A Journey Into the Deaf-World

by Harlan Lane, Robert Hoffmeister, Ben Bahan

In this comprehensive and engrossing study, three distinguished scholars of Deaf culture—one hearing, one deaf, and one coda (child of deaf adults)—offer clear, penetrating insights into the existence and makeup of the deaf world, the community whose natural language—American Sign Language in the United States—is manual and visual. Bringing the latest social and cultural findings and theories into sharp focus, the authors take us on a fascinating journey to discover what deaf culture is; the benefits of signed language and deaf culture for deaf children and hearing people; how deaf children are now educated and how they could be; how deaf people integrate into the larger society; the nature of American Sign Language; how technology helps (and hurts) deaf people; what can be learned from deaf societies in other lands; the future of the deaf world. Combining thought-provoking intellectual perspectives with enlightening first-hand accounts of life in the deaf world, this landmark volume is vital for professionals working in fields involving deaf people and for those with an interest in deaf studies.

Genres: Nonfiction, History, Education, Linguistics, Language, Read For School, Disability

513 pages, Hardcover

First published May 1, 1996

About the author

Harlan Lane is a Professor of Psychology at Northeastern University. His research focuses on speech production and perception in hearing and deaf people and on the culture, history and manual language of the deaf world.

--from the author's website

Reviews

[Seed · Rating 2 out of 5]

I live with Deaf people, went to school for sign language, and even plan on one day maybe working with Deaf children. I think sign language is beautiful and amazing and think Deaf-culture is also amazing and vital. However I hated this book... I believe in about half of what the stories in this book say but honestly if I had read this book before ever meeting a capital D Deaf person I would hate Deaf-culture. It talks about a culture built on oppression, that wants to be equal, wants other cultures (mostly hearing people) to accept and even form to help bennefit their lifestyle, and even get involved with their community. But also says (and comes from the mouths of Deaf people) that they basically oppress others, consider themselves better or separate from others but not equal, denys other cultures and refuse to conform in the least to another culture, and wants people who aren't Deaf out of their community. Honestly it doesn't make sense... And I know from personal experience that yes it can be true about half the time but is mostly outdated. All this book could possibly offer is insight on Deaf history at a few points. Not to mention comparing what oppression Deaf people had to the holocaust is ridiculous, Deaf people were not mass hunted, starved, cooked, and murdered. It also compares Deaf people to American slaves and unlike the slaves they were never slaves... At least not specifacly Deaf slaves, maybe some Deaf people happened to be slaves but they were not targeted specifically.

[Kelly · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think my reading of this book was spoiled by the fact that my teacher made it absolutely boring for our 8am Deaf Culture class. A lot of my friends and classmates have informed me that the book is actually pretty good, but I don't really see it.

However, if you want to learn more about Deaf culture and about Deaf history, then I recommend you read this book. I learned a lot of this information already before going to Gallaudet, but it was nice to see how the tiny details fit in with the big picture.

[Ellie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Slightly outdated now, but full of the rich history of deaf culture. Lays out what it’s like to live as a cultural and language minority that has been oppressed for so many years and continues to be oppressed. Also shares how harmful the hearing agenda for deaf people has been and can be and explains the deaf agenda as well. States how crucial it is that deaf people be included in conversations about their own deafness. The fight against oppression of deaf people is far from over.

[Dru · Rating 5 out of 5]

While this book has its dry moments it was nice to learn more about the wonderful Deaf community and its enriched culture. If you have ever wondered the history behind the Deaf world read this and your "eyes" will be amazing to what you find.

[Gemma · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you're learning ASL, work with d/Deaf people, or have an interest in Deaf culture, you need to read this book. It is a wonderfully concise account of American Deaf history, education, and politics. It deals with everything from the creation of ASL, the oral method vs signing in schools, cochlear implants, and whether deafness should be considered a disability.

I found this book really eye-opening. I am an ASL student and I've realised that I want to work in the Deaf world in some manner. This book made me realise that I really didn't know, or even consider, a lot of topics that are vitally important to d/Deaf individuals. For instance, did you know that eugenics played a large part in how d/Deaf individuals have been treated and educated? Were you aware that d/Deaf couples have historically been discouraged from marrying and that forced sterilisations were advocated for d/Deaf women? There's a lot of shocking information in this book that will come as a surprise for hearing people.

There's also a lot of practical information laid out for hearing individuals, covering how we perceive the deaf in contrast to how they perceive themselves, from how our attempts to 'cure' deafness can be seen as seeking to eradicate Deaf culture. I found the chapters on how the hearing agenda is often damaging to the Deaf world very interesting, and I found myself increasingly frustrated at how modern studies on language acquisition are ignored when it comes to educating deaf children. Contrary to the still popular theory that learning ASL as a primary language will retard a deaf child's ability to learn spoken English, modern studies show that a child educated in their natural language (ASL in this case) pick up secondary languages much faster. Therefore, instead of insisting that children born with visual-spacial (i.e. signing) language first learn an aural language they have no hope of ever fully mastering, we should be encouraging bilingual education in schools. The arguments made are very compelling.

There is so much to say about this book and I feel like I'm doing a poor job, so just go pick up a copy!

[Sullivan Reagan]

Journey into the Deaf World focuses on a Deaf individual a hearing individual and a coda which is a child with deaf parents. This book was written by a man named Ben Bahan. He is an African American male and at the end of this book he explains how society and the deaf community treat him as a deaf african american man. Throughout the book you get a perspective of all the three characters who I mentioned above. This book only has two chapters that are really based on a story the rest is facts about the deaf community and how the deaf people are.

Overall I think the book was not that good most people don’t want to read a book plainly based on facts. People want a background story and drama/ action in it as well. There was only a setting in chapter one as I said before there was only two chapters of this book that really told a story.



