Deaf Again Journal

Deaf Again Journal Studying American Sign Language, I have learned a lot about the Deaf community and I also have learned a lot about their language, American Sign Language, hoping to be someday fluent. By reading Deaf Again By Mark Drolsbaugh, I have learned even more about the life of a Deaf person. Drolsbaugh not only tells you how he became Deaf he also tells the story of his life. This intriguing autobiography, by Mark Drolsbaugh, has taught me more about the life of a Deaf person than I can ever hope to find out.

Many deaf children, born or soon after became deaf, are not raised by sign communication and, I’ve always wondered why. By reading more into this novel, I have realized that it has helped me to better understand how people can become Deaf or hard of hearing, and teaches me how Deaf people live their lives in the hearing world. Drolsbaugh wasn’t born deaf but later on in his childhood slowly became deaf. I saw him struggle in school. I saw him try to live the life of a hearing person and pass his classes as such. Learning sign language takes time and concentration.

In order to learn American Sign Language you must try to see through the eyes, or in this case, hear through the ears of a Deaf or hard of hearing individual. Drolsbaugh later learned that not learning to sign had impacted his academics negatively and his development through life. As a hearing person struggles through life to find their place in their community, Drolsbaugh struggles to find his place in the Deaf community. This novel is surrounding the audiences of teens and young adults dealing with their everyday lives.

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The novel, in addition gives the necessary advice to those people, young or old, who were born deaf, or who recently became deaf. The impactful life of Mark Drolsbaugh gives the audience the confidence to find out who they are in life and where they were meant to be. For the Deaf people, this novel gives them a safe haven inside their heads. It also gives them something and someone to relate to. Drolsbaugh gives every reader a walk through his shoes. He shows you the ups and downs of being born with deaf parents and eventually becoming deaf himself and never earning sign language early in his childhood. He explains the battles living in a hearing world and barely knows sign language and ultimately learning and being able to correspond, but only with other Deaf people like himself. He didn’t really know it but he had the support of the Deaf community. Only when he went to Gallaudet University did he realize that they were there behind him. Gallaudet gave him even more confidence to continue his roller coaster journey to become an astonishing author. In my honest opinion I didn’t find many weaknesses in this book.

Mark Drolsbaughs strengths were his capabilities to be born hearing with Deaf parents. Gradually become deaf and not know or understand a single sign of American Sign Language, attend hearing people schools which had little Deaf teaching. Attend a college in which he wasn’t too happy to attend. Make money by working in a supermarket surrounded by hearing people. Eventually studying at Gallaudet and finally being at peace when surrounded by people who “speak” just like him, in American Sign Language.

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Hes been through a lot showing the world that hes not just surviving through his life but he is living it for the moment, and hes living it as a Deaf person. Being an idealistic student with wonderful grades and academics getting into Harvard-type schools wasn’t so easy being deaf as he explained through chapter 6. After being accepted into Germantown Friends’ School he self taught himself, with help from a few caring people. He struggled through just as any student would through high school but he had to make sure he “heard” his teacher’s lectures appropriately.

Drolsbaugh eventually took up Tae Kwon Do and it then gave him the assurance and self esteem he lacked living in a hearing world. It relieved him of any worries and stress and helped him through his effort in life. In his efforts to prove to the world that a Deaf person can live, no survive, in the Deaf community and in the hearing community, he succeeded. He, as any young adult, starts out working at a small temporary job, like a supermarket, and progressively makes his way in to bigger and better things. He graduated Gallaudet with his bachelors and decided to go for his Masters in grad school.

He even got married, to Melanie. He showed the world that deaf people can make it in the hearing world. Mark Drolsbaugh’s main message in this book is “being Deaf isn’t a disability or handicap, it’s a blessing”. He portrayed this messaged when he showed the world that deaf people can go to a “regular” school and still be able to do extraordinary thing. He lost his self confidence when he became deaf but got it back whilst taking Tae Kwon Do. He met the girl of his dreams and married her. He went on to become an astonishing writer and wrote this autobiography.

He found that he can depend on the Deaf community to be there for him as he is for them. He found that although he is Deaf, he can defy the expectations of the entire world and bring out the best in himself. He and Melanie also had 3 beautiful children, hearing. No matter whether they remain hearing or slowly become deaf they are still people and will go on to live their normal lives. I absolutely loved this book. To be able to read a book that actually catches my attention for longer than five minutes was almost impossible.

After reading this autobiography about the life of a Deaf person it helped me to believe, although I am not deaf, that I can be what I amount to be, no matter my weaknesses. This novel gave me the strength to try n build my self esteem and also showed me that I am not alone when it comes to having a low confidence in myself. I’ve always been fascinated by the Deaf community and the American Sign Language. I have always wondered what it would be like to be Deaf, and would it be hard, but just like a hearing person in school its still hard.

Life is never easy even if you are hearing. And just because you don’t have something that everyone else has, that doesn’t make you any less of a brilliant person. This book gave me the heart to go on to get my masters and become a Deaf elementary school teacher so I too can teach, not only deaf, but hearing students too, about being deaf and hopefully being able to teach them some Sign Language so it can benefit them to become a part of the Deaf community. Maybe I can enlighten a Deaf child to read Deaf Again and hopefully watch them grow to be a author like Mr. Mark Drolsbaugh.

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