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==Ancient Greece== |
==Ancient Greece== |
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Sign language was first pointed out in ancient Greece. In one of Plato's dialouges he describes how the deaf used gestures to mimic moving objects through similar motions. Plato quotes his teacher Socrates in the Cratylus as follows: "if we had neither voice nor tongue, and yet wished to manifest things to one another, should we not, like those which are at present mute, endeavour to signify our meaning by the hands, head, and other parts of the body?....I think, therefore that if we wished to signify that which is upwards and light, we should raise our hands towards the heaven, imitating the nature of the thing itself; but that if we wished to indicate things downwards and heavy, we should point with our hands to the earth..." |
Sign language was first pointed out in ancient Greece. In one of Plato's dialouges he describes how the deaf used gestures to mimic moving objects through similar motions. Plato quotes his teacher Socrates in the Cratylus as follows: "if we had neither voice nor tongue, and yet wished to manifest things to one another, should we not, like those which are at present mute, endeavour to signify our meaning by the hands, head, and other parts of the body?....I think, therefore that if we wished to signify that which is upwards and light, we should raise our hands towards the heaven, imitating the nature of the thing itself; but that if we wished to indicate things downwards and heavy, we should point with our hands to the earth..." . Unlike ancient Egypt the Greeks felt it was better to kill anyone with a disability. The deaf were included in this catagory in Athens beause their idea was that anyone who would be a "burden to society" should be but to deaf because this was in the "best interests of the state." <ref name="The HistoryofDeaf People">{{cite book}}</ref>. This was due to the fact that war and conflict occured continuously and certain abilities were concidered important to have. "Everyone was meant to serve the state.<ref name="The HistoryofDeaf People">{{cite book}}</ref> Philospher Aristotle along with Greek physicisn Galen concluded that the deaf could never speak, believing that the ability to speak and hear were linked; being derived from the same area in the brain. Galen feeling that if one capability was impaired the other would be impaired also was considered to be correct. Additionally Aristotle's views which were similarly related to Galen's were also viewed as accurate and this idea went unchallenged untion the sixteenth century A.D.<ref name="The History of Deaf People">{{cite book}}</ref> |
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==First People Known for Educationing the Deaf== |
==First People Known for Educationing the Deaf== |
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The deaf community over time has made many effforts to educate and inform others outside of their walls, metaphorically, of their cultral aspects and teach them their ways. However the history of deaf education is not widely known.
During the era B.C the disabled were not harmed or killed by the egyptians even though they had birth defects. This is due to the fact that the egyptians lived by a philanthropic way of life. The deaf were considered to be especially selected by the gods because of their peculiar behavior. This behavior was a direct result of their disability to hear. They were treated respectfully and educated, usually through the use of hieroglyphs and gesture signs. [1]
Sign language was first pointed out in ancient Greece. In one of Plato's dialouges he describes how the deaf used gestures to mimic moving objects through similar motions. Plato quotes his teacher Socrates in the Cratylus as follows: "if we had neither voice nor tongue, and yet wished to manifest things to one another, should we not, like those which are at present mute, endeavour to signify our meaning by the hands, head, and other parts of the body?....I think, therefore that if we wished to signify that which is upwards and light, we should raise our hands towards the heaven, imitating the nature of the thing itself; but that if we wished to indicate things downwards and heavy, we should point with our hands to the earth..." . Unlike ancient Egypt the Greeks felt it was better to kill anyone with a disability. The deaf were included in this catagory in Athens beause their idea was that anyone who would be a "burden to society" should be but to deaf because this was in the "best interests of the state." [1]. This was due to the fact that war and conflict occured continuously and certain abilities were concidered important to have. "Everyone was meant to serve the state.[1] Philospher Aristotle along with Greek physicisn Galen concluded that the deaf could never speak, believing that the ability to speak and hear were linked; being derived from the same area in the brain. Galen feeling that if one capability was impaired the other would be impaired also was considered to be correct. Additionally Aristotle's views which were similarly related to Galen's were also viewed as accurate and this idea went unchallenged untion the sixteenth century A.D.[1]
Many critics credit Ponce with being the first person to educated the deaf, but it is stated by Van Cleve in Deaf History Unveiled that he was in fact not the first person to educate the deaf but the first person to teach the deaf to speak. He then argues that a monk from La Estrella who's name is not given is the first person that should be acredited with educating the deaf. Contrastingly in the History of Deaf People written by Per Eriksson, he credits St. John of Beveley with being the first person to educate the deaf. This St. John was the archbishop of York, England around 700 A.D. He is considerd to be the first to disagree with Arisotle's view of the deaf.
