Various denotations and connotations of the word ‘blindness’ are examined and the inference is drawn that they constitute a psychosocial burden that perpetuates prejudice. The analysis leads on to a hypothesis in which a more progressive terminology could lead to reduction of this burden.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
Bruce, I. , McKennell, A. & Walker, E. (1991) Blind and Partially Sighted Adults in Britain: The RNIB Survey. London: HMSO .
2.
Davis, L. J. (1995) Enforcing Normalcy: Disability, Deafness, and the Body. London & New York: Verso .
3.
Dodds, A. (1993) Rehabilitating Blind and Visually Impaired People: A Psychological Approach. London: Chapman & Hall .
4.
Encarta World English Dictionary(1999) CD-ROM. Microsoft Corporation. Bloomsbury Publishing .
5.
Jernigan, K. (1993) ‘Resolution – 01’. The National Federation of the Blind Annual Convention, Dallas, TX , 9 July.
6.
Kirtley, D. D. (1975) The Psychology of Blindness. Chicago: Nelson-Hall Publishers .
7.
Kleege, G. (1999) Sight Unseen. New Haven and London: Yale University Press .
8.
Roaf, C. (1992) ‘Learning the language of equality’, in T. Booth , W. Swann , M. Masterton and P. Potts (eds) Curricula for Diversity in Education. London & New York: Routledge .
9.
Valentine, J. (2002) ‘Naming and narrating disability in Japan’, in M. Corker and T. Shakespeare (eds) Disability/Postmodernity: Embodying Disability Theory. London & New York: Continuum .