Culture plays a pervasive role in determining our beliefs and actions. Different societies make different assumptions about man and the universe, but within each society the great majority of the people conform unwittingly to the prevailing set of beliefs. Nobody has the ability to choose what culture he or she is born into or what impact that culture has upon him or her. Culture has blinded us to believe our actions are moral and just. .
The deaf culture is difficult to grasp for the average speaking individual. It's not a series of remedies for everyday life such as phone calls or the doorbell; it is a complete way of life stemming from attitude, demeanor, and social interaction. The most obvious difference in hearing and deaf culture is expression, i.e. signing. The subtle differences in the way one conveys them selves in speech versus signing arise from how it is phrased or signed. For almost two centuries, sign language has been formally taught in America, yet being deaf is still associated with being dumb or handicapped when that is not the case at all. Deaf people are noticeably more articulate when conversing with another individual using facial expressions and conveying entire ideas in a single sign. Something interesting has been noted about the way deaf people hug each other. It is said that hearing people hug in an "A-frame" fashion whereas deaf people fully embrace each other. It's such a small subtlety, but seems very significant to them, almost as a metaphor for deaf culture. .
> When hearing parents have a deaf child, they are often misinformed about the options they have for that child. Many times they are told they must learn to speak in order to be right. Even more shockingly, they are told not to use sign with their children. Doctors used to fear that this would hamper any efforts to teach a child to talk when in fact quite the opposite is true. 80(don't open a sentence with a number; use words or revamp) to 90% of children born deaf will never learn to speak (Spradley 259).
