If You Give Me Three Days of Light: The Best Collection of Helen Keller

Chapter 55 Speeches and Essays (1)
Helen Keller's Speech

On July 1896, 7, the No. 8th annual meeting of the Association for the Promotion of Language Education for the Deaf was held at Mount Erik Hall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA.Below is Helen Keller's speech at the conference.

Today, I am able to stand here and give a speech. My joy is indescribable. I think that if you have a better understanding of the value of the deaf-mute speaking, you will understand my mood better. Moreover, you You will also understand why I hope that every deaf child in the world can have the opportunity to learn to speak.

I know that "oral language education" has always been concerned and discussed by many people, and even teachers in schools for the deaf have very different views on this issue.This makes me wonder, how can there be so many different opinions on the same question?What makes me even more incomprehensible is that when we can express our thoughts in vivid language, how can those who pay attention to our growth fail to notice the joy in our hearts?Of course, despite my relentless use of spoken language,

It's that I don't want to tell you about the happiness that "speaking" brings to me.Because I don't expect strangers to always understand you, but I believe that this situation will change soon.

Also, there are no words to express the joy I feel knowing that my family and loved ones are crying with joy that I can speak.At home, my sweet little sister and brother love to let me tell them stories as we unwind the long summer nights.Also, my mother and teachers often let me read to them their favorite books.

Sometimes I also discuss the political situation with my dear father, and we seek solutions to the most difficult problems until we are all satisfied.During the discussion, I acted like an able-bodied person who could see and hear.So, you see, what a benefit it has been for me to be able to speak up, it has allowed me to maintain harmony and harmony with the people I love.It also allows me to revel in the joy of making good friends.What a blessing this is to me.If I could not speak, the bond between me and my friends would be severed, and I would be plunged into endless loneliness.

Until now, I still clearly remember the situation before I learned to speak. At that time, I always expressed my opinions and thoughts with sign language letters, but unfortunately, my thoughts were always against my fingertips. Like a bird struggling to be free, I was not free until one day Miss Fuller opened the door of my prison for me.I don't know if she remembers how eager I was to spread my wings and fly.

Of course, the first "flying" is not easy. The "speech wings" are fragile and fragile, and there are no conditions that can stimulate them to fly unless they want to fly.When a man has the urge to fly, he is never satisfied with crawling.However, I sometimes have the feeling that I am simply against "God's will" and insist on using my "speech wings".But I believe that God is merciful and fraternal. He knows my wish and will definitely help me through this difficult journey.So I work harder, and I know that patience and perseverance will definitely win the final victory.

While studying hard, I am also realizing all my dreams step by step, building the most beautiful castle in the sky.And the happiest moment for me is when I can talk like everyone else.It is with this happy thought that I turn every effort into a sweet experience, and every failure into a motivation to try again, so that my mother can hear my voice again.

So, to my deaf fellow citizens who are trying to learn to speak, and to the teachers who are teaching them to speak: Although you put yourself in a difficult task, if you persevere, you will succeed. So cheer up!Don't worry about today's failure, because success may come unexpectedly tomorrow.And, in overcoming difficulties, you will find a kind of joy, the joy of trekking on rough roads-if you never slip and slip, if your feet are on a smooth road, then, You will never taste such joy.Remember that happiness gained without effort is easily lost.We'll talk, we'll talk, and yes, we'll sing too, because God needs to hear us speak and sing.No matter when, where, and in what way, we should find our own happiness.

Anne Sullivan's Speech
In July 1894, Miss Sullivan presented a paper at the Congress of the Association for the Promotion of the Language Education of the Deaf held in Chautauqua Lake, New York, USA. The paper contained Miss Sullivan's expression of her latest teaching methods , this paragraph is taken from this paper.

You can never imagine that when Helen learned that everything has a name, she immediately became a "power woman" who opened up the treasure house of English.One of her ardent admirers once said of her that "her mind was opened, and she awoke from her slumber, as Peles Athena emerged from the head of Zeus."We believe what he said is true.

First, Helen's memory unknowingly reproduces the language we use.Because the words, phrases, and sentences she uses to express her thoughts come from the conversations we have with her, which is, in fact, how all children should normally behave, whose language is a reflection of the language they hear at home. memory.Certain words and phrases in everyday conversation become imprinted on a child's memory after countless repetitions.When they start learning to speak, "memory" feeds words to their lips.Language comes from life and grows out of the needs and experiences of life.Likewise, the language spoken by an educated man is a memory of the language of books.In fact, language and knowledge are symbiotic and interdependent.Profound language attainments must be based on real talent and real learning as a prerequisite.

In terms of language learning, I never "teach for the sake of teaching", I don't do it deliberately.This is because language always exists as a means of exchanging ideas, therefore, the learning of language occurs simultaneously with the acquisition of knowledge.At first, Helen's mind was almost blank, and she lived in a world she couldn't recognize.But when Helen knew that everything had a name, I immediately spelled the names of these things to her in the sign language alphabet.And, I will continue to arouse her interest in learning to spell the names of objects, and I will give her the joy of learning.

In order to use language skillfully, one must have something to say, and talking naturally leads to the acquisition of life experience.A lot of curriculum training does not make our children use language freely unless they have a clear intention to communicate in their minds.Or we can succeed in stimulating her intellectual curiosity—to know what other people think, and to be willing to absorb the essence of other people's thinking.

During the first two years of Helen's intellectual initiation, I did not want to confine my students to a system of education.I always try to find out what interests her most, and then use it as a starting point for new lessons, so that her interests will not conflict with my teaching plan.

I also rarely ask her to write.I often think that the only time we can ask children to write is when they have something to say.Only when they are taught to speak freely and express their thoughts freely, will they put the words on the pen, because by this time, they already feel uncomfortable.Moreover, writing requires some intellectual preparation.Memory is stored as the mind and thought work, and it is strengthened by the accumulation of knowledge.After that, writing will become a natural and pleasant labor process.

In the teaching process, a large number of confusing grammatical classifications, noun terms, and word inflections were all discarded by me.It can be said that direct contact with the real language itself is the only way for her to learn a language.She mainly improves her expressive ability through practice in the language environment, and the help of grammatical rules is extremely limited.She is exposed to a lot of language in daily conversations and books, and she will try her best to find solutions until she can use the language correctly.It is undeniable that I completely entrusted my "fingers" with the work done by the "mouth".In other words, if Helen had sight and hearing, she would be much less dependent on me for clarification.

I don't think mathematics will ever teach them the feeling of "love".A precise knowledge of the size and shape of the world does not enable them to appreciate the charms of nature.Therefore, in the first few years, we might as well lead the children to find their lost "Elysium" in nature.Let them run in the fields and learn about animals in nature so they can observe real things.And I believe that every child has a "natural talent". If we implement the correct education methods, this talent may be stimulated and developed rapidly.But unfortunately, instead of developing this "higher instinct" in young children in a proper way, most teachers fill their heads with something called "fundamentals".

(End of this chapter)