Deaf Literature Sampler: Creative
Artists
Asterik * indicates a D/deaf
author. All book reviews are either from Amazon, the Einstein Catalog, publishing
catalogs, bibliographies in the back of anthologies, Janet Rosen, a librarian
from Washington, DC, and articles by Robert Panara. Efforts have been made to
include as many genres as possible—nonfiction (autobiographies, personal
narratives, biographies, essays, interviews and articles), drama, fiction (novels,
historical fiction) poetry (ASL and English) and ASL Literature. All formats
are covered, including videos.
For more books on this topic,
check the Einstein Catalog and search by keywords deaf and artist* or deaf and
author* or deaf and actor* http://albert.rit.edu/.
For more articles on this topic, check out the Gallaudet Index to Deaf Periodicals
which includes citations to Deaf Life and other popular deaf publications.http://liblists.wrlc.org/gadpi/home.htm . Another database you might want to try is the NTID Deaf Index. Go to the Deaf Studies databases and explore. http://wally.rit.edu/electronic/topic/deafstudies.html
If a book is not housed at Wallace Library or ETRR , try Connect NY http://www.connectny.info/screens/opacmenu.html
to see if area college libraries have it. If not, send your request via
Interlibrary Loan http://wally.rit.edu/myaccount/ill.html.
Your book usually arrives within a few days.
Also, The Tactile Mind is a literary print publication for the
signing community. http://www.thetactilemind.com/.
We have this publication on the CMS and in bound periodical format (back
issues). 2nd floor PER PS508.D43T335. Another journal you might find useful is Sign Language Studies available
online via the Einstein Catalog in the Project Muse database. http://albert.rit.edu/search/tsign+language+studies/tsign+language+studies/1,2,9,B/frameset&FF=tsign+language+studies&7,,8/indexsort=-.
English and ASL/BSL Literature, Folklore, Poetry Articles
*Bahan, B.J. "ASL Literature:
Inside the Story”. Deaf studies: What's up?: Conference Proceedings,
October 24-25, 1991. Ed. J. Cebe . Washington, D.C.: Gallaudet University,
Continuing and Summer Studies, 1992. 4th floor HV2526.D42 1992.
*Bauman, H.L. "Line/Shot/Montage:
Cinematic Techniques in ASL Poetry". Deaf studies VI: Making the
Connection: Conference Proceedings. April 8-11, 1999. Ed. J. Cebe. Washington,
DC: College for Continuing Education, Gallaudet University, 1999. 4th floor,
HV2526.D423 1999.
Christie, Karen and Dorothy
M. Wilkins. “Endnote. A Feast for the Eyes: ASL Literacy and ASL Literature.
“ Journal
of Deaf Studies and Deaf Education 2:1 (1997): 57.
All Languages and cultures have literatures through which they pass down stories
and transmit the experience and values of a group of people. In the late 1960s,
linguistic analysis of American Sign Language (ASL) documented that the language
of Deaf Americans was bona fide. By the 1980s, cultural descriptions of the
Deaf-World began to appear in publications. In more recent times, the literature
of ASL has been recognized and celebrated. Perhaps one of the more formal celebrations
of ASL literature has been the 1991 and 1996 national American Sign Language
Literature Conferences at Rochester, New York
Eldredge, B.K. “He
and I: The Depersonalization of Self in an ASL Narrative”. Deaf studies
VI: Making the Connection: Conference Proceedings. April 8-11, 1999.
Ed. J. Cebe. Washington, DC: College for Continuing Education, Gallaudet University,
1999. 4th floor, HV2526.D423 1999.
Keeleher, J.F. and J.J.
Fernandes. “The World According to (the) Deaf: The Place of ASL Literature
in a Comprehensive Deaf Studies Curriculum”. Deaf Studies for Educators.
(Proceedings of the Conference, March 7-10, 1991). Ed. J. Cebe Washington,
D.C.:College for Continuing Education, Gallaudet University, 1992. 4th floor,
HV2526 .D422 1992.
Kennedy, D. and Peterson,
L. “Mirror Images: ASL and English Poetry as Reflections of a Language
and Culture". Deaf studies VI: Making the Connection: Conference
Proceedings. April 8-11, 1999. Ed. J. Cebe. Washington, DC: College
for Continuing Education, Gallaudet University, 1999. 4th floor, HV2526.D423
1999.
