From the earliest educational attempts, deafness has been of primary interest to philosophers and teachers. Almost invariably, persons with deafness were the first to be educated, followed by people who were blind and, later, those with mental retardation. This paper explores the reasons why deafness was propelled to prominence in England and France. It focuses on philosophical enquiry, the most compelling force that accounted for the consistent progression in early special education. A conjunction of deafness, language development, and intellect and reason led philosophers in 17th-century England and, most importantly, 18th-century Enlightenment France, to adopt deaf persons as natural recruits into their studies on the essence of human nature.
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