Constructing Hearing Loss or “Deaf Gain?” Voice, Agency, and Identity in Television's Representations of d/Deafness

Abstract

Representations of deafness and Deaf culture on television have significantly increased and improved in the last 26 years. This paper explores these changing depictions, examining entertainment television from 1987 through 2013. Findings suggest that the pathological model persists, in which deaf characters are framed as vulnerable or dehumanized, and promote the cochlear implant as a “cure” for deafness. At the same time, episodes about tolerance and acceptance reinforce deafness as a cultural trait, especially in storylines in which multiple characters speak in American Sign Language. While ASL frequently appears in d/Deaf representations, its portrayal is incomplete and simplistic, downplaying its grammatical complexity. These competing discourses illustrate that what it means to be deaf or experience deafness is culturally constructed depending on context and experience, and reflects real-life tension between the Deaf community and medical experts who continue to pathologize deafness. Only through diversity in the roles for d/Deaf actors will television help to counter stigmas about disabilities and promote mainstream acceptance of Deaf culture.

Keywords:

• Deafness
• Deaf Culture
• Entertainment Television
• Health
• Voice

Notes

[1] d/Deaf (with both a lower-case and capital “D”) refers to deafness as both a pathological and cultural trait. Lower-case “deaf” refers to deafness as a disability, while “Deaf” denotes a cultural trait (Senghas & Monaghan, 2002).