Enduring Texts: Enduring Texts for ASL

Some consider him to be the grandfather of ASL poetry. "Patrick Graybill was among the original members of the National Theatre of the Deaf troupe. After leaving NTD, he taught performing arts and literature at the National Technical Institute for the Deaf. Now retired, he consults with sign language interpreters and interpreting students."

George William Veditz (August 13, 1861 – March 12, 1937) was an American educator, filmmaker, and activist who served as the seventh President of the National Association of the Deaf from 1904 to 1910. He is remembered as one of the most ardent and visible advocates of American Sign Language (ASL) and was one of the first people to film ASL. His 1913 film "Preservation of the Sign Language" was added to the National Film Registry in 2010. (Quoted in full from Wikipedia)

Quoted directly from the website: "You Have to be Deaf to Understand" was written by Willard J. Madsen, associate professor at Gallaudet College and a graduate of the Kansas School for the Deaf. Written in 1971, the poem first appeared in the Dee Cee Eyes and has since been reprinted in publications all over the country. It has received worldwide attention and has been translated into seven different languages."

Secondary Discipline(s): Poetry

Youtube Video. Deaf activist, author, poet, and teacher whose ASL poems have been widely studied.

Secondary Discipline(s): Poetry

In the author's own words, "Our first goal is to teach the basic concepts of linguistics as they pertain to ASL structure [...] Our second goal is to teach students to think critically about the structure of ASL and about claims that researchers make about that structure" (xiii).

Groundbreaking socio-linguisitc study of ASL. In the author's own words, "With the advent of an increasing number of sociolinguists who specialize in ASL, it is only natural that this now accepted real language would get the deserved attention that this book provides. Its uniqueness comes from the fact that a unified exposition of ASL sociolinguistics has hitherto not been put forth" (xii).