HELEN KELLER AND ME

Helen Keller performed on vaudeville for five years after surviving a plagiarism scandal, grinding through a flopped biopic, and losing cash on the lecture circuit. While her cheery attitude and clever mind charmed audiences, how real was her invitation into a deaf and blind woman's world? Why do we think of her as an inspiration, instead of a flesh and blood woman? Struggling academic Sarah Bowden unpacks how we all understand Helen Keller, but her professorial lecture keeps getting interrupted by the appearance of her own hearing tests and medical records throughout. Finally, Sarah must confess that she, too, performs disability for others’ comfort, and come to a reckoning about how realistically we are willing to see others’ journeys in the world.