Page 132 - Reading Between the Sign Intercultural Communication for Sign Language Interpreters

American Deaf Culture 117

Conversational Behavior

Lack of Importance of Speech
Many outsiders hold the misconception that speech has a nega-
tive value in Deaf culture. It would be more accurate to say that
speech carries no weight. Possessing the ability to speak does not
elevate a person’s status in the Deaf community, nor does it di-
minish it. One’s ability in this area is extraneous. The speech skills
of a candidate running for office within a Deaf organization, for
example, are never considered. They may even be viewed as the
least important qualification of such a candidate. By contrast, the
ability to speak is often the first thing a hearing person would
notice when meeting a deaf person.
Ironically, however, when it is noted that a Deaf person does
have usable speech skills, other Deaf people will not hesitate to
ask him or her for assistance when ordering food at a restaurant,
requesting information at a store, or engaging in other encoun-
ters with hearing people. As this may create unwanted pressure
on the speaking Deaf people to function in the role of interpreter/
helper, they may refuse to use their speech skills in the presence
of other Deaf people. For many others, the painful memories of
long hours of childhood spent in speech training, trying to perfect
their pronunciation only to find that hearing people still had to
struggle to understand them, has left a bad taste in their mouth
and they want nothing more to do with speech.

Attention-Getting Behaviors
Hearing people use their voices to attract the attention of others.
In the Deaf world the following attention-getting techniques are
employed instead: tapping someone on the shoulder, waving in
the direction of the intended person, banging on the table or stomp-
ing on the floor (using vibrations to catch the person’s attention),
asking a nearby person to tap the intended person on the shoul-
der, flashing the room light, or throwing a lightweight object at
the target person. Sometimes one uses a sort of chain reaction to
get the attention of an entire group. For instance, if a group of
Deaf people is seated in a semicircle chatting prior to a meeting
or lecture, the lecturer may make a sign with both hands which
refers to tapping someone on the shoulder. Made in this context,
it asks for those who are presently watching the presenter to alert

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