Low, W. "Colors of ASL....A World Expressed: ASL Poetry in the Curriculum".
Deaf Studies for Educators. (Proceedings of the Conference, March 7-10,
1991). Ed. J. Cebe. Washington, D.C.:College for Continuing Education,
Gallaudet University, 1992. 4th floor, HV2526 .D422 1992.
Marsh, C. ”ASL Literature”.
Deaf studies VI: Making the Connection: Conference Proceedings. April
8-11, 1999. Ed. J. Cebe. Washington, DC: College for Continuing Education,
Gallaudet University, 1999. 4th floor, HV2526.D423 1999.
*Peters, Cynthia. “Rathskellar:
Some Oral Traditions and Not So Traditional Characteristics of ASL Literature.”
Deaf World: A Historical Reader and Primary Sourcebook. Ed. Lois Bragg.
New York: NYU UP, 2001. REF, 4th floor and ETRR HV2545.D43 2001.
Sutton- Spence, Rachel.
“British Sign Language Poetry : A Linguistic Analysis of the Work of Dorothy
Miles”. Signed Languages: Discoveries from International Research.
Ed. Valerie Dively. Washington, DC: Gallaudet University Press, 2001.
3rd floor and ETRR (2 copies) P117 .S54 2001.
*Supalla, S.J. and B.J. Bahan. "American Sign Language Literature Series:
Research and Development". Deaf Studies for Educators. (Proceedings
of the Conference, March 7-10, 1991). Ed. J. Cebe. Washington, D.C.:
College for Continuing Education, Gallaudet University, 1992. 4th floor, HV2526
.D422 1992.
*Valli, C. "A Need
in Deaf Education: ASL Artistic Expression". Deaf Studies for Educators.
(Proceedings of the Conference, March 7-10, 1991). Ed. J. Cebe. Washington,
D.C.: College for Continuing Education, Gallaudet University, 1992. 4th floor,
HV2526 .D422 1992.
Books
*Brueggemann, Brenda Jo. Lend me your ear: Rhetorical constructions of deafness. Washington, DC: Gallaudet UP, 1999. (4th floor HV 2380.B69. ETRR has 2 copies).
The tradition of rhetoric established 2,500 years ago emphasizes the imperative of speech as a defining characteristic of reason. But this book exposes this tradition's effect of disallowing deaf people human identity because of their natural silence.Brueggemann's assault upon this long-standing rhetorical conceit is both erudite and personal; she writes both as a scholar and as a hard-of-hearing woman. In this broadly based study, she presents a profound analysis and understanding of this rhetorical tradition's descendent disciplines (e.g., audiology, speech/language pathology) that continue to limit deaf people. Next to this even-handed scholarship, she juxtaposes a volatile emotional counterpoint achieved through interviews with Deaf individuals who have faced rhetorically constructed restrictions, and interludes of her own poetry and memoirs.
The energized structure of Lend Me Your Ear galvanizes new thought on the rhetoric surrounding Deaf people by posing basic questions from a rhetorical context: How is deafness constructed as a disability, pathology, or culture through the institutions of literacy education and science/technology, and how do these constructions fit with those of deaf people themselves? The rhetoric of deafness as pathology is associated with the conventional medical and scientific establishments, and literacy education fosters deafness as disability, both dependent upon the premise that speech drives communication.
This kinetic study demands consideration of deafness in terms of the rhetoric of Deaf culture, American Sign Language (ASL), and the political activism of Deaf people. Brueggemann argues strenuously and successfully for a reevaluation of the speech model of rhetoric in light of the singular qualities of ASL poetry, a genre that adds the dimension of space and is not disembodied. Ironically, without a word being spoken or printed, ASL poetry returns to the fading, prized oral tradition of poets such as Homer. The speech imperative in traditional rhetoric also fails to present rhetorical forms for listening, or a rhetoric of silence. These and other break-out concepts introduced in Lend Me Your Ear that will stimulate scholars and students of rhetoric, language, and Deaf studies to return to this intriguing work again and again. (from Gallaudet University Press web site).
Cohn, Jim. Sign Mind: Studies in ASL Poetics. Boulder, CO: Museum
of American Poetics, 1999. 4th floor and ETRR HV2474.C63 1999.
*Luczak, Raymond. Silence
is a Four-Letter Word : On Art & Deafness. Minneapolis, MN: The
Tactile Mind, 2002. ETRR and 3rd floor N8356.D43 L833 2002.
