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Deaf and blind since toddlerhood, Helen Keller was seven years old when her teacher, Anne Sullivan, took her to a water-pump on 5th April, 1887 - and she learned the word \u2018water\u2019.\nIt was a eureka moment for Keller, who went on to read braille; write in pencil; learn French, German, Greek, and Latin; study at Harvard University; and speak using her own voice. She became one of the most famous disabled people of the twentieth century.\nIn this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly consider a wordless definition of \u2018love\u2019; explain how Keller was able to follow her University lectures; and ask whether her autobiography\u2019s narrative of overcoming immense adversity has become an unwitting example of \u2018inspiration porn\u2019...\nFurther Reading:\n\u2022 \u2018Deaf, Blind and Determined: How Helen Keller Learned to Communicate\u2019 (HowStuffWorks, 2021): https://people.howstuffworks.com/helen-keller.htm\n\u2022 \u2018Is a Helen Keller Obsession Holding Disabled People Back?\u2019 (New York Times, 2021): https://www.nytimes.com/2021/10/21/opinion/helen-keller.html\n\u2022 \u2018Helen Keller Speaks Out\u2019 (1954): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ch_H8pt9M8\n\nFor bonus material and to support the show, visit\xa0Patreon.com/Retrospectors\nWe'll be back tomorrow! Follow us wherever you get your podcasts:\xa0podfollow.com/Retrospectors\nThe Retrospectors are Olly Mann, Rebecca Messina & Arion McNicoll, with Matt Hill.\nTheme Music: Pass The Peas. Announcer: Bob Ravelli. Graphic Design: Terry Saunders. Edit Producer: Emma Corsham.\nCopyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2022.\n Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.\nLearn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices