{"product_id":"the-language-of-light-gerald-shea-9780300215434","title":"The Language of Light: A History of Silent Voices","description":"\u003cb\u003eA comprehensive history of deafness, signed languages, and the unresolved struggles of the Deaf to be taught in their unspoken tongue\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e Partially deaf due to a childhood illness, Gerald Shea is no stranger to the search for communicative grace and clarity. In this eloquent and thoroughly researched book, he uncovers the centuries-long struggle of the Deaf to be taught in sign language--the only language that renders them complete, fully communicative human beings. Shea explores the history of the deeply biased attitudes toward the Deaf in Europe and America, which illogically forced them to be taught in a language they could neither hear nor speak. As even A.G. Bell, a fervent oralist, admitted, sign language is \"the quickest method of reaching the mind of a deaf child.\" \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e Shea's research exposes a persistent but misguided determination among hearing educators to teach the Deaf orally, making the very faculty they lacked the principal instrument of their instruction. To forbid their education in sign language--the \"language of light\"--is to deny the Deaf their human rights, he concludes.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Gerald Shea\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-10:\u003c\/b\u003e 0300215436\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-13:\u003c\/b\u003e 9780300215434\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Yale University Press\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eLanguage:\u003c\/b\u003e English\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 08\/22\/2017\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 288\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eFormat:\u003c\/b\u003e Hardcover\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 1.00lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 8.50h x 5.80w x 1.00d\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eReview Citation(s): \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eLibrary Journal\u003c\/i\u003e 08\/01\/2017\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eChoice\u003c\/i\u003e 04\/01\/2018","brand":"Gerald Shea","offers":[{"title":"Hardcover","offer_id":44119542071551,"sku":"9780300215434","price":21.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0662\/2982\/9887\/files\/img_02289f45-ea20-421c-9863-b2a8f9c8b9ab.jpg?v=1687409859","url":"https:\/\/www.whiterainbookhouse.com\/products\/the-language-of-light-gerald-shea-9780300215434","provider":"WR Book House","version":"1.0","type":"link"}