Raymond Luczak, poet, playwright, and filmmaker, hands us Silence is a Four-Letter
Word, as his call to arms for deaf artists everywhere. He uses a cross-platform
approach - a short story, a series of rapid-fire mini-essays, a short play,
and a self-interview - to illuminate his points. His meditations on what makes
art "art" and deafness "deaf" asks artists everywhere to
rethink observations on their work and live differently.
Mirzoeff, Nicholas. Silent
Poetry: Deafness, Sign, and Visual Culture in Modern France. Princeton,
NJ: Princeton UP, 1995. 4th floor and ETTR HV2471.M57 1995.
*Padden, Carol and Tom Humphries.
Deaf in America: Voices from a Culture. Cambridge, Mass. : Harvard
UP, 1988. RES, 4th floor (2 copies) and ETRR (4 copies). HV2545
.P33 1988.
Through the use of folklore, apocryphal stories, poetry, jokes, and discussion
of split factions and advocacy organizations, Padden and Humphries gracefully
explain how deaf culture works, what it means to its members, how they define
themselves within it, and how they interact with the world outside.”
*Peters, Cynthia. Deaf
American Literature: From Carnival to Canon. Washington, DC: Gallaudet
UP, 2000. 4th floor, HV2471 .P38 2000.
"The moment when a society must contend with a powerful language other
than its own is a decisive point in its evolution. This moment is occurring
now in American society." Cynthia Peters explains precisely how ASL literature
achieved this moment, tracing its past and predicting its future in this trailblazing
study. Peters connects ASL literature to the literary canon with the archetypal
notion of carnival as "the counterculture of the dominated." Throughout
history carnivals have been opportunities for the "low," disenfranchised
elements of society to displace their "high" counterparts. Citing
the Deaf community's long tradition of "literary nights" and festivals
like Deaf Way, Peters recognizes similar forces at work in the propagation of
ASL literature. The agents of this movement, Deaf artists and ASL performers–"Tricksters,"
as Peters calls them–jump between the two cultures and languages, creating
as synthesis that robs English of its literary content and raises ASL to an
art form. Peters applies her analysis to the craft's landmark works, including
Douglas Bullard's novel Islay and Ben Bahan's video-recorded narrative Bird
of a Different Feather. This text, the only work of its kind, is its own seminal
moment in the emerging discipline of ASL literary criticism.
Drama
*Eastman, G.C. Sign
me Alice and Laurent Clerc: A Profile-Two Deaf Plays. San Diego, CA:
DawnSignPress. 3rd floor, RES and ETRR. PS3555.A717 S5 1997.
Comes with a companion teacher’s guide RES PS3555.A717 S52 1997.
These plays are works about deaf people and deaf culture. Profiles Laurent Clerc.
Sign Me Alice is a spoof on “My Fair Lady”, about turning an ASL using
character into an English signing one and the character’s rebellion.
*Luczak, Raymond. “Six
Women in Search of a Perfect Play.” Silence is a Four-Letter Word:
On Art and Deafness. Minneapolis, MN: The Tactile Mind, 2002.
RES PS3552.U2554 S59 1993.
This is a series of monologues written for one actress.
*Luczak, Raymond. Snooty:
A Comedy. Minneapolis, MN: The Tactile Mind, 2001.
*Miles, Dorothy. Trouble’s
Just Beginning: A Play of Our Own. RES and Archives, 3rd floor PR6063.I316
P53 1973 and E-Reserve.
Autobiographies/Personal
Narratives
Artists
*Baird, Chuck. 35
Plates. San Diego, CA: DawnSignPress, 1993. 3rd floor (2 copies) and
ETRR ND 237.B226A4 1993.
This book shows art plates by Chuck Baird using the De'VIA genre. He also shares
some autobiographical material.
Artist Video Autobiography
*Wonder, Guy. Guy
Wonder: Stories and Artwork. Minneapolis, MN: Tactile Mind, 2003. 4th floor and ETRR HV2534.W66 A3 2003.
