DEAF SUBJECT - THE VISUAL ISSUE IN LANGUAGE DEVELOPMENT

ABSTRACT

This article presents the results of a study aimed at analyzing the perception of a profoundly deaf student regarding his literacy experience, particularly with respect to learning and the social use of written texts. His narrative highlights the central role of vision in the language development of deaf individuals, contributing to their becoming subjects of the gaze and to the development of sign language. The research was grounded in a theoretical review and conducted according to the methodological principles of (auto)biographical narrative, drawing on discursive material produced in interaction with a qualified informant - a profoundly deaf graduate of the public Basic Education system. Semi-structured interviews were conducted to provide discursive material on his educational history and his cultural experience as a bilingual subject. The narratives analyzed underscore the importance of sign language and other visual-gestural systems of expression for the early development of deaf individuals and the need to encourage their contact with deaf culture, so that they may fully develop as subjects of language prior to the process of alphabetic literacy.

KEYWORDS:
Deaf; Student; Visual Language; Literacy; Bilingual education.