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bodhrancomedy · 6 months
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Happy International Sign Language Day!
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lifeinacartoonart · 6 months
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CREATING AUTHENTIC DEAF AND HARD OF HEARING CHARACTERS: A WRITER'S JOURNAL
Introduction
Creating authentic characters in your writing is essential for engaging storytelling, and this includes characters who are deaf or hard of hearing. To craft a character that accurately represents this community, it's crucial to do your research, gain a deep understanding of their experiences, and portray them with sensitivity and respect. In this journal, we'll explore how to write a deaf or hard-of-hearing character, including key information and preparation steps.
Understanding Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing Characters
Research: Start by researching deaf and hard-of-hearing individuals' experiences, challenges, and culture. Read books, articles, and personal stories, and watch documentaries or interviews featuring members of the Deaf community.
Consult with Experts: Reach out to members of the Deaf community or experts in Deaf studies to gain insights into their experiences. They can provide invaluable guidance and help you avoid common misconceptions.
Diversity Within the Community: Understand that the Deaf and hard-of-hearing communities are diverse. Some individuals communicate using sign language, while others rely on lip-reading, cochlear implants, or hearing aids. Be aware of these differences when creating your character.
Character Development
Backstory and Identity: Consider your character's background. Were they born deaf, or did they become deaf later in life? How do they identify within the Deaf community? Understanding their identity and experiences will shape their character.
Language and Communication: Decide how your character communicates. Are they fluent in sign language, or do they primarily rely on lip-reading and spoken language? Their communication style will influence their interactions with other characters.
Cultural Awareness: Explore the cultural aspects of the Deaf community. Understand the importance of Deaf culture, including its history, art, and values. Incorporate these elements into your character's life when relevant.
Writing Tips
Dialogue and Communication: When writing dialogue for a deaf or hard-of-hearing character, be mindful of their unique communication style. Use visual cues, body language, and facial expressions to convey emotions and context.
Access to Information: Consider the challenges your character may face in accessing information. This could involve issues with closed captioning, subtitles, or accommodations in educational or work settings.
Social Interactions: Depict social interactions realistically. Show how your character navigates conversations, group dynamics, and social events within their community and with hearing individuals.
Preparation
Sensitivity Readers: Consider hiring sensitivity readers who are part of the Deaf or hard-of-hearing community to review your work and provide feedback. Their insights can help you avoid stereotypes and inaccuracies.
Learn Sign Language: If your character uses sign language, take the time to learn at least basic signs. This will not only enrich your writing but also demonstrate your commitment to accuracy.
Beta Readers: Seek feedback from a diverse group of beta readers who can assess the authenticity of your character and offer constructive criticism.
Engage with the Community: Attend Deaf community events, workshops, or online forums to immerse yourself in the culture and better understand the perspectives and experiences of deaf and hard-of-hearing individuals.
Creating a deaf or hard-of-hearing character that resonates with readers requires dedication, empathy, and thorough research. By following these steps and embracing the rich culture and diversity of the Deaf community, you can create a character that is not only authentic but also promotes understanding and inclusivity in your writing. In addition, when writing dialogue for your deaf or hard-of-hearing character, remember:
It's important to clarify why, when writing dialogue for a deaf character, you should continue to use structured English grammar and not sign language structured grammar.
Maintaining Structured English Grammar:
Readability: Writing in structured English grammar ensures that the text remains accessible and comprehensible to all readers, including those who may not be familiar with sign language or Deaf culture. It avoids potential confusion that could arise from using sign language grammar in written text.
Universal Understanding: English is a global language, and adhering to its grammar rules allows for a wider audience to understand and engage with your story. Sign language grammar varies between different sign languages, making it less universally applicable in written form.
Respect for the Medium: While sign language is a rich and expressive mode of communication, it is primarily a visual and gestural language. Attempting to replicate sign language grammar in written text can be cumbersome and may not fully capture the nuances of sign language communication.
Balance of Realism and Readability: Striking a balance between authenticity and readability is crucial in storytelling. Maintaining structured English grammar while depicting a deaf character's interactions helps convey the character's experience without compromising the reader's ability to follow the narrative.
As an illustration, consider the following text: Dialogues with Descriptive Sign Language:
Sarah greeted John with a warm smile, her hands moving gracefully as she signed, "Hi, how are you?"
John returned the greeting in sign language, his expressions mirroring his words. "I'm good, thanks. Did you see the new movie?"
Sarah's eyes lit up as she signed back enthusiastically, "Yes, I loved it!"
In summary, using structured English grammar when writing dialogue for a deaf character is a practical and respectful choice that ensures your writing remains inclusive and accessible to a broad audience while still authentically representing the character's identity and experiences.
Furthermore, it's essential to avoid creating a character who is overly perfect or one-dimensional. In real life, we understand that everyone has imperfections and complexities, regardless of whether they are deaf or hard of hearing. Therefore, it's entirely acceptable to depict your character as a villain with a hearing issue if that aligns with your storytelling goals.
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x-brik-x · 9 months
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british sign language for unity
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thekintsugikid · 26 days
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BABY BOY!!!!!!!!!
