University Library
  • Login
A gateway to Melbourne's research publications
Minerva Access is the University's Institutional Repository. It aims to collect, preserve, and showcase the intellectual output of staff and students of the University of Melbourne for a global audience.
View Item 
  • Minerva Access
  • Arts
  • School of Historical and Philosophical Studies
  • School of Historical and Philosophical Studies - Research Publications
  • View Item
  • Minerva Access
  • Arts
  • School of Historical and Philosophical Studies
  • School of Historical and Philosophical Studies - Research Publications
  • View Item
JavaScript is disabled for your browser. Some features of this site may not work without it.

    Deafness, culture, and choice

    Thumbnail
    Citations
    Scopus
    Web of Science
    Altmetric
    68
    35
    Author
    Levy, N
    Date
    2002-10-01
    Source Title
    JOURNAL OF MEDICAL ETHICS
    Publisher
    BRITISH MED JOURNAL PUBL GROUP
    University of Melbourne Author/s
    LEVY, NEIL
    Affiliation
    Philosophy, Anthropology And Social Inquiry
    Metadata
    Show full item record
    Document Type
    Journal Article
    Citations
    Levy, N. (2002). Deafness, culture, and choice. JOURNAL OF MEDICAL ETHICS, 28 (5), pp.284-285. https://doi.org/10.1136/jme.28.5.284.
    Access Status
    Access this item via the Open Access location
    URI
    http://hdl.handle.net/11343/25533
    DOI
    10.1136/jme.28.5.284
    Open Access at PMC
    http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1733648
    Description

    C1 - Journal Articles Refereed

    Abstract
    The recent controversy surrounding the choice, by a deaf lesbian couple, to have children who were themselves deaf, has focused attention on the ethics of choosing (apparent) disabilities for children. Deaf activists argue that deafness is not a disability, but instead the constitutive condition of access to a rich culture. Being deaf carries disadvantages with it, but these are a product of discrimination, not of the condition itself. It is, however, implausible to think that all the disadvantages which stem from deafness are social in origin. Moreover, though it may be true that being deaf carries with it the important compensation of access to a rich culture, no physical condition is required for such access. Cultures are simply the kind of things to which we are born, and therefore to which the children of deaf parents, hearing or deaf, normally belong. Thus these parents are making a mistake in choosing deafness for their children. Given their own experience of isolation as children, however, it is a mistake which is understandable, and our reaction to them ought to be compassion, not condemnation.
    Keywords
    Biotechnology not elsewhere classified ; Applied Ethics (incl. Bioethics and Environmental Ethics); Bioethics

    Export Reference in RIS Format     

    Endnote

    • Click on "Export Reference in RIS Format" and choose "open with... Endnote".

    Refworks

    • Click on "Export Reference in RIS Format". Login to Refworks, go to References => Import References


    Collections
    • Minerva Elements Records [45770]
    • School of Historical and Philosophical Studies - Research Publications [1500]
    Minerva AccessDepositing Your Work (for University of Melbourne Staff and Students)NewsFAQs

    BrowseCommunities & CollectionsBy Issue DateAuthorsTitlesSubjectsThis CollectionBy Issue DateAuthorsTitlesSubjects
    My AccountLoginRegister
    StatisticsMost Popular ItemsStatistics by CountryMost Popular Authors