# I hate movies/TV shows with deaf people **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [December 11, 2002, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-hate-movies-tv-shows-with-deaf-people/142036 "2002-12-11T17:22:48Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Lobsang](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobsang/32/4067_2.png) [@Lobsang](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lobsang)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2002, 12:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-hate-movies-tv-shows-with-deaf-people/142036/21 "2002-12-12T00:25:48Z")
So you hate ‘See no Evil Hear no Evil’? Is there something wrong with you!? I just LOVE the scene where the blind guy (Richard Pryor) says to the deaf guy (Gene Wilder) “hey, maybe if I shout loud enough right into your ear you might hear something” Deaf guy - “sure, try it” Blind guy shouts louder and louder and louder. On the last one the deaf guy pretends he heard something and then goes into a big emotional display of amazement at being able to hear something. Deaf guy gets caught up in the excitement and ends up saying “so you can hear?” “NO” “YOU IDIOT” “I’M DEAF!” I’ve probably got the scene horribly wrong but anyone who’s seen it will know what I mean. ---
**Author:** ![Atreyu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5e9695/32.png) [@Atreyu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atreyu)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2002, 2:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-hate-movies-tv-shows-with-deaf-people/142036/22 "2002-12-12T02:22:02Z")
Pitiful. Just pitiful. If you hate movies or TV shows with deaf people, then don’t bother watching them, **BZ00000**. No one will miss your viewership. ---
**Author:** ![Cisco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ccd318/32.png) [@Cisco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cisco)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2002, 2:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-hate-movies-tv-shows-with-deaf-people/142036/23 "2002-12-12T02:40:49Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Atreyu \* > \*\*Pitiful. > > Just pitiful. > > If you hate movies or TV shows with deaf people, then don’t bother watching them, **BZ00000**. No one will miss your viewership. \*\* Now really, Atreyu, I think you just over-reacted while simultaneously missing the entire point of his post. He hates that these shows _treat deaf people like children (or, if they are children, idiots.)_ Not to mention it’s just plain poor writing. Get over yourself. ---
**Author:** ![Atreyu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5e9695/32.png) [@Atreyu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atreyu)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2002, 2:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-hate-movies-tv-shows-with-deaf-people/142036/24 "2002-12-12T02:56:29Z")
I’ve seen some examples of what **BZ00000** writes about, including _Children of a Lesser God_. I’ve never gotten the sense that this type of exposition was treating deaf persons like children, but rather that it was a way of informing the audience what the deaf person had just said without resorting to subtitles. But to post a rant over this? _That_ is what I found pitiful, and I should have been more specific in saying so in my last post. Given that it’s rare for deaf actors to find work in mainstream TV or movies, I’m happy to see them at all, regardless of how the audience is told what he or she is saying. ---
**Author:** ![Eats\_Crayons](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/278dde/32.png) [@Eats\_Crayons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eats_Crayons)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2002, 3:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-hate-movies-tv-shows-with-deaf-people/142036/25 "2002-12-12T03:17:27Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by MyFootsZZZ \* > \*\*I have a friend with a sever speech impediment, and I repeat what he says for confirmation. > > Could that possibly be the case here? It’s been a while since I’ve seen that movie… was he slow at reading sign? I figure the reason why one would talk while sighing would be for lip reading. \*\* Actually in the movie, “Sarah” addresses that issues with “James” (wh is a speech therapist whose job at the school is to get the deaf children to speak). At one point she complains that he is _always talking_. He talks when she signs, he talks when he’s the one whose signing. He always talks. When she essentially asks him WTF, he answers “I dunno, I think it’s because I like to hear myself talk.” _Children of a Lesser God_ tries to equate the rhythm of sing language with poetry – tougher to do with subtitles. Much more effective with the running commentary. ---
**Author:** ![Atreyu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5e9695/32.png) [@Atreyu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atreyu)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2002, 5:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-hate-movies-tv-shows-with-deaf-people/142036/26 "2002-12-12T05:37:44Z")
**BZ00000** , are you a regular viewer of _The West Wing_? There is a semi-recurring character named Joey Lucas, played by deaf actress Marlee Matlin. Most of the time, a translator nearby translates what she signs for the benefit of those around her. Does that approach bother you? If so, why? By the way, the wording of the title of this thread was most unfortunate. ---
**Author:** ![BZ00000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/47e85d/32.png) [@BZ00000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BZ00000)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2002, 5:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-hate-movies-tv-shows-with-deaf-people/142036/27 "2002-12-12T05:48:11Z")
I don’t watch the West Wing, but I have seen Marlee Matlin on the Daily Show with a translator. I would have no problem with this approach in show. I just hate hearing a character repeat every word of another character. ---
**Author:** ![Monstre](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e274bd/32.png) [@Monstre](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monstre)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2002, 6:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-hate-movies-tv-shows-with-deaf-people/142036/28 "2002-12-12T06:02:10Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Cisco \* > \*\*Now really, Atreyu, I think you just over-reacted while simultaneously missing the entire point of his post. He hates that these shows _treat deaf people like children (or, if they are children, idiots.)_ Not to mention it’s just plain poor writing. Get over yourself. \*\* While the point of the OP was not so bad, I think **Atreyu** was mostly reacting to the thread title, which – I’d have to say – sucks like a $5 whore. The title implies that having a deaf person in a movie makes it hateworthy. Obviously, the point is about the technique used in the screenplay – but I have to disagree on the “treating like idiots” bit. It’s a technique that is used a lot (as pointed out in other posts here) that applies to more than just this situation – the repeating of “dialog” – which is simply for the audience’s benefit. The audience somehow needs to know what has been said. There are lots of “non-real-life” techniques that filmmakers resort to, in order to communicate things to the audience. Often, they are overused, and can get annoying. Just watch the David Lynch version of “Dune”, and see how long you can take the narration of the characters’ thoughts. 😉 **BZ0[sup]5[/sup]** – point taken, and it’s a valid pet peeve (hearing dialog re-stated by another character). I can see how overuse of this technique can be irritating – but it applies to a lot more than “deaf person” situations. You might want to think more carefully about your next thread title. ---
**Author:** ![Patty\_O\_Furniture](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/96bed5/32.png) [@Patty\_O\_Furniture](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Patty_O_Furniture)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2002, 3:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-hate-movies-tv-shows-with-deaf-people/142036/29 "2002-12-12T15:04:20Z")
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