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cover of episode The Poet John Lee Clark’s “How to Communicate” Brings DeafBlind Experience to the Page

The Poet John Lee Clark’s “How to Communicate” Brings DeafBlind Experience to the Page

2024/1/2
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The New Yorker Radio Hour
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Andrew Leland
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David Remnick
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John Lee Clark
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John Lee Clark: Clark分享了他作为聋盲诗人的生活体验，以及他如何通过触觉语言（protactile）进行沟通和创作。他描述了在聋人学校的经历，以及他如何因不符合聋人社群规范而感到孤立，最终通过阅读书籍找到慰藉。他还谈到他如何选择书籍，以及失明如何意外地引导他接触到更广泛的文学作品。他认为有限的社会融入反而促进了聋盲社群内部的丰富发展，他并不担心外界对聋盲社群的刻板印象，因为他更关注社群内部的丰富性和发展。他希望读者能够超越对聋盲人的刻板印象，真正欣赏他的诗歌。 Andrew Leland: Leland 作为一名逐渐失明的记者，采访了Clark，并分享了他对Clark 作品的解读。他认为Clark 的作品充满幽默和生活气息，挑战了人们对聋盲生活的刻板印象，并强调了触觉的重要性。他朗读了Clark 的诗歌，并分析了诗歌中体现的否认心理和触觉沟通的重要性。他还探讨了如何避免对残疾人的过度赞扬，以及如何平衡对成就的认可和对个体尊严的尊重。 Hal Anderson: Anderson 作为 protactile 翻译员，在访谈中为 Clark 进行翻译。 David Remnick: Remnick 作为访谈节目的主持人，介绍了 Clark 和他的作品。 John Lee Clark: Clark shares his life experiences as a deafblind poet and how he communicates and creates through protactile. He describes his experiences at a deaf school and how he felt isolated for not conforming to deaf community norms, ultimately finding solace in reading. He also talks about how he chooses books and how blindness unexpectedly led him to a wider range of literary works. He believes that limited social integration has instead promoted rich development within the deafblind community; he is not worried about the stereotypes of the deafblind community from the outside world because he is more concerned with the richness and development within the community. He hopes that readers can go beyond the stereotypes of deafblind people and truly appreciate his poetry. Andrew Leland: As a journalist who is gradually losing his sight, Leland interviewed Clark and shared his interpretation of Clark's works. He believes that Clark's works are full of humor and vitality, challenging people's stereotypes of deafblind life, and emphasizing the importance of touch. He read Clark's poems and analyzed the denial psychology and the importance of tactile communication reflected in the poems. He also discussed how to avoid excessive praise of people with disabilities and how to balance recognition of achievements and respect for individual dignity. Hal Anderson: As a protactile interpreter, Anderson translated for Clark in the interview. David Remnick: As the host of the interview program, Remnick introduced Clark and his works.

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John Lee Clark's poetry challenges the tragic perception of DeafBlind life, showcasing joy and humor through themes of touch and everyday experiences.

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Although many hearing and sighted people imagine DeafBlind life in tragic terms, as an experience of isolation and darkness, the poet John Lee Clark’s writing is full of joy. It’s funny and surprising, mapping the contours of a regular life marked by common pleasures and frustrations. Clark, who was born Deaf and lost his sight at a young age, has established himself not just as a writer and translator but as a scholar of Deaf and DeafBlind literature. His recent collection, “How to Communicate),” which was nominated for a National Book Award this past year, includes original works and translations from American Sign Language and Protactile). He speaks with the contributor Andrew Leland, who is working on a book) about his own experience of losing his sight in adulthood. 

This segment originally aired December 9, 2022.