my abstract

[MARIA GALEA]

very interesting Erika :) well done.
maria

> Circulating the Signing Body: An emerging, transnational Deaf literacy
> through SignWriting
>
> By the way, here's an abstract of what I plan to present about in South
> Africa:
>
> Though sign languages have traditionally been unwritten, small groups
> of Deaf and hearing signers from over 30 countries have begun to write
> their sign languages using a script called Sutton SignWriting (SSW).
> Originally derived from dance notation, SSW allows signers to
> iconically represent the moving body through a flexible system that
> can be easily adapted to accommodate different sign
> languages.SignWriters from a range of countries regularly post and
> compare SSW texts on an email listserve. Applying a new script to
> these previously unwritten languages brings meta-linguistic awareness
> into sharp relief; SignWriters also use this forum to discuss the
> insights their writing has given them about their particular sign
> language, sign languages in general, and the social consequences of
> this new form of literacy. This paper argues that the circulation and
> discussion of these texts both reflects and contributes to an emerging
> transnational signing network, while at the same time relationally
> shaping and reinforcing the local identities of particular sign
> languages and signing communities. The simultaneous processes of
> transnational network formation and local differentiation are
> heightened by the unique ways in which SSW texts import the bodies of
> signers from far removed locations into the shared space of the
> internet. However, the process described in this paper are not limited
> to signing communities, but provide broader insight into the ways that
> the body (or its absence) are involved in the constitution of
> transnational text-based social networks.
>
>
>
>
> --
> Erika Hoffmann-Dilloway
> Assistant Professor of Anthropology
> Oberlin College
>
>