Helen+Keller

Overview
Before the age of two, Helen Keller experienced a terrible misfortune. She became extremely ill and caught a fever. Ms. Keller became unconscious, and when she woke soon after, she was unable to see. Just minutes later, not only was she blind, but Helen Keller’s fever left her unable to hear. Helen began to grow up tarnished with the memory of her sickness, and unable to forget its repercussions. Determined, Helen Keller performed small tasks around her home; she was desperate to see some inkling of what she was missing. Ultimately, this is what Helen Keller is known for, her strong will and courage.

Critical Issue[[image:keller.jpg width="150" height="104" align="right" caption="Helen Keller" link="http://www.time.com/time/time100/heroes/profile/keller01.html"]]
Sometimes, I stood between two persons who were conversing and touched their lips. I could not understand, and I was vexed. I moved my lips and gesticulated frantically without result. This made me so angry at times that I kicked and screamed until I was exhausted,” Helen Keller’s initial response to her condition. With the help of her teacher, Annie Sullivan, Helen began to trade these fits for knowledge. Helen Keller was first taught a basis for communication. Anne Sullivan wrote letters on Helen’s hands, a manual form of the alphabet. Once the world heard of her accomplishments, Helen Keller became renowned. With the help of Sullivan, the two entered libraries, cinemas, and radios. With Keller’s zeal for learning she was also able to learn to speak. TIME Magazine described Ms. Keller as, “the blind deaf-mute who has become a highly educated and intelligent woman.”

Conclusion
One could probably argue that Helen no longer is confined by her disabilities. She was able to now interact and carryout her life. Helen could now go beyond the household chores she was once restricted to. In connection with Helen Keller’s journey Anne Sullivan Macy contested, “A less vigorous child could never have done what she has done.” Helen Keller’s story has been an inspiration to numerous Americans. She proved that even the most seemingly hopeless scenarios can be concerned with persistence and passion. As Helen herself wrote, she was able to feel, “the warm tide of human life pulsing round and round me.”