AUSP 4206/6206 Deaf Culture and Deaf History

Summary: This textbook that provides a broad, yet in-depth, exploration of how Deaf people are best understood from a cultural perspective, with coverage of topics such as how culture is defined, how the concept of culture can be applied to the Deaf experience, and how Deaf culture has evolved over the years. Among the issues included are an analysis of various segments of the Deaf community, Deaf cultural norms, the tension between the Deaf and disabled communities, Deaf art and literature (both written English and ASL forms), the solutions being offered by the Deaf community for effective living as Deaf individuals, and an analysis of the universality of the Deaf experience, including the enculturation process that many Deaf people undergo as they develop healthy identities. As a member of a multigenerational Deaf family with a lifetime of experience living bi-culturally among Deaf and hearing people, the author enhances the text with stories interwoven throughout. The book offers help for parents and educators of Deaf children in understanding the world of Deaf culture and offers an introduction to the ways Deaf people effectively manage their lives in a world full of people who can hear.

Demonstrates sign language phrases for various topics, including health, family, school, sports, travel, religion, time, money, and food.
"Clearly illustrated with hundreds of line drawings, this book focuses on areas such as health, family, school, sports, travel, religion, time, money, food and drink, and small talk. This edition includes a two-hour DVD that presents right-and left-handed signers demonstrating every phrase in the book from chapter 3 through the appendix"--Publisher description.

ontents Dedication -- Foreword -- Preface to 2011 edition -- Acknowledgement -- Introduction -- Prologue : a journey begins -- Chronology -- The early years -- The 1880s -- The1890s -- Artists -- The 1900s -- The 1910s -- The 1920s -- Humor -- The 1940s -- Publications of the deaf -- The 1950s -- Sports -- The 1960s -- American sign language : our natural language.

In Deaf in the USSR, Claire L. Shaw asks what it meant to be deaf in a culture that was founded on a radically utopian, socialist view of human perfectibility. Shaw reveals how fundamental contradictions inherent in the Soviet revolutionary project were negotiated--both individually and collectively-- by a vibrant and independent community of deaf people who engaged in complex ways with Soviet ideology. Deaf in the USSR engages with a wide range of sources from both deaf and hearing perspectives--archival sources, films and literature, personal memoirs, and journalism--to build a multilayered history of deafness. This book will appeal to scholars of Soviet history and disability studies as well as those in the international deaf community who are interested in their collective heritage. Deaf in the USSR will also enjoy a broad readership among those who are interested in deafness and disability as a key to more inclusive understandings of being human and of language, society, politics, and power.

I don't write "with the ear" as most poets do, but with the eye. As Deaf people are apt to do, we become attuned to our world through tactile means, listening through the bone for vibrations, sensing shifts in air currents, recognizing wafting odors, observing fluctuations and reflections of light and movements in the water. In Listening through the Bone, Willy Conley bears witness to life's moments and renders them into poems that are at once irreverent and tender. His poetry examines life cycles, the natural world, and his experiences as a Deaf individual. It is presented in five parts: Inaudibles Existentials Quizzicals Irrevocables Environmentals ​​      Conley's thoughts on the banal and the bizarre include translations of poetry from American Sign Language to English. His identity as a Deaf poet lends a strong visual aspect to his work. This collection is accompanied by the author's photographs, including "watergraphs" that reveal inverted images reflected in pools of water.

Deaf education in New South Wales has made tremendous progress since the end of World War II, yet issues remain for students from their early years of education through secondary high school. Naomi Malone traces the roots of these issues and argues that they persist due to the historical fragmentation within deaf education regarding oralism (teaching via spoken language) and manualism (teaching via sign language). She considers the early prevalence of oralism in schools for deaf students, the integration of deaf students into mainstream classrooms, the recognition of Australian Sign Language as a language, and the growing awareness of the diversity of deaf students. Malone's historical assessments are augmented by interviews with former students and contextualized with explanations of concurrent political and social events. She posits that deaf people must be consulted about their educational experiences and that they must form a united social movement to better advocate for improved deaf education, regardless of communication approach.

Managing Their Own Affairs explores how Deaf organizations and institutions were forged in Australia during the early 20th century. During this period, deaf people challenged the authority of the dominant welfare organizations, or Deaf Societies, which were largely controlled by hearing people and run as charitable institutions. Breda Carty comprehensively documents the growth of the Australian Deaf community and Australian Deaf organizations for the first time. She focuses on both the political developments of the early 20th century and on the nature of the relationships between deaf and hearing people.                During this time, deaf Australians aspired to manage their own affairs. They enjoyed some success by establishing "breakaways" from the Deaf Societies, and they also established an independent national organization, which was contested and ultimately suppressed by the Deaf Societies. These developments were influenced by wider social movements in Australian society, such as the mobilization of minority groups in their push for autonomy and equal rights. Although most of the breakaway Deaf organizations did not survive beyond the 1930s, they significantly affected the power structures and relationships between deaf and hearing people in Australia. The Australian Deaf community's attempts to organize independently during these years have been largely erased from collective memory, making Carty's examination a particularly important and necessary addition to the historical literature.