Hearing, Mother Father Deaf: Hearing People in Deaf Families (review)

Abstract

Hearing, Mother Father Deaf: Hearing People in Deaf Families, ed. Michele Bishop and Sherry L. Hicks (Washington, D. C: Gallaudet University Press, 2008, 340 pp., $85.00, ISBN 978-1563683978). THIS SEMINAL book provides an in-depth look at language use drawn from several studies on hearing bimodal bilinguals (hearing individuals with Deaf parents, also known as Codas). This volume is significant not only because of the research but also because the editors selected a range of international studies that provide variation in the languages and issues discussed. The chapters in this volume will appeal to researchers, educators, linguists, those who identify as Codas, and those who have deaf parents but do not identify with the Coda label. Hearing, Mother Father Deaf is divided into three parts: bimodal bilingualism in adults; Koda (kids of deaf parents); and coda identity and experience. The organization of the book flows nicely: Content in one chapter provides information that is useful for understanding later chapters. The studies range from controlled experiments to reports of personal experiences or anecdotal evidence. In their introduction, Bishop and Hicks provide an extensive review of issues relevant to the Deaf community and that affect Codas. Following the introduction, the chapters in the first section are Bimodal Bilingualism (Emmorey, Borinstein, Thompson, and Gollan), The Face of Bimodal Bilingualism: ASL Grammatical Markers Are Produced When Bilinguals Speak to English Monolinguals (Pyers and Emmorey), and Coda Talk: Bimodal Discourse among Hearing, Native Signers (Bishop and Hicks). These chapters focus on adult ASLEnglish hearing bimodal bilinguals and examine a specific type of bilingualism in which both languages can be produced at the same time due to the bimodal nature of the languages. In part II the focus shifts to younger children of Deaf parents, Kodas. These chapters explore issues related to the languages used by Kodas in three countries, NGT-Dutch, ASL-English, and DGS-German. The chapter titles are Bimodal Language Acquisition in Kodas (Van den Bogaerde and Baker); Eyes over Ears: The Development of Visual Strategies by Hearing Children of Deaf Parents (Mather and Andrews), and Sociolinguistic Aspects of the Communication between Hearing Children and Deaf Parents (Wilhelm) . Part III has only one chapter, Brazilian Codas: Libras and Portuguese in Contact Zones, by Muller de Quadros and Masutti. The three chapters in part IV share insights into Coda identity and experience. The chapters are Exploring Linguistic and Cultural Identity: My Personal Experience (Napier); Virgilean Guides: Esthetic Subjects in Coda Autobiographies (Ataman); and Characteristics of the Coda Experience in 21st-century Contemporary Culture (Adams). The articles in this section are about hearing individuals with deaf parents who use BSL, Auslan, DGS, and/or ASL. In the remainder of this review, I provide an overview of the information reported in each chapter but encourage readers to read each chapter in its entirety. Although a few sentences in the book are confusing due to typing errors and editing, the studies presented in this volume provide information and insight into a group that has much to offer toward a better understanding of bilingualism and biculturalism, first and second language acquisition, how the brain works with languages, language attitudes, and how some people navigate between the hearing and the deaf worlds. Part I. Bimodal Bilingualism in Adults By studying adult bimodal bilinguals, the researchers in this section provide insight into code blending and language suppression. In the first chapter, Emmorey et al. propose a model of hearing bimodal/ bilingual language production. They report on a study in which they examined conversations and elicited narratives for code blends and code switches in order to determine the characteristics of each. The authors discuss code blending, code switching, and language suppression or language selection. …