between cultures with cultures. In this

My view while watching the documentary was what I had expected it to be. I found that I actually already knew a lot of the information discussed in the film, not a lot was new. I still found myself “rooting” for the deaf community. I felt angry when the hearing word made the deaf world believe that ASL was wrong, and felt proud as the Gallaudet University fought to have someone from their world

In the essay, “Deafness/Disability - problematising notions of identity, culture and structure, Mairian Corker focuses on the tension between Deaf and disabled people. As Corker analyzes the division between Deaf and disabled people she reflects on Margaret Archer’s views. Corker explains that Margaret Archer viewed “ the structural (‘parts’) and cultural (‘people’) domains are substantively different, as well as being relatively autonomous from each other” (Corker 2002). Throughout her essay Corker talks about the different theories in Deaf studies and disability studies to explain the same issues. These issues include identity, culture,

“Sorry, no. You’re deaf.” That is what Keith Nolan was told too many times to count. Because of ideologies, the general public considers deaf individuals to be handicapped or disabled. However, this is not the case. Those who are deaf or hard-of-hearing are more than capable of doing most of the things hearing people can do. In this paper, I relate the Ted Talk, “Deaf in the Military,” to communities of practice.

The Journey into the Deaf- World offers a comprehensive absorbing study into the Deaf- World. The first two chapters brought insight into the Deaf culture, as well as benefits and struggles the Deaf face. The first chapter was an introduction into the Deaf World, showing the Deaf’s experiences

This case study suggests when the child gains their self-confidence, the other children are more likely to accept them. Therefore, if the patient is comfortable with the implant and is not self-conscious about it, then the other children will not be as bothered by it. The deaf culture is a set of social beliefs, values, history, behaviors, and shared institutions of communities that are influenced by deafness. The main use of communication for the deaf is American Sign Language. The deaf culture is against cochlear implants because they believe that if every deaf person gets a cochlear implant then their culture as a whole will be gone. Sparrow explains, “According to the testimony of many individuals who are members of Deaf culture, it is perfectly possible to lead a happy and productive life without hearing or spoken language” (137). The deaf culture believes that deaf people do not need cochlear implants to fit into society. They believe that deafness is not a disease and does not need to be fixed. With a cochlear implant, it is not used to fix the deafness, it is used to help with the person to give them more of a normal life and to help them have the ability to fit into society

Learning that people had to protest to get fair representation in the 1980’s seems crazy to me. My first thought was, how could any hearing person ever represent the needs and feelings of the deaf community? Though I understand many people grow up in the deaf community and are hearing, that does not award them the right to understand the struggle of the deaf community or what it’s like actually being deaf. I’m glad to know that every Gallaudet president since the protest has been a deaf president. I’m also very glad I watched this movie, as I feel the history of deaf culture is one few hearing people know, but I think everyone should understand more about a community that lives among hearing people every day, and does not receive its deserve

This Deaf event was very different form every other deaf event that I’ve went to in the past. Let me start of by saying it was a far drive, I drove 28 miles to a place I have never been to, but it was worth the drive. This event was expensive but the reason I chose to go to this event was because it was the only one that fit in with my weekly schedule. As got to the event I was a bit late and everyone had taken their seats and there were no more seats left. But this very nice lady came to my rescue and found me a seat. In that room I honestly felt like an outsider for a long period of time I felt like the only hearing person in the room. If not everyone in there was deaf, then 90% of them had to be. I was so nervous for no reason. For example, when I