This documentary is the closest thing to an autobiography of a Deaf artist you'll
ever get your hands on. Guy Wonder is a third-generation Deaf man who has led
a captivating life. Funny and sad stories about growing up in a Deaf family
and in a Deaf school, becoming an artist in New York City, and making a new
niche for himself in San Francisco fill this DVD. And Guy Wonder: Stories and
Artwork answers the question: How did he become a Deaf artist? Along with the
stories, a ton of extras, and a conversation with the director about signing
creativity, Guy Wonder gives a tour of his artwork, all of which draws you into
the same room with this unforgettable Deaf artist.
Actors
*Baldwin, Stephen C. Pictures
in the Air: The Story of the National Theater of the Deaf. Washington,
DC: Gallaudet UP, 1993. RES and ETRR (2 copies) HV2508.B35 1993.
*Bragg, Bernard. Lessons in Laughter: The Memoirs of a Deaf Actor.
(as signed to Eugene Bergmann). Washington, D.C. : Gallaudet UP,
1989. 3rd floor (2 copies) and ETRR PN2287.B6827A31989. See video.
To succeed as an actor is a rare feat. To succeed as a deaf actor is nothing
short of amazing. Lessons in Laughter is the story of Bernard Bragg and his
astonishing lifelong achievements in the performing arts. Born deaf of deaf
parents, Bernard Bragg has won international renown as an actor, director, playwright,
and lecturer. Lessons in Laughter recounts in stories that are humorous, painful,
touching, and outrageous, the growth of his dream of using the beauty of sign
language to act. He starred in his own television show "The Quiet Man",
helped found The National Theatre of the Deaf, and traveled worldwide to teach
his acting methods.
*Colefax, Nola. Signs
of Change: My Autobiography and History of Australian Theatre of the Deaf: 1973-1983.
Parramatta, Australia: Deafness Resources Australia, 1999. 4th floor, HV2942
.C654 1999.
*Gremion, Jean. Deaf
Planet: A Personal Journey of Discovery. Haverford, Pa: Infinity,
2002. RES HV2508 .G746 2002
Deaf Planet is a captivating account of the founding of the IVT (International
Visual Theatre) in Paris. Diversity, identity and intergroup issues are explored
in relation to deaf communities in France and the United States. The book also
exposes the social and legal hurdles facing deaf people, especially in education
and on the job market, and provides historical background on sign language and
its repression. The author describes the efforts of deaf individuals to heighten
the awareness of healthcare professionals and thereby help them work more effectively
with deaf people by accepting their "otherness."
Biographies
Moore, Matthew S. “Leading
Light: A Tribute to Bruce Hlibok.” Deaf Life 8:3 (Sept. 1995):
8-19.
Performers
*Glennie, Evelyn. Good
Vibrations: My Autobiography. London: Hutchinson, 1990. 4th floor HV2717.G546A3
1990.
Evelyn G. is a famous percussionist. See video.
Video
Playing from the Heart.
Dir. Elizabeth McNamer. Perf. Evelyn Glennie. Globalstage Productions, 1998..
98 mins. Color/Voiced/Captioned. 4th floor, PN1995.9.D35 P539
1998.
Story of the young life of famous percussionist Evelyn Glennie who began to
lose her hearing at the age of eight, performed by the Polka Children's Theatre
of Wimbledon, England. Includes a brief look at London, several percussion performances,
and an interview with Evelyn Glennie. See book.
Videos ASL
Fiction
The Key. Key Films, 1996. 55 mins. Color/Signed/Captioned. 3rd
floor, PS3545.E6 K49 1996
An American Sign Language adaptation of the Eudora Welty short story in which
a woman and man who are travelling from Louisiana to Niagra Falls for different
reasons meet a drifter who has the power to help or hinder them. Intended to
be equally accessible to both the hearing and the deaf. The making of the key
examines how this unique deaf/hearing collaboration was achieved . Dialogue
in ASL, subtitled in English
ASL Poetry
*Flying Words Project, Visual Theatre des Sourds. Perf. Peter
Cook and Kenny Lerner. NTID, 1991. ETRR Video 5959.
*Poetry in Motion:
Original Works in ASL. Perf. Patrick Graybill. Sign Media, 1990. 41
mins. Color/Signed. 3rd floor, PS 3572.R2921P375 1990.
Patrick Graybill creates and develops ASL poems. He presents several of his
original poems such as "Liberation", "Distant Call", "Surprise",
"Reflection", "Paradox", and "Memories". A translation
of the poem, "Not Waving but Drowning is also presented.
*Poetry in Motion:
Original Works in ASL. Perf. Debbie Rennie. Sign Media, 1990. 100 mins.
