Seeing Voices
Encyclopedia
Seeing Voices: A Journey Into the World of the Deaf is a 1989 book by neurologist
Oliver Sacks
. The book covers a variety of topics in deaf studies
, including sign language
, the neurology of deafness, the history of the treatment of deaf Americans, and linguistic and social challenges facing the deaf community
. It also contains an eyewitness account of the March 1988 Deaf President Now
student protest at Gallaudet University
, a school for the hearing impaired. Seeing Voices was Sacks' fifth book.
described it as "extraordinarily moving and thought-provoking." While Debra Berlanstein of Library Journal
characterized the book as insightful, she wrote that it seems more suited to a scholarly audience than some of Sacks' more popular books. On Amazon.com
, Seeing Voices has a rating of four out of five stars, based upon seventeen user reviews.
Neurologist
A neurologist is a physician who specializes in neurology, and is trained to investigate, or diagnose and treat neurological disorders.Neurology is the medical specialty related to the human nervous system. The nervous system encompasses the brain, spinal cord, and peripheral nerves. A specialist...
Oliver Sacks
Oliver Sacks
Oliver Wolf Sacks, CBE , is a British neurologist and psychologist residing in New York City. He is a professor of neurology and psychiatry at Columbia University, where he also holds the position of Columbia Artist...
. The book covers a variety of topics in deaf studies
Hearing impairment
-Definition:Deafness is the inability for the ear to interpret certain or all frequencies of sound.-Environmental Situations:Deafness can be caused by environmental situations such as noise, trauma, or other ear defections...
, including sign language
Sign language
A sign language is a language which, instead of acoustically conveyed sound patterns, uses visually transmitted sign patterns to convey meaning—simultaneously combining hand shapes, orientation and movement of the hands, arms or body, and facial expressions to fluidly express a speaker's...
, the neurology of deafness, the history of the treatment of deaf Americans, and linguistic and social challenges facing the deaf community
Deaf culture
Deaf culture describes the social beliefs, behaviors, art, literary traditions, history, values and shared institutions of communities that are affected by deafness and which use sign languages as the main means of communication. When used as a cultural label, the word deaf is often written with a...
. It also contains an eyewitness account of the March 1988 Deaf President Now
Deaf President Now
Deaf President Now was a student protest at Gallaudet University. The university, established by an act of Congress in 1864 to serve the Deaf, had always been led by a hearing president...
student protest at Gallaudet University
Gallaudet University
Gallaudet University is a federally-chartered university for the education of the deaf and hard of hearing, located in the District of Columbia, U.S...
, a school for the hearing impaired. Seeing Voices was Sacks' fifth book.
Reception
Critics of Seeing Voices agreed that the book is highly informative. Publishers WeeklyPublishers Weekly
Publishers Weekly, aka PW, is an American weekly trade news magazine targeted at publishers, librarians, booksellers and literary agents...
described it as "extraordinarily moving and thought-provoking." While Debra Berlanstein of Library Journal
Library Journal
Library Journal is a trade publication for librarians. It was founded in 1876 by Melvil Dewey . It reports news about the library world, emphasizing public libraries, and offers feature articles about aspects of professional practice...
characterized the book as insightful, she wrote that it seems more suited to a scholarly audience than some of Sacks' more popular books. On Amazon.com
Amazon.com
Amazon.com, Inc. is a multinational electronic commerce company headquartered in Seattle, Washington, United States. It is the world's largest online retailer. Amazon has separate websites for the following countries: United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Japan, and...
, Seeing Voices has a rating of four out of five stars, based upon seventeen user reviews.
Editions
This list only provides details for the most significant editions.- First U.S. Edition: University of California PressUniversity of California PressUniversity of California Press, also known as UC Press, is a publishing house associated with the University of California that engages in academic publishing. It was founded in 1893 to publish books and papers for the faculty of the University of California, established 25 years earlier in 1868...
, 1989, hardcoverHardcoverA hardcover, hardback or hardbound is a book bound with rigid protective covers...
, 180 pages, ISBN 0520060830. - First Canadian Edition: Stoddart Publishing, 1989, hardcover, 180 pages, ISBN 0773723749.
- 1990-91: Six more editions.
- U.S. Reprint: Vintage BooksVintage BooksVintage Books is a publishing imprint founded in 1954 by Alfred A. Knopf. Its publishing list includes world literature, fiction, and non-fiction...
(Knopf Publishing), 2000, paperbackPaperbackPaperback, softback or softcover describe and refer to a book by the nature of its binding. The covers of such books are usually made of paper or paperboard, and are usually held together with glue rather than stitches or staples...
, 240 pages, ISBN 0375704078.