The Talking Deaf Man

Amman, Johann Conrad, 1669-1724Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

3.0

Word count: 56K words
Chapters: 6

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971 and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today.The Talking Deaf Man by Johann Conrad AmmanAuthor: Amman, Johann Conrad, 1669-1724,Language: English, Class: HV: Social sciences: Social pathology, Social and Public Welfare, Release Date: Jul 24, 2004

Editor's review

The Talking Deaf Man is a historical document by the seventeenth- to eighteenth-century scholar Johann Conrad Amman, digitized by Project Gutenberg and circulated free of charge, classified under social pathology and social welfare within the social sciences. Its value lies not in literary quality but in presenting early European ways of thinking about speech training and communication for deaf people; it is a primary source for observing the history of education for the hearing-impaired and the evolution of ideas about language. The book discusses how to make the deaf speak, reflecting the level of contemporary understanding of pronunciation, language acquisition, and bodily function; for today's readers it offers both a sense of historical distance and renewed reflection on the nature of communication. It should be read in the context of its time, understanding its character as both limited and pioneering. It suits readers interested in the history of special education, language history, or medical humanities as topical material, and also serves as a primary-text supplement for related courses.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Research-oriented readers interested in the history of special education and deaf communication
Students taking courses in language history or medical humanities
Collectors interested in public-domain documents and early scientific texts
Advanced readers hoping to broaden their reading of English primary texts

Not a good fit for

Family members of hearing-impaired people seeking modern rehabilitation methods or practical guidance
General casual readers who prefer light, story-driven reading
Beginners whose English reading ability is not yet sufficient for early academic prose

Reading tips

Read the introduction or background first to understand the author's era before entering the main text.
Compare the book's views with today's special education concepts, noting differences and continuities.
When encountering early terminology, infer meaning from context; word-by-word close reading is unnecessary.
Excerpt passages on pronunciation and language acquisition by topic for future reference.

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

FAQ

Is this book a novel or an academic discussion?

According to the materials, the book is classified under social pathology and social welfare within the social sciences and is an expository text rather than a novel. It discusses speech and communication problems of the deaf and has the character of early academic and observational records; it should be approached as a document.

What era was the author Amman from?

The materials show the author's dates as 1669 to 1724, placing him in the seventeenth to eighteenth centuries. This book is the English electronic edition of his related discussion, released by Project Gutenberg in 2004, with the 2019 version continuing this public-domain resource.

What is the significance of this book for modern readers?

It provides a primary perspective on how early society viewed deaf people and speech training, helping to understand the historical evolution of special education concepts. Readers interested in language acquisition and communication methods can also find material for reflecting on today's understanding.

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About the author

Amman, Johann Conrad, 1669-1724 Author · Swiss · 1669–1724

Johann Conrad Amman (1669–1724) was a Swiss physician known for his pioneering work in teaching speech to deaf people. He wrote The Talking Deaf Man, a book centered on how deaf individuals can learn to speak, in which he set out his teaching ideas and methods. At a time when deaf education was still in its infancy, he held that deaf people were not beyond instruction and could, through systematic training, master spoken language—a position that influenced later teaching of speech to the deaf. Public information about his life is limited; details of his education, posts, and specific experiences are largely unavailable, and he is confirmed chiefly as a physician and a forerunner in deaf speech instruction. One work by him is held in this collection, the representative title mentioned above, through which readers can grasp the central question he addressed: how those with hearing impairment may, through training, enter the world of spoken language.