Color/Signed. 3rd floor, PS 3572.E493D45 1990.
Debbie R. creates and develops ASL poems. She presents and discusses several
of her original poems, including "Swan", "Veal Boycott",
"Nature Metaphor", "Missing Children", "Black Hole:
Color ASL", "Notre Dame", "Alien", "Rape Chocolate",
and "Big Dog vs. Little Dog."
*Poetry in Motion:
Original Works in ASL. Perf. Clayton Valli. Sign Media, 1990. 37 mins.
Color/Signed. 3rd floor, PS 3572.A424 C53 1990.
Clayton Valli creates and develops his poems in ASL. He presents and discusses
several of his original poems, including "Cave", "Lone Sturdy
Tree", "Hands", "Snowflake", "Windy Bright Morning",
"My Favorite Old Summer House", and "Dandelion".
*The Treasure.
Dir. Lynnette Taylor. Prod. Cheri Smith, Ken Mikos and Ella Mae Lentz. Perf.
Ella Mae Lentz. In Motion, 1995. 60 mins. Color/Voiced/Signed. 3rd floor
PS3562.E47 T74 1995, ETRR VIDEO 6485 (2 copies) and ETC VH
1456.
Ella Mae Lentz is a noted ASL poetess. Travels with Malz.. Travels with Malz,
the next generation.. Eye music.. The baseball game.. Silence oh painful.. Circle
of life. To a hearing mother.. The dogs.. The door.. Children's garden.. The
treasure
Autobiographies/Personal
Narratives Videos
*An Interview with Bernard Bragg: The Man Behind the Mask. Dir./Prod.
Joe Dannis. Perf. Bernard Bragg. 213 mins. Color/Voiced/Signed/Captioned. DawnSignPress,
1995. 6 video set 3rd floor, PN2287.B6827 A3 1995, ETRR VIDEO 6518 and ETC VH 1459. See companion book.
Bernard Braggs' series of stories of his life and career--growing up as a deaf
child in a deaf family, working with Marcel Marceau, developing the sign-mime
theater, and helping to found the National Theatre of the Deaf. Based on his
fascinating autobiography, Lessons in laughter, Bragg's memories are amusing,
painful, outrageous and above all, inspiring to Deaf and hearing persons alike.
*An Interview with
Bernard Bragg and Robert Panara. 54 mins. Color/Voiced/Signed/Captioned.
Rochester, NY: NTID/RIT, 1978. ETRR VIDEO 5280.
*Deaf Culture Autobiography:
Gil Eastman. Perf. Gil Eastman. Sign Enhancers, 1989. 40 mins. Color/Voiced/Signed
4th floor, HV 2395.D465 no 8A and ETRR 5970. Using ASL, Emmy
award winner Gilbert Eastman shares his personal frustrations and inspiring
triumphs. He demonstrates his artistry in two performances of music in sign
language: The National Anthem and an original song called Winners.
*Deaf Culture Autobiography: Howie Seago. Perf. Howie Seago. Sign Enhancers,
1990. 38 mins. Color/Voiced/Signed. 4th floor, HV2395.D465
no 8H and ETRR 5970.
Howie became famous when he acted in the TV series, "Star Trek: The Next
Generation”. He shares his life story.
*Deaf Culture Autobiography:
Patrick Graybill.
Perf. Patrick Graybill. Sign Enhancers, 1990. 30 mins. Color/Voiced/Signed.
4th floor, HV2395.D465 no 8G and ETRR 5970.
Patrick is a Deaf storyteller who has delighted audiences all over the world.
We take an intimate look into his multi-gifted life and watch him perform a
children's fable, "The Stork and the Fox".
Biography Videos
*On and Off Stage: the Bruce Hlibok Story. Dir. Ann Marie Bryan.
NYU, 2002. 3rd floor, PN1998.3.H55 O65 2002
*Robert Panara, A
Profile. Rochester, NY: NTID/RIT, 1984. 28 mins. Color/Voiced/Captioned/Signed.
ETRR VIDEO 5573.
World Wide Web Links:
http://wally.rit.edu/internet/subject/deafness.html#cul
http://wally.rit.edu/internet/subject/deafness.html#ent
Guide created by
Joan Naturale 31 March 2004.
Email: JXNWML@rit.edu
Links checked 17 August 2004.
|
