Deaf Culture: Social Norms

 Norms are an expected form of behavior in a given situation and each culture has social rules or norms that govern  and define what is appropriate behavior. Norms may be different in each social group and as an individual moves from one group to another their behavior adapts to their new settings.  The deaf community just like all other social groups have their own norms and this governs how they interact with members of their own community and the wider society.

        Children usually learn about their language, culture and social norms from their parents but only deaf children who are born to deaf parents  have this opportunity. A vast majority of deaf children learn from other deaf children at schools for the deaf. Through the school they interact daily with other children who are similar to them. In homes where the parents are hearing, deaf children can feel isolated and misunderstood, with their peers they get a feeling of acceptance.

          Deaf culture has certain rules that may be considered socially unacceptable by hearing people. In deaf culture it is important to maintain eye contact when signing to each other, this shows that both parties are actively engaged in the discussion. It is considered to be rude is you do not look directly at the person, if you must break eye contact it should be done for a short space of time or if the person is pointing to something or someone. In hearing cultures this would be considered rude and make people uncomfortable. 

      

        In a restaurant it would be rude for a waiter to touch the guest but for deaf people this is perfectly acceptable. It is permissible to use  touch to get a deaf person's attention. if a deaf person is blocking the path you can touch them or move them gently if you wish to pass.

        In hearing cultures it would seem tacky if a person announces to the crowd that they're going to the wash room but in deaf culture it is considered good practice to tell others where you are going even if you are leaving the room for a short while. This is important because if anything happens such as an injury then the others will know where to find them. The injured person will not be able to call out for help, this seems to be a good security measure.

       Deaf people have their own folklore and through sign language they are able to communicate it, they use mediums such as storytelling and poetry to convey anecdotes, legends and myths. Many of the stories that hearing children enjoy are made available to deaf children through sign language.

     I'm sharing one of the stories that i saw its Called Timber i found one with subtitles i hope you enjoy.