I’m so sleepy …
I’ve just finished watching “It’s all gone Pete Tong” on TV. I’ve seen it before but really like the film. I love the deaf theme, the mis-communications, the lipreading, the (little bit of) signing, and the focus on whether being deaf really is a disability or not …
I’m with the Deaf community on this point, i.e. those people who see themselves as being part of a linguistic minority rather than disabled. And actually, I don’t think I would mind being deaf. I mean, obviously, I’d rather not be deaf as I have grown up hearing, and none of my family and very few of my friends sign. Life would get a lot harder, of course … but I think that, if for some reason I lost my hearing, I would adapt.
And if I had a deaf child, I wouldn’t see that as a tragedy either. I suppose they would end up with a cochlear implant, which by all accounts are pretty good these days. But that would be for them rather than me: to help them manage in a predominantly hearing world, rather than to aid our communication. In fact, I can even sympathise with Deaf people who want the right to select ‘deaf embryos’ during IVF treatment. After all, some hearing people want the right to discard them …
Being blind on the other hand …
I can’t leave the house without my contact lenses or glasses. In fact, I can barely manage in the house without them. And I hate not being able to see properly. I especially hate walking into a pub where I am supposed to meet someone if I don’t have my glasses/ contacts. In fact, I just don’t do it because it’s too stressful!
I am not sure how I would cope if I went blind. I mean, I’m sure I would if I had to, but in the unlikely event that I had to choose between being blind and deaf (!), I would definitely choose the latter. My ex French boyfriend always said he would prefer to be blind than deaf, which I could never understand. Maybe it was a sign that we were not meant to be.
And now I really am waffling, and it really is time to go to bed. I was tired before the film started and now I’m shattered. My cosy bed awaits.
Lis of the North replied:
Hi SG. Interesting post! I think I’m with you on this one, ie I’d rather suffer hearing loss than sight loss. I think I just could not bear not being able to read. My Grandma had cataracts removed not so long ago, and she said the best thing after the op was that she could read again. I can’t imagine a life without books and words.
But I guess I’m just grateful that I can hear and see clearly!
April 19, 2008 at 8:04 am. Permalink.
Brennig replied:
Tired rambling is good for the brain. It’s an opportunity for the mind to womble through a range of subjects with no real reason for being there. I’m tired rambling right now. I’m totally knackered, falling asleep on the couch in front of Back To The Future (it’s a classic!).
On topic… My father had a thing about blindness; he did a lot of work for the organisation that became RNIB, raised a significant amount of money for local and national use. When he was involved in an accident he was in a coma for five days before he died; the surgeon said that had he regained consciousness he probably have been blind, having damaged that part of the brain that controls sight.
Sorry SG, I’m rambling now.
x
April 19, 2008 at 4:24 pm. Permalink.
Citronella replied:
I’m with you on this one. So it’s not a French thing to prefer blindness over deafness. It just seems to me that overcoming the loss of sight would be even harder than overcoming the loss of hearing ‒ I’m a heavy, compulsive and fast reader; I do a lot of writing; my professional life consists in staring at screens and papers all day; and it seems that things as simple as getting ready in the morning would be so much harder without sight than without hearing…
I guess that if I was a professional viola player instead of a computer scientist, I would chose to lose sight over hearing, though.
April 19, 2008 at 10:28 pm. Permalink.
Angele replied:
My little cousin was born deaf and it was very hard on his parents because they thought their son wouldn’t lead a normal life. Eventually they learned to live with his handicap and I must say that the little boy is coping well. He’s in a specialized school now.
I don’t know what my reaction would be if someday I happen to become blind or deaf. It scares me to think about it. I’ve been seeing and hearing for all these years and then suddenly nothing… It’s quite frightening I think :\
April 20, 2008 at 7:00 pm. Permalink.
Masher replied:
Well, if I had to lose one of the major ’senses’ then I suppose I’d rather be dumb.
Of course, some people say I already am.
April 21, 2008 at 5:59 am. Permalink.
Despina replied:
It’s something I think about a lot too, but I am different from you in that I would rather be blind, because I am a musician and respond to sound, I think that’s why. My world is built mainly of sound. When I was researching library services for visually impaired people, I was shocked by the provision for them - I really buy into the idea of thinking of deaf people as a linguistic minority.
April 24, 2008 at 6:11 pm. Permalink.
stratfordgirl replied:
Lis: Thanks for your comment. Sounds like the op really improved you grandmother’s quality of life.
Bren: I love BTTF, too. Haven’t seen the sequels though, have you? Thanks for the story about your dad, too.
Citronella: Good point re musicians … see Despina’s comment, too.
Angele: Yes, you’re right - it would be really frightening to suddenly become deaf or blind.
Masher: he he.
Despina: My ex was also a musician, and that’s why he said he would prefer to be blind. I can imagine that the library facilities for blind people are pretty dire. I don’t think I have ever seen a Braille book in a library.
April 25, 2008 at 7:45 pm. Permalink.