Helen Keller Essay

492 Words2 Pages
Helen Keller I. Thesis: A. Can you imagine being blind and deaf at 18 months?Imagine being helpless and mute at such a young age struggling to communicate with others when you don’t have the knowledge to communicate with them. That is what Helen Keller had to struggle with. B. Our research on Helen Keller shows an example of Malcolm Gladwell’s theory of success because of the 10,000 hour rule and opportunity theory. She worked to improve the lives of people with disabilities. II. Gladwell’s main Theories: A. 10,000 Hour Rule B. Opportunity III. Successful person’s brief biography: A. Helen Adams Keller was born on June 27, 1880 in Tuscumbia, Alabama. In 1882, she fell ill and was struck blind, deaf and mute. In 1882 Helen Keller got diagnosed with an illness called "brain fever" which caused high fevers. Few days later when her fever died down her mother notices that she did not react to any loud sounds or didn’t’ react when a hand was waved in front of her face. Helen lost both hearing and vision. As she grew older she had trouble communicating with many people, she couldn’t control her feelings which made her act rudely towards people by kicking and screaming. B. At ten years old her parents employed a twenty year old named Anne Sullivan as Helen’s tutor. Sullivan educated Helen in linguistic symbols, in Helen’s case spelling the alphabet into her hand. As time passed Helen Keller slowly learned how to read Braille, read people’s lips, handwriting, type writing, and basic vocal speech. As she grew older this has inspired her to make a school for the blind and deaf. IV. Comparison of person to theory: A. It takes time and patience for a blind person to perfect the way of how to read Braille, lip-reading, handwriting, type writing, and basic vocal speech. With the 10,000 hour rule theory this relates to it. B.
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