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My albums selection for the next week:
Nurse With Wound – Rock 'n Roll Station
BSL - Fleuron de l'Industrie Française
Nightshifter - Neidan
Orphx – Vita Mediativa
Six Finger Satellite – The Pigeon Is The Most Popular Bird
Norscq – Lavatronic
LTNO – GlobalCut
Ministry – Hopiumforthemasses
Skinny Puppy – Rabies
Kim Gordon – The Collective
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fruitviking · 9 days
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I just learned that it's Sign Language Week (18th - 24th March)!
Here are some resources if you would like to learn some BSL basics:
British Sign https://www.british-sign.co.uk/
Sign BSL https://www.signbsl.com
Spread The Sign https://spreadthesign.com/en.gb/search/
Feel free to reblog with resources for learning your own national sign language!
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meichenxi · 1 year
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Speakers of non-English languages of the UK and Ireland wanted!!
Since it’s World Mother Language Day today (February the 21st), I’m thinking of doing a series of posts on the native non-English languages of the United Kingdom and Ireland, with some information and short interviews. 
For this, I am looking for both native speakers/signers and learners (with or without parentage/heritage of the language in question) of the following languages:
- Scottish Gaelic
- Irish
- Welsh
- Any sign language of the United Kingdom or Ireland (e.g. BSL)
- Any other minority language indigenous to the United Kingdom or Ireland. By this I mean primarily spoken only within the UK or Ireland as a minority, or spoken very little elsewhere. For example: Cornish, Manx, Shelta, or Anglo-Romani, not languages like Polish or Bengali that are minority within the UK but have a significant speaker base elsewhere. (I am aware that I am fishing for some of these *cough* Cornish *cough*...but you never know!)
- Any language or variety that you speak that you feel is linguistically / culturally distinct from Standard English that you would like to inform more people about. For example: Shetlandic, Scots, Ulster Scots. 
I don’t have anything finalised yet, but if you would be wiling to speak to me about some text-based interviews for the sake of qualitative and informative tumblr posts, please send me a message!
(NB: if I have used any names of languages that are not preferred, tell me and I will change them. I don’t know a lot about the non-Celtic and non-Germanic languages here, which is part of my reason for wanting to make this series of posts in the first place.)
Please reblog so more people see this!
- meichenxi
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louistonehill · 10 months
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Explaining the path home
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starlightshadowsworld · 9 months
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Happy Disability Pride month and a big ol fuck you to Alexander Graham Bell.
Who despite having a deaf mother who he communicated with via tapping certain things to.
And thus having an understanding that she needed something other than verbal communication to understand things.
.... Saw deaf people as "a defective race".
He wanted deaf people eradicated and at his school for the deaf, he banned the use of sign language.
Yeah he saw sign language as a foreign language.
And as he was also a racist and very against immigration, he went all "we're in America and in America we speak English and only English."
So glad thats not a thing anymore...
His answer to this was that deaf people should be unable to marry other deaf people.
Lest they produce more deaf children a which he saw as a "great calamity that could ruin humanity."
Well jokes on him because 90% of deaf children are born to hearing parents.
And if you think he kept those opinions to himself... Nope.
Encouraged by him, in 1880, the Second International Congress on the Education of the Deaf was held.
164 delagates were in attendence, only one of which was deaf.
And they voted to banned sign language in schools.
As an "effort to encourage spoken language skills, and thus restore the Deaf-mute to society."
... By actively taking away what for many was the only way they could communicate in society.
People who had their own community that he wanted destroyed.
But the deaf community is still thriving.
Decades of campaigning resulted in British Sign Language bring recognised by the UK Parliament and passing the BSL Act.
... In 2022.
Yes it was technically recognised in 2003, and was legally recognised in 2015 in Scotland.
But not over all of the UK and did not have the same protections and recognition as it does now.
As of the passing of that bill, there were around 90,000 deaf people in the UK that have BSL as their first or preferred language.
Which I'm sure Alexander Graham Bell was rolling in his grave at hearing.
Also, he is credited as the inventor of the telephone but he may not actually have invented it.
So yeah Happy Disability Pride month and maybe learn some sign language.
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dreamdropsystem · 1 year
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this user is learning sign language
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moth-of-chaos · 10 months
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this is a petition to add british sign language to the uk national curriculum. if you could sign (uk residents only) or reblog that would be really helpful :)
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bodhrancomedy · 11 months
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He’s… an interesting young lad.
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iconuk01 · 8 months
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Dr Cameron, who is profoundly deaf, leads the sign language project at Edinburgh University, which has just added 200 new environmental science terms to the BSL dictionary.
She described how, in her own scientific career, a lack of vocabulary meant she was excluded from important meetings and conversations.
"I was involved in research for 11 years and went to numerous meetings but was never was truly involved because I couldn't understand what people were saying," she told BBC News. "I wanted to talk with people about chemistry and I just wasn't able to."
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thekintsugikid · 9 months
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patrick in salt lake city <3
(📷 : ness.holt)
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unclepolyglot · 6 months
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Writing Signed Languages in Fanfics
so i recently got into learning ASL (which is amazing!! i love it so much!!) and am planning to reference it when writing a Legend of Zelda fanfic, like certain facial expressions or how quickly/forcefully a sign is made, etc.
the thing is, since i'm hearing, i'm wondering if those of you who are d/Deaf or HoH can give me some tips on how to write a signing character, like things you wish you'd see in fanfics, or things you wish writers would stop doing.
also, to show that the MC is communicating in another language other than English, i'm thinking of using these Japanese 「quotation brackets」. thoughts?
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Like this post if you speak a Sign Language
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