Ethos of ASL Poetry
Rose
included more men than women, and did not address additional identities such as sexual
orientation. This awareness does not diminish at all the vital role these artists played in
creating a first “canon” of ASL literature, the building blocks from which subsequent
generations would learn. This awareness does, however, underscore how the “canon” has
expanded—and needs to continue to expand—with Deaf persons of color, more women,
and a Deaf LGBTQ perspective, among other identities and lived experiences that were
more invisible in the Deaf world of the past—an invisibility paralleled in the hearing world
of the past. Christie’s addendum alludes to the 1990s work as a kind of first wave ASL
poetry, much like first wave feminism. As with other literature and art forms, ASL poetry
has evolved and become more inclusive of multiple identities.
Observing the powerful identification Christie feels towards Rennie’s work, I am
struck anew by how hearing people tend to take spoken language—and communication in
general—for granted, unless or until their access to speech is challenged. We know that
poetry and narrative created in sign languages challenges the bias of spoken language-
based literature, that the signed language presents remarkable possibilities for linguistic
creativity. Thus, in addition to extending the expressive and symbolic capacity of ASL, the
study of ASL poetry serves to broaden and deepen our conceptualization of poetry itself.
As the acceptance of ASL to fulfill foreign language requirements increases across the US,
the possibilities for cross-cultural and intercultural contact also increase, while at the same
time exposing ASL to a dominant hearing world that has historically tried to diminish it.
As I observe intercultural interaction between the Deaf instructor and hearing
students in my university’s Intro to ASL class, and as I view the ever-growing body of ASL
poetry on YouTube, I am struck again by the phenomenological richness and linguistic
distinctiveness of ASL as a visual-spatial language. The communicative presence of ASL
merits continued exploration for the intrinsic value of signed language and its linguistic
artistry; for the socio-cultural-historical moment of understanding the Deaf world; for the
continued critique of normative spoken language poetics, and; for fostering and improving
cross-cultural and intercultural contact between Deaf and hearing individuals via access to
ASL and its creative output. A humanistic approach to difference has the potential to
provide Deaf individuals equal access to education and economic advancement.
Recognizing and respecting difference is more effective than the current American
education policy that equates access with sameness.
What does it mean to consider the rhetoric of ASL in its simultaneous and shifting
status of protected marker of cultural inclusion and foreign language alternative—and how
is this evolution changing perceptions of ASL as well as the language itself? New works
of ASL poetry and narrative, new literary theory and criticism, and ongoing reflections like
Christie’s can help us answer these questions and I hope many others.
SASLJ, Vol. 2, No. 2 – Fall/Winter 2018
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