Assignment 5a

Train Go Sorry inside a Deaf world by: Leah Hager Cohen

1. What does Train Go Sorry mean?
2. What pair of shoes do you think the main person in the book is walking in and what did she learn?
3. What is one image you won’t ever forget?
4. What are 5 facts about ASL or deaf culture you think everyone should know after reading the book?

I found the book Train Go Sorry, Inside a Deaf World, fascinating about the life of a deaf culture, and the events that took place inside the Lexington School for the Deaf, in New York. I am a hearing student who was assigned to read the book Train Go Sorry in my introduction to Humanities class, along with reading My California, which is about cultures in California in a microcosm form in the US. In my essay, I will include four required questions as stated above numbered 1-4.

“Train Go Sorry” meant in an aphorism of someone who by no fault of their own missed the train of opportunity. They were dealt a bad deck of cards, or the hand of life dealt them a more misfortunate life, which is not the standard way of a “so called” normal life. Who is to say what is normal. Just like AKC chooses what the perfect standard for each purebred dog. Is the standard normal? No, this should never be! “Normal,” should not be placed in a box. Each human is born as someone special, unique, and different in his or her own extraordinary way, weather they are a hearing person or a deaf person. Actually, from reading this book, I have found the deaf world a very interesting place to be. I also see how hard it is for a deaf person to communicate with others and live in this world of talking, hearing people. It is hard and damaging when people have placed the deaf as stereotype, as uneducated or dumb. On the contrary, deaf people are highly intelligent and sensitive.

Leah Hager Cohen is a hearing person whose grandfather was deaf, and her father was a superintendent of the Lexington school for the Deaf. All of Leah’s life she was raised around the deaf, she interacted with them, even dated them. However, she experienced conflicts, especially in communication, both for them and for hearing people. If someone did not understand or learn how to use American Sign Language then it made it almost impossible for a hearing person to communicate to a deaf person. People still do not find acceptance with the deaf, they back off, or feel uncomfortable. This should never be, we all should make our second language ASL, which helps us to be more connected with the deaf world. Leah lived with the deaf; she fully understood what it meant to live in someone else’s shoe. She understood the deaf, she understood their struggles and their joys, and she knew how many marriages between deaf and hearing people seem to end up in divorce. She tells of a deaf man she went out with who did not feel equal to her. Leah had to always be the interpreter between him and another hearing person, also she notes it was hard to communicate when lights are out, because it was impossible to see each other talk with their hands with no lights, or if they’re using their hands to eat or work, then they could not communicate. The lack of communication seems to be one of the biggest issues between hearing people and deaf people. Deaf people would be better off if hearing people were educated about a deaf person’s world, and learn sign language. In addition, deaf people would benefit more in society and in the work world if hearing people learned to communicate with the deaf.

On page 6 how it explains the teletypewriter becoming widely used for the deaf people until 1960’s had enabled them to communicate through the phone lines. That broke a huge obstacle between the hearing and deaf people. Today it is great how subtitles are on products such as the computer, DVD, TV and more. With the increase in technology, a deaf person can easily communicate with a hearing person with no problems.

I also remember James, his life. His story I will never forget. James, an African American boy, who once lived on the poor side of New York City, the roughest part of the city. When James was with his brother he did bad things, crime was becoming a part of his way of life. However, if James were not deaf he would never have moved to the Lexington School for the deaf, where he received a great education. James was given a good opportunity by being deaf and it became a blessing for James, and it might have saved his life. Otherwise, James would have ended up in a gang or worse in prison like his brother. However as James struggled as an individual in a hearing culture, he became a good student, receiving honors.

Five facts about ASL or deaf culture that everyone should know.
1. Communication is an important way of life for all people, it is our way to interact, with one another, and with sign language, and it opens a great opportunity for us to talk with our hands and converse to a deaf person.
2. With all the new technology having words on the TV screen, phone or computer opens up another great advantage for the deaf. They are able to see and understand movies, games on the computer and able to talk on the phone and communicate with a person calling.
3. In classrooms, a deaf person has an ASL professional who is able interpret to the deaf person all that the teacher is saying. The deaf person is able to attend any college of their choice.
4. ASL is still doing great research for the hearing impaired to better help them to communicate to a deaf person.
5. ASL is promoting more and more early sign language to kids in grade schools. This is an excellent way to teach sign language to young hearing children. Teach the younger kids at a young age and then when they grow up they can easily interact and talk to a deaf child or adult.