This Wednesday, November 29 will be a momentous occasion for Bonnie, Shoshannah Stern’s character on Jericho, the CBS TV series: Bonnie will finally have a scene in which there is no voice-over or simcom for her.
For Sho, this has got to be exciting. She’s been hoping for such a scene since the show began, and the producers and writers even let her try her hand at writing. They’ve been what Sho calls “amazing.” Fortunately, Sho was also kind enough to take the time and comment on why this is such an important moment.
Bonnie is just one character out of a sizable ensemble in a primetime drama where the plot is certainly much bigger than a Deaf character we can root for (for those not in the know, check out the Jericho premise here — if it were a book, it’d be a pageturner). Nonetheless, Stern casts light on why Bonnie isn’t just the token Deaf girl in this storyline:
I think the character of Bonnie speaks to the rest of us because she has always had to depend on other people to get information. For the other people in Jericho, that used to be the easiest thing in the world. All they had to do was turn on the television or flip on the radio, and the information would be within reach. In a sense, after the bombs, the people of Jericho have been thrust in the position where Bonnie has been her whole life. …Theoretically, they have now been cut off from civilization in the same way that Bonnie was cut off from society. So in a strange sense, it’s somewhat easier for Bonnie to adapt to what’s going on than for anyone else living in Jericho.
Lest you think Bonnie’s lesson is how to survive despite being simultaneously isolated and dependent, consider the importance of having a scene where Bonnie’s signing is unhampered by voiceover.
…Bonnie lost her parents at a very young age. She’s always needed at the Richmond farm, so that is basically the whole scope of her existence. I think before the bombs happened, she never questioned these circumstances. … But now, everything’s changed. So, I think she’s had a lot going on in her head for a long time that she hasn’t been sharing with anyone. That’s why I think the scene with no voice-over or sim-com is so important. It serves as a sort of catharsis for her. She’s done with doing things for other people and communicating the way that they do. She’s going to do what she wants and what feels natural for her.
Okay, so a storyline where a Deaf girl isn’t just a novelty, and a scene long overdue on primetime television? Dang it. I’m watching. This, I’ve gotta see.
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I was so disappointed by this. Sho was very expressive, but the scene was really short and she was partly hidden by the truck she was sitting in. It could have been SO much better! Maybe next time…?
I have already encountered people (not Deaf, although) who were shocked by a merely sign “screw” (which they may have thought of a more vulgar term) on a network channel.
I had a hard time to not laugh at their state of being shell-shocked. I think that sign is very approriate and has been translated well to suit the term ’screw’.
Besides there has been an espiode on the tv show “ER” where a Deaf actor did flip his middle finger to say “f***-you” on the CBS channel. That is MORE vulgar than Bonnie’s signing “screw”….
So don’t be so shocked by the sign of “screw”…that’s nothing.
The censorship has been loosened a lot on the network channels– for English and ASL.
True. I also think there’s a HUGE difference in what constitutes the levels of profanity for many Deaf and hearing people.
I was not really happy with the Nov. 29th episode of “Jericho” which Bonnie the character kept lipreading the local people. Unrealistic!
Bonnie the character via actress ………. ought to confront the audism of Jericho’s local townspeople like demanding people to jot down on notepads or making gestures. If Bonnie the character grow up in this town as the locals ought to communicate with her in visual ways, not speaking orally.
Very offensive!! I am not one of deaf militant myself. Enuff with Marlee Maltin “likes” pretend to comprhend hearing people by lipreading. *rolling eyes in disbelief*
Not many people realize that I am really superbu at lipreading, but refuse to let hearing people about my own ability to lipread. That’s what happened with last night’s DPHH, I caught the hearing lady spoke unfavorably about deaf people, then bartenders, food servers and restuarant manager. What a shame!
I grew up lipreading hearing people especially the West Virginia School of the Deaf (WVSD) staffers and faculty members which prepared me and other deaf kids what to do next. “Brer Rabbit and the Tar Baby” antics.
Dr. John Van Cleve was quite shocked that I lipread very well despite my own upbringing with the deaf parent and relatives and residential school. I never was schooled in speech training at all. I spoke clearly when in expletive terms or in fury.
Robert L. Mason (RLM)