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"One touch of nature makes the whole world kin": the transnational lives of deaf Americans, 1870 ... PDF

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University of Iowa Iowa Research Online Teses and Dissertations 2007 "One touch of nature makes the whole world kin": the transnational lives of deaf Americans, 1870-1924 Joseph John Murray University of Iowa Recommended Citation Murray, Joseph John. ""One touch of nature makes the whole world kin": the transnational lives of deaf Americans, 1870-1924." dissertation, University of Iowa, 2007. htp://ir.uiowa.edu/etd/132. Tis dissertation is available at Iowa Research Online: htp://ir.uiowa.edu/etd/132 “ONE TOUCH OF NATURE MAKES THE WHOLE WORLD KIN”: THE TRANSNATIONAL LIVES OF DEAF AMERICANS, 1870-1924. by Joseph John Murray An Abstract Of a thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Doctor of Philosophy degree in History in the Graduate College of The University of Iowa December 2007 Thesis Supervisor: Associate Professor Douglas C. Baynton ABSTRACT This dissertation studies the transnational lives of Deaf Americans between 1870 and 1924. Deaf Americans of the time articulated a discourse of co-equality, seeking to participate in society as Deaf— and as deaf— people. Through participation in a transnational Deaf public sphere, Deaf people in the United States and Europe could exchange ideas on how to live in larger society. Abstract Approved: ____________________________________ Thesis Supervisor ____________________________________ Title and Department ____________________________________ Date “ONE TOUCH OF NATURE MAKES THE WHOLE WORLD KIN”: THE TRANSNATIONAL LIVES OF DEAF AMERICANS, 1870-1924. by Joseph John Murray A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Doctor of Philosophy degree in History in the Graduate College of The University of Iowa December 2007 Thesis Supervisor: Associate Professor Douglas C. Baynton Copyright by JOSEPH JOHN MURRAY 2007 All Rights Reserved Graduate College The University of Iowa Iowa City, Iowa CERTIFICATE OF APPROVAL _______________________ PH.D. THESIS _______________ This is to certify that the Ph.D. thesis of Joseph John Murray has been approved by the Examining Committee for the thesis requirement for the Doctor of Philosophy degree in History at the December 2007 graduation. Thesis Committee: ___________________________________ Douglas C. Baynton, Thesis Supervisor ___________________________________ Linda Kerber ___________________________________ Paul Greenough ___________________________________ Shelton Stromquist ___________________________________ Laura Graham To Claudia ii When our ship reached Liverpool this morning and from her deck were seen several of your number conversing in the crowd that stood upon those wonderful docks, it recalled that line of your greatest poet which says “One touch of nature makes the whole world kin;” for though you dwell here upon an island and we upon a continent beyond the seas, yet in all essentials our experiences are probably the same. If you have troubles we can sympathize with you, for we have the same troubles; or if you have joys, those joys are ours, and we rejoice with you. Amos Draper Annual Report of the Columbia Institution for Deaf Mutes, 1889 iii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS This dissertation was transnational in the creation. For this, I have a number of people to thank. The history of Deaf communities worldwide is still largely unexplored by academic historians and I have been fortunate to be able to tap into a network of community historians around Europe who shared their knowledge of the histories of their national Deaf communities. Thanks to Peter Brown, David Breslin, Jon Martin Brauti, Bernard LeMarie, Jochen Muhs, Peter Niemelä, and Thomas Worseck. The ideas contained in this dissertation formed the background to talks given at workshops and conferences on four continents. I am grateful for the comments and feedback I received from audience members and colleagues—Deaf and hearing, academics and laypersons— which gave me fresh perspective on my work as I wrote. I have been fortunate to be a member of the community of historians at the University of Iowa. My dissertation chair, Douglas Baynton, offered me a warm welcome into this community, treating me as a close colleague as our relationship developed over the years. Our many stimulating conversations and e-mails ranged far outside the topic of this dissertation. His astute comments, scholarly rigor, and comprehensive knowledge of Deaf and disability history make me proud to call him an intellectual mentor. This dissertation would have been very different without his guidance. I was also fortunate to have Linda Kerber as a dedicated second reader. She offered detailed comments from the beginning to the end of this dissertation. Linda Kerber’s feedback was consistently on the mark, but also equally encouraging: she always made sure to buoy me enough so I could hurdle over the bar she had raised. Linda’s mentorship went beyond this dissertation. From her, I have learned—and am still learning— much about being a professional historian and the profession of history. Doug and Linda have showed me how well the past is served by a writer’s skills, and I have been fortunate to have such remarkable writers as role models and critics. My iv interest in transnationalism took an academic turn thanks to several Crossing Borders seminars led by Paul Greenough early in my graduate career. Paul has the ability to pose wonderfully phrased questions that unsettle preconceptions and spur further reflection. His questions greatly aided my thinking on transnational interactions. I also thank Laura Graham for reading my dissertation and serving as the outside reader on my committee. A courteous, dedicated scholar, Shelton Stromquist graciously stepped in when another member of this committee, Ken Cmiel, passed away. Ken had a remarkable rapport with his graduate students and his passion for shaping a more humane world remains a model for us all. He is missed. I received several fellowships and grants during my graduate career. Chief among these was the five-year Iowa Presidential Graduate Fellow Award. I was also the recipient of the Louis Peltzer Dissertation Fellowship in 2005-2006, the T. Anne Cleary International Dissertation Research Fellowship in 2004-2005, the Burke Fellowship awarded by the University of Iowa Department of History in 2004-2005, and the Stanley Graduate Research Fellowship for Research Abroad in 2001. Thanks also to the Ål folkehøyskole and Døves Media, who gave me an office (and the perks which went with it) to use when writing this dissertation. Parts of Chapter Four appeared as an article titled “True Love and Sympathy: The Deaf-Deaf Marriages Debate in Transatlantic Perspective,” in Genetics, Disability, and Deafness ed. John Vickrey Van Cleve, Washington, D.C.: Gallaudet University Press, 2004. The challenges of writing this dissertation in a small village in the mountains of central Norway was greatly eased by the efficient and professional work of the librarians at the Ål Public Library, who brought in numerous books from university libraries around Norway on inter-library loan. On my trips to the Gallaudet University Archives, archivists Mike Olsen and Ulf Hedberg were invaluable guides to the archives’ treasures and I always look forward to our conversations on Deaf History. Gary Wait, archivist at the American School for the Deaf, is performing a valuable service to American history v

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