I think that’s a question that is too easy for us here to answer. Deaf. Of course.

But what I’d like to know is what hearing people choose, and why. Now, that I find interesting.

I think the commenter above brings up a good point: It’s hard to say which of any of those senses you would choose, because you’re already deaf. If you weren’t deaf, would your answer be the same?

Personally, I’d rather be able to hear than be able to smell. My sense of smell is not a necessity, it’s just an added bonus. I like the smell of brownies, but I can do without. I don’t like the smell of the metro, drunks, dirty diapers or cigarette smoke. While there are also things I don’t enjoy hearing (crying babies, sirens, construction workers), I’d much rather be able to ask where the bathroom is* in a subway station than be able to smell coffee brewing.

* I’m not saying deaf people are incapable of asking where a bathroom is. However, if said person does not or cannot talk, he/she typically resorts to using paper or typing on a sidekick, whereas a hearing person can engage in a quick and (ideally) confusion-free verbal exchange.

I remember reading somewhere in a book saying “Blindness cuts you away from things and Deafness cuts you away from people…”

there is a point there…

I was just reading a blog on WordPress that was discussing this very topic - http://bountifulhealing.wordpress.com

She has a nice perspective on the senses and which one is important to her…

If I had them all…I would choose to lose the sense of smell..followed by taste….then hearing….then feel…then sight…I believe.

It is amazing to me that hearing people prefer blindness over deafness…its just mind blogging to me….don’t they realize that without sight…you couldn’t drive a car, watch football, see a movie, and so on…

I know nothing about music, but am aware of how much it means to a lot of people…but still its amazing to me that people don’t think of what blind people miss out on compared to deaf people……

I admire your optimism.

I would like to take the moment to dispel this myth that has been going on since I was born! :) I never had any sense of smell. The only thing I’ll notice something strong, which I doubt is part of smell, is if I put my nose inside the ammonia container. My gawd you say, I bet.

I often get asked the minute they learn I can’t smell, “Can you taste?” I get tired of having to answer this for years: “Yes, I do.” The same response I get is, “But, how if you can’t smell??” I think those who have no idea about lack of smell just assumes that it means one’ll lose a sense of taste. So, I have two jobs educating hearing people and those with sense of smell — or what do you call them? :)

Now onto taste, I can taste but probably not with the kind of sensitivity on the taste buds that others with sense of smell have. Not sure if taste buds and smell are connected.

Anyone want to be my smell interpreter? ;-)

This has always been in my mind about 5 senses. I’m sure that whoever invented them have all 5 senses to begin with. I’m curious if anyone has information on how those senses — smell, touch, hear, see and taste — were first introduced.

Erin, this is the best blog you’ve ever written. Your natural voice comes out when you write from the heart. I also think you’re one brave woman to face up to what’s happening and still have the courage to get out of bed in the morning. In a sense, that is what life is all about. You fall down, you better get right back up. Perhaps you know about Plato’s “Cave” allegory? If not, I’ll offer my interpretation of it: you can’t know what it’s like to taste freedom until you’ve been downtrodden and/or experienced rock bottom. No disrespect intended here but that kind of freedom isn’t free, know what I mean? But we have a lot to learn from brave people like you. That which does not kill you only makes you stronger, so said the crazy syphillic dude who talked to horses. There’s entirely too much hubris in the Deaf community. A lot of people should ask themselves “Do I really have genuine struggles or am I just along for the ride?” It’s hard to take claims of audism seriously from someone who say, lets say owns 8 acres in Bethesda and takes home a 6 figure salary and has vacation homes in Nags Head and Ocean City and constantly travels. For that kind of person to claim audism, cheapens the word and makes the rest of us with genuine struggles look foolish. I would be more inclined to take your claims seriously, so that’s my argument. Kind of foolish to play the paternalism card when you’re playing the Deaf card at the same time, isn’t it? (just to make it clear, I’m not saying you do that)
Hubris was a crime in ancient Greece, what a shame we got away from that, eh? On the other hand, the ancient Greeks were also big on pederasty, so I guess you have to take the good with the bad! From a male point of view, at least. I’ve been deaf half my life and hearing half my life and I can honestly tell you the grass is not greener. Life is tough for everyone, obviously there are certain exceptions if you’re wealthy enough to buy your way out of anything, but you can’t take the money with you in the end so it all balances out. Hearing people say that they would rather be blind than deaf because the thought of being deaf terrifies them. A persons voice contains information: You can tell where they are from, if they are educated, how intelligent they are. George Clooney is from Kentucky but lost the accent, for example. Meryl Streep can adopt any accent there is in hours. You might say a persons soul is in their voice. This is why you will rarely find a top-flight interpreter with a hee-haw redneck accent. If you don’t have that information from the world anymore, you would feel helpless. Nobody in their right mind would choose blindness over deafness, but nobody would admit it either. I humbly submit to you to write more blogs about your experiences and genuine struggles as we all go on this crazy journey called life.