Book Review Number 2

Journey into the Deaf world was there for the facts. It had a little story line to it at the beginning and also in the last chapter. Once I got past chapter five it was pretty much all facts. I got more information on hearing aids, what’s now offensive, culture and more. The overall structure of the text should have been more along a story-line because it just left you hanging there wondering when is the story-line going to pick back up. Instead it would jump straight to the facts. This book did hand me new information about the Deaf culture though that I have not yet learned so that was very helpful.


I would recommend this book to someone who has not yet taken an ASL class but is interested in the culture and the language. If your more into stories then I would not recommend this book. It is very helpful with facts. It is a very comprehensive book. If you plan on going into American sign language then I would read this first because it will show your teachers that you already have prior knowledge.

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

I learned more about the Deaf community, history, and culture. It is a very objective book with a soft touch. I didn't feel that the authors were mad at the world types who resent Hearing people.

[Tomislav · Rating 2 out of 5]

A Journey Into the DEAF-WORLD is a very comprehensive book on Deafness, although a bit dated. Intermittently I felt like reading a manifesto.

[Calista · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this for my Deaf culture class, and enjoyed it so much. I learned a lot, and got insights into what it is like to be Deaf/deaf in a hearing world. Toward the end, I felt like it got a little bit repetitive, but in general, it was packed with excellent information for any hearing person who is interested in working with the Deaf World in any capacity, or is just out to learn how to better advocate for their fellow humans.

[Keith · Rating 4 out of 5]

The information is told from a left point of view. Sometime the emphasis is about what a very small country does not have enough resources to help the deaf. In any case, lots of information about the Deaf-World. How they feel persecution, and difficulties they must face. Some rays of sunshine talk about how friends are formed. A difficult but informative read...

[Sharon Danzger · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very detailed insight into the Deaf-world. Really changed my views on the deaf community and I now appreciate that ASL is its own language and the deaf community has a rich culture that should be encouraged.

[Danny · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a pretty good textbook. It had interesting information about the lives of Deaf people and had a lot of interesting points. It was fairly old, though. I wish they would do an updated edition, to reflect how Deaf culture has changed over the years. Nevertheless, it is a classic.

[Keith · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very long and somber read. A tremendous amount of detail went into some very obscure locations, and in general the book is very detailed. I found the greatest value in the dialogs and references to social occurrences. The oppression of the Deaf-World, however unintentional, is real.

[Brenda · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great book for college textbook especially for Deaf Culture and Education.

[Jill · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good but outdated

[Israel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good content but ramble-y at times.

[Kansas · Rating 4 out of 5]

I started this book as a requirement for a course on the History and Culture of the Deaf Community but find myself unable to put it down to complete the other course requirements... This book is written by a hearing advocate for the Deaf, and late-deafened adult, and a born Deaf adult. It is a very fascinating look into the Deaf-World, discussing how ASL is learned and development of deaf children. It even includes some personal stories, ranging from deaf children with Deaf parents to deaf children with hearing parents and the contrast in the education and experiences. I find it shocking! It almost feels wrong for me to enjoy my course text this much... ;-)

However, this book purports to be for any reader, especially the hearing person who wants to learn more about the Deaf-World. But, much of the discussion of ASL is very confusing if one does not have a good grasp of the language. I know some ASL but still find myself asking for "translations" and explanations of the language comparisons between ASL and English within the book.

Overall, still a very enlightening read! Highly recommended!!!

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

A view of Deaf culture and how it is very much a ethnicity all it's own. It explains how most Deaf people embrace their condition and don't want to be "fixed." It shows how they want to interact, but don't want to be forced into a hearing world. If you can meet in the middle, they're pretty open. If not, well the communication problem in reality is your own. They can't learn to hear. But you can learn to communicate with the Deaf. Yes that's Deaf with a captital D. :)

[Tamra · Rating 3 out of 5]

Required reading for class.

Flows pretty well, for a text book. Light enough to enjoy if you don't need to read it, but in-depth enough to use as a text.

This covers pretty well everything to do with the Deaf-World. It's a little older, so it doesn't have the most up-to-date information. They should really consider doing a new version.

Also, this book is unabashedly heavily biased, which I don't consider a bad thing. You should just know it going in.

[Clar · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have to admit, I'm reading this book as a textbook for my Socio-Cultural Aspects of Deafness Class, and I absolutely love it! If you are interested in learning anything about Deaf Culture, this is the book to read! If you do read it, call me and we can chat about it!

[Gaile · Rating 5 out of 5]

All about Deaf culture.
Since I was born and raised in deaf culture, I was a little bored with this book but it is an excellent book for those who want to work in Audiology and the field of educating the deaf.

[Lauren · Rating 5 out of 5]

Gives a good perspective of the Deaf World to a hearing person. This was an assigned book for my Deaf Culture class in college and it gives a hearing person a clear idea of what it's like to be a member of the Deaf Community

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pretty suscinct history & interesting look into Deaf culture. Spot on from my experiences. A good read if you're curious a bout a little understood American sub-culture.

[Christina]

A very interesting account of Deaf people that I was required to read for my ASL II class in high school.

[Beth · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this for a class I think. I remember liking it.

[Kimberly]

Loving it so far!

[Allison]

Was good but a lot of information to take in

[Chrissey · Rating 4 out of 5]

very informative, really helped me with my essays. easy to understand and covers a lot of important issues. highly recommended.

[Jessica (JT) · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this for a Deaf culture class I took in college. It was very interesting and helped me to understand the intricacies of the Deaf World.

[Sterling Sapphic Reads · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was a school book, and it served it's purpose. I learned a lot from it.