Personal SpaceAs hearing Americans, we tend to be on guard when someone is in what we deem as our “personal space.” Everyone has experienced the uncomfortable feeling in an elevator when too many people pile in and you end up rubbing shoulders. What about at the movie theater when someone takes that seat next to you when there are plenty of open spaces further down the row? My favorite is the person on the airplane who takes control of the arm rest. We like to maintain our own personal “bubble” around us.
Contrast this to many Arab cultures who prefer and relish the closeness we American’s find disturbing. For Arab cultures, the conversational distance they find natural is the same distance American’s maintain for close or intimate conversations. In the book “Reading Between the Signs” I learned that the Arab desire for close communication comes from their desire to smell each others breath(!!) “To smell one’s friend is not only nice but desirable, for to deny him your breath is to act ashamed (Hall 196, 160).”For Deaf culture, the comfortable conversational distance and personal space varies. Signed conversations can take place at much greater distances, through glass doors, under water, etc. Signing when you are too close together is very hard on the eyes.
Pointing and TouchDo you remember your mother telling you how rude it is to point at someone? Well here is another example where the cultural differences between the hearing and deaf communities clash. Remembering that ASL is a visual language, it would seem natural – and necessary – to point at someone or something to identify it in conversation. It has taken me quite a few years to feel comfortable pointing to people.
Deaf people are also more accustomed to touch than their hearing counterparts. If I were to come up behind a hearing person and tap them on the shoulder, most likely they would be startled or look at me un-approvingly. Deafies are used to shoulder taps and touches – which are key to getting their attention.
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