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Loduwijk t1_ist8i0d wrote

Reply to comment by Middleway_Natural in Helen Keller walked into a bar. by OBVWXLF

Oh? Are you suggesting she could audibly speak?

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NoneOfThisIsFine t1_ist9if7 wrote

She could speak

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BigPanda71 t1_istigv0 wrote

She could “speak,” but conveniently only one person could understand and translate for her.

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Loduwijk t1_isuefns wrote

Wow. I couldn't understand most of her words, but some of them were indeed decipherable. I don't think that was sufficient to live by, more like a first season student of a new language who couldn't get by in the country in question, but still... wow that's still impressive given her obstacles to overcome.

Amazing. Thank you for sharing.

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MaddytheUnicorn t1_ist9u5g wrote

Yes, she could. She was a traveling lecturer and motivational speaker. Here’s the Helen Keller wiki.

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Loduwijk t1_isup18i wrote

I've watched multiple videos of her "speaking" now. The only speeches that are understandable are the ones that are reenactments - that is, when it's not really her speaking. In the real videos sometimes a few words seem distinguishable, but generally it's not.

She had someone tell people what she was saying, using the excuse "for people with hearing disabilities who would have a difficult time hearing her". Really, it seems more like it's disingenuous.

She is amazing and overcame a mountain, and that's awesome. I still don't believe she was an audible speaker. That's completely fine. Millions of people have non-audible languages as their primary language.

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