Yes this is probably the ONLY blog entry from Erin I’ve come to enjoy reading.

However, I’m also reluctant to agree with the fact that being deaf is more valuable than being blind. But then again, both sides have valid arguments, it’s like trying to decide between having money or power. Money begets power and power begets money…. either way it works out. But as a person who covets hearing and bonding with people, I’d much rather be able to communicate (hear) them than see them. =)

Kudo’s Erin.

I think this question is probably one of the most popular that deaf and blind people encounter or consider throughout their life. I tend to agree with the majority of deaf people, definitely deafness over blindness. However, it would be fascinating to me to read the opinion of a blind person in response to this question. I want to know if there too is a tendency to lean toward their own disability, that is, an inherent bias. There almost has to be.

On another note, I want to say well done in handling the news of Usher’s Syndrome. Being blind is one of my greatest fears, since I’m deaf. I hope I’m not being crass in mentioning that.

Interestingly, I have asked this question to hearing audiences during my “Deaf Culture” presentations a number of times over the years, and the majority have tended to say deaf. Those who did say blind generally did so because of their interest in music…rather than because of their consideration of communication issues, language development, or whatever.

I think part of the problem is that it is hard for many hearing people to really conceive of what it means to not be able to hear. You can blindfold them and they immediately get a sense of what not being able to see means, and that scares the crap out of most of them. On the other hand, they conceive of deafness as just being this nice quiet solitude where you don’t have to deal with all the noise around you.

But then when I remind them what being deaf really entails - not being able to hear on a cell phone or listen to the radio in your car or understand group conversations at the local bar…then it really starts to dawn on them that there is a lot more to all of this than just the absence of sound. That doesn’t mean they necessarily change their minds, but they do start to appreciate what being able to hear is really all about.

Interestingly enough, tho…I did a presentation once where there were a few blind individuals in the audience and they came up to me afterwards and told me they didn’t like my asking that kind of question and found it somewhat offensive. Their point being that it was like comparing apples and oranges…how can you really say that one disability is “better than” or easier to deal with than another?

Some people deal with losing their hearing quite proactively - perhaps even going so far as to learn sign language, use devices and services such as interpreters and relay and flashing light signalers and pagers, and joining the Deaf Community; while others go through denial and mourn their loss, while researching surgical technologies such as CIs and struggling to get by with rudimentory lipreading skills and what little residual hearing they may still have. I suspect the same thing can be said for those who lose their sight - some will immediately begin learning mobility techniques, begin studying braille, investigate getting a seeing-eye dog and so forth…while others will go through that grieving and struggle to maintain what “normalcy” they can with what limited vision they might still have.

Failing that, both groups likely withdraw into isolation - fighting deep depression, suicidal thoughts, and increasing distancing from the world around them…be it things or people.

It’s a hard call. I don’t think any of us knows how we would deal with losing one of our senses until we are put into a situation where we are forced to confront such - any more than we know how we’d deal with a diagnosis of cancer or multiple sclerosis or alzheimer’s.

Kudos to Erin for a thought-provoking blog, and congrats on getting mentioned in the Post Express!

Well, I prefer to be deaf than blind. Why? Yes I am deaf, true, I also can hear as well. I do enjoy musics and so on but I also often wondered if it is better to be blind or deaf.
I watched a TV show called “ER” where two doctors (Noah Wyle and Anthony Edwards) were bored and talked back and forth while shooting basketball and they were asked series of questions back and forth Red or Yellow…one would say Red then one would ask Blind or Deaf…Noah Wyle’s character said “DEAF”.
I thought a lot after that scene because I have to agree deaf, because thanks to sign language and technology we are no longer “cut away from people”. Not only sound is beautiful sometimes but visually we can see snow, see flowers bloom, watch the sunrise and sunset, see the beauty of a baby’s birth, and so on. Hearing a baby’s birth is a lot of “groanings and yellings”. No offense to blind people but they prefer to be blind than deaf, which I can understand because they became accustomed to music, people’s voices, and so on.
I think Deaf is also an advantage: we sleep so damn good at night and not be awaken by garbage trucks!

I remember few years ago my former co-worker told me this: before she met me, she would have preferred blind over deaf, but after getting to know me, she said she realized being deaf would be more independent than being blind.

I don’t see how NOT being able to listen to music is a big deal to hearing people. It is just a bonus to me. We can make up communication via pagers, e-mails, laptop writing, etc. Can blind people make up for the their lack of “sight”? No, they can’t. What do they really enjoy? Just music and communication?? To me, that doesn’t seem enough. How about the movies, sight-seeing, seeing babies grow up, looking at paintings, etc.?? Yes, I know some blind people can use computer but there is so much limits. It depends on certain websites that blind people have access to. My co worker is blind but hearing. I asked her this question about computer. She said something that hers is voice-activated. But is that enough to look at websites: pictures, etc?