ornamental line

One Shame

"It's a good thing she can't think or feel."
Johnny Belinda (1948)


Points for Reflection

H-Dirksen L. Bauman's and Joseph J. Murray's "Deaf Studies in the 21st Century: 'Deaf-Gain' and the Future of Human Diversity" (DSR 242-55)

  1. How does the brain's ability to quickly learn a sign language contribute to the ongoing debate over "the innateness or social origins of language acquisition" (DSR 244)? Which side of the argument benefits?
  2. Bauman and Murray hold that because sight uses mores of the brain's capacity than does hearing, it makes sense for the deaf to take the lead in future experiments concerning visual learning (DSR 244-45). Do you consider yourself a visual learner, and do you tend to use your hands and/or exaggerated facial expressions when you communicate?
  3. The authors identify how the explanation of certain challenging concepts traditionally rendered in words might benefit from kinetic, spatial explanations using a sign language (DSR 250). Can you identify any difficult concepts in your own major/discipline that might benefit from such a spatial explanation?
  4. How does "Deaf walk" differ from the way hearing individuals walk (DSR 250)?
  5. Which is more contigent on the presence of others, the sense of presence (Derrida) of someone who hears and speaks, or the sense of presence of soeone who is Deaf?
  6. What call to action do the authors recommend as a way of preventing the loss of sign language and Deaf culture in the twenty-first century (DSR 251)?
  7. When the authors suggest that everyone would be enriched by becoming "a bit more Deaf" (DSR 251), what do they mean?


Jean Negulesco's Johnny Belinda (1948)

  1. does the opening heighten the film’s realism?  Does it immediately feel like a fictional drama, a documentary, or something else?
  2. does the film question, or perpetuate, common prejudices concerning the intersections of various disabilities?
  3. does the non-diegetic musical score provide merely an atmospheric backdrop to the film’s events, or does it overtly work to shape our attitude towards the characters?  Consider the music’s changing dynamics (i.e. volume), instrumentation, and/or tempo. [Trevor L]
  4. do the filmmakers’ lighting choices heighten the tale’s drama in subtle or melodramatic ways?
  5. which of Locky McCormick’s personality traits, on display in the film’s opening prove, reliable indicators of later behavior?
  6. what types of medical advice does Dr. Richardson typically give to his clients?
  7. how do Stella’s interactions with Dr. Richardson, her employer, compare with those of Locky McCormick? [Gabriel G]
  8. why has Dr. Robert Richardson come to Nova Scotia?
  9. does the film adopt a particular, implicit attitude towards churchgoing?  Does this align with or deviate from its attitude towards the exercise of faith outside of church?
  10. what do Belinda’s early responses to Dr. Richardson’s attempts to teach her sign language suggest about her native intelligence? [Sydney L]
  11. what assumptions has Belinda’s father, Black, made about his daughter’s mental capacity?
  12. which characters call Belinda “dummy” or “dimwit,” and why?
  13. does sign language appear to foster or to discourage touch?
  14. do Black’s and Aggie’s responses to seeing sign language mirror those of the community at large?
  15. does Belinda grow to rely more heavily on lip-reading than sign language when communicating with Robert and her father?
  16. does music appreciation remain far out of reach for our protagonist?
  17. whom does Stella prefer, Locky or Robert?
  18. what do Locky’s interactions with women suggest about his character?
  19. how does the event which occurs in secret the night of the dance party impact Belinda in the days which follow?
  20. is Belinda configured as asexual because of her disability?
  21. is Dr. Richardson consistently accurate in the professional assessments he makes of Belinda?
  22. what does Dr. Richardson learn from Dr. Gray during his and Belinda’s visit to the big city, and how does this shape Dr. Richardson’s behavior towards Belinda?
  23. how does Aggie respond to Dr. Richardson’s revelation, following the return from the big city?  Is this reaction in keeping with Aggie’s character up to this point?
  24. does Belinda respond to the enormous life change introduced into her life--in the second half of the film--in a way that normalizes her? [Emma H]
  25. what opportunities does being able to communicate open up for Belinda?
  26. does Dr. Richardson respond to news of the marriage feted by the town the same way that everyone else does?
  27. what factors increase the poignancy of Black MacDonald’s character arc?
  28. does the film suggest that not reporting a crime can be the right thing to do, or does it implicitly critique this omission?
  29. how should we characterize Dr. Richardson’s changing relationship with Belinda?  Is the audience’s conclusion supposed to echo that of the gossiping villagers?
  30. does Belinda have a sixth sense?
  31. do Belinda's final, irrevocable actions disqualify her, or solidify her, as heroic?

monochromatic one poster of 1948 film Johnny Belinda, a closeup of Belinda's face, looking downwards with slight smile
Johnny Belinda (1948)
one poster from original film release



Dr. Paul Marchbanks
pmarchba@calpoly.edu