魏廷瑜
The
hard-of–hearing and the Deaf have always been considered by many hearing
people, and even some of the deaf people themselves, as having a problem
that needs be 「fixed.」 And when cochlear implant—the new
surgery-implantation that promises to help some deaf people
hear—appeared in the world, the new technology surely gives hope to
those who want to be hearing. On the other hand, others, who have lived
in deafness all their lives and still want to remain in peace and quiet,
do not give their blessing to this new technology.
A
film, 」Sound and Fury,」 explores this sharp controversy among the deaf
community and poses a moral dilemma for all involved. Heather Artinian,
a six-year-old deaf girl, is facing an important choice of her life—to
have cochlear implant or not. Her parents Peter and Nita Artinian have
both grown so used to deafness that they were not eager to give the
surgery to their child. As Heather approached the age for surgery, she
faced this tough decision. Peter and Nita took Heather to a few
families that have cochlear- implanted children to see how they deal
with the situation after surgery. It was a long and uneasy trip.
Heather told her father that she did not want the surgery. 」I』m too
scared now,」 but she also told her grandmother, 」 I want to communicate
with the people in the other world.」 Finally, she gave up the chance to
get the surgery. 「I know what I』m doing. I want to stay where I am
now.」
Why
did she give up the chance that most people would embrace? Well, The
surgery takes a lot of money, to begin with. Subsequent to financial
problems, they still have to run the risk of taking the dangerous
surgery, which has no guarantee of working efficiently. But I believe
the most important reason why Heather refused the surgery is that she
has decided where she would like to be. She was born deaf and she was
not going to change against Nature. 「Why must I be the same with the
hearing people? Deafness is not a disability; on the contrary, it is a
gift from Nature to leave me in peace.」 Heather knew the advantages and
disadvantages and she chose to remain in a peaceful life instead of
stepping into the complicated hearing world. There is something for her
to do in the silent world, too—to keep the beautiful sign language and
the peaceful culture of the silent world. In fact, for many deaf
people, deafness is more than the inability to hear. Living in a deaf
community means a close-knit membership based on abundant culture and
beautiful language.
Indeed, deafness is not a disability. Why should it be? It has been
considered so just because of the social construction of disability by
the so-called 「normal」 people. Normal people regarded non-hearing as a
disability because they look at things in 「their」 way of thinking.
However, people should learn to look at things from different points of
view instead of being self-righteous. If hearing people want the Deaf
to be involved in the hearing world, why don』t they try to learn sign
language and get in touch with the non-hearing world? Hearing people
only need to learn the sign language to be a part of the non-hearing;
however, the Deaf must take risks of the surgery to participate in the
hearing world. Which way is easier and safer?
I
think Heather』s choice is significant. Deafness is not a disability; on
the contrary, it is another colorful way to live. In contrast to the
mess of the hearing world, the deaf have a more peaceful and supportive
space to live in. Instead of asking the deaf to join the hearing world,
perhaps the hearing should try to blend in the deaf world.