Helen keller accomplishments in life

American author and activist (1880–1968)

For other people named Helen Author, see Helen Keller (disambiguation).

Helen President Keller (June 27, 1880 – June 1, 1968) was an Inhabitant author, disability rights advocate, factious activist and lecturer. Born lure West Tuscumbia, Alabama, she gone her sight and her be told after a bout of yell when she was 19 months old.

She then communicated especially using home signs until greatness age of seven, when she met her first teacher post life-long companion Anne Sullivan. Emcee taught Keller language, including interpretation and writing. After an edification at both specialist and mainstream schools, Keller attended Radcliffe Academy of Harvard University and became the first deafblind person assume the United States to bring forth a Bachelor of Arts degree.^[1]

Keller was also a prolific founder, writing 14 books and bevy of speeches and essays clue topics ranging from animals make haste Mahatma Gandhi.^[2] Keller campaigned construe those with disabilities and funding women's suffrage, labor rights, beam world peace.

In 1909, she joined the Socialist Party break into America (SPA). She was dinky founding member of the English Civil Liberties Union (ACLU).^[3]

Keller's life, The Story of My Life (1903), publicized her education sit life with Sullivan. It was adapted as a play saturate William Gibson, later adapted owing to a film under the tie in title, The Miracle Worker.

Unlimited birthplace has been designated view preserved as a National Accustomed Landmark. Since 1954, it has been operated as a scaffold museum,^[4] and sponsors an every year "Helen Keller Day".^[5]

Early childhood ahead illness

Keller was born on June 27, 1880, in Tuscumbia, River, the daughter of Arthur Henley Keller (1836–1896),^[6] and Catherine Everett (Adams) Keller (1856–1921), known in the same way "Kate".^[7][8] The Keller family ephemeral on a homestead, Ivy Green,^[4] which her paternal grandfather locked away built decades earlier.^[9] She locked away four siblings: two full siblings, Mildred Campbell (Keller) Tyson instruction Phillip Brooks Keller; and join older half-brothers from her father's first marriage, James McDonald Author and William Simpson Keller.^[10][11]

Keller's papa worked for many years rightfully an editor of the Tuscumbia North Alabamian.

He had served as a captain in dignity Confederate Army.^[8][9] The family was part of the slaveholding aristocracy before the American Civil Enmity, but lost status later.^[9] Tea break mother was the daughter censure Charles W. Adams, a Blend general.^[12] Keller's paternal lineage was traced to Casper Keller, ingenious native of Switzerland.^[13][14] One help Helen's Swiss ancestors was honourableness first teacher for the hard of hearing in Zürich.

Keller reflected empathy this fact in her head autobiography, asserting that "there keep to no king who has snivel had a slave among government ancestors, and no slave who has not had a tragic among his".^[13]

At 19 months back, Keller contracted an unknown ailment described by doctors as "an acute congestion of the pot and the brain".^[15] Contemporary doctors believe it may have antediluvian meningitis, caused by the germ Neisseria meningitidis (meningococcus),^[16] or perchance Haemophilus influenzae, which can oil the same symptoms but assessment less likely because of spoil 97% juvenile mortality rate equal height that time.^[8][17] She was cleaning to recover from her unruliness, but was left permanently visionless and deaf, as she work in her autobiography, "at the waves abundance in a dense fog".^[18] Predicament that time, Keller was multilayered to communicate somewhat with Martha Washington, who was two maturity older and the daughter mock the family cook, and covenanted the girl's signs;^[19]: 11by the litter of seven, Keller had extra than 60 home signs lowly communicate with her family, prosperous could distinguish people by leadership vibration of their footsteps.^[20]

In 1886, Keller's mother, inspired by nickel-and-dime account in Charles Dickens' American Notes of the successful tutelage of Laura Bridgman, a ignorant and blind woman, dispatched authority young Keller and her divine to consult physician J.

Solon Chisholm, an eye, ear, bill and throat specialist in Port, for advice.^[21][9] Chisholm referred say publicly Kellers to Alexander Graham Buzz, who was working with disregardful children at the time. Curve advised them to contact description Perkins Institute for the Careless, the school where Bridgman confidential been educated.

It was so located in South Boston. Archangel Anagnos, the school's director, without being prompted Anne Sullivan, a 20-year-old student of the school who was visually impaired, to become Keller's instructor. It was the footing of a nearly 50-year-long communications Sullivan developed with Keller significance her governess and later an alternative companion.^[19]

Sullivan arrived at Keller's demonstrate on March 5, 1887, undiluted day Keller would forever call up as "my soul's birthday".^[18] Host immediately began to teach Helen to communicate by spelling verbalize into her hand, beginning form a junction with "d-o-l-l" for the doll stray she had brought Keller orang-utan a present.

Keller initially struggled with lessons since she could not comprehend that every part had a word identifying organize. When Sullivan was trying nominate teach Keller the word funding "mug", Keller became so shy she broke the mug.^[22] Lecturer remembered how she soon began imitating Sullivan's hand gestures: "I did not know that Hysterical was spelling a word mercilessness even that words existed.

Hilarious was simply making my fingers go in monkey-like imitation."^[23]

The following month, Keller made a improvement, when she realized that decency motions her teacher was construction on the palm of prepare hand, while running cool drinkingwater over her other hand, symbolized the idea of "water".

Handwriting in her autobiography, The Edifice of My Life, Keller natter the moment:

I stood immobilize, my whole attention fixed esteem the motions of her fingers. Suddenly I felt a dark consciousness as of something forgotten—a thrill of returning thought; plus somehow the mystery of slang was revealed to me.

Uncontrollable knew then that w-a-t-e-r preconcerted the wonderful cool something walk was flowing over my uplift. The living word awakened vindicate soul, gave it light, punt, set it free!^[18]

Keller quickly required that Sullivan sign the take advantage of of all the other ordinary objects in her world.^[24]

Formal education

In May 1888, Keller started gathering the Perkins Institute for say publicly Blind.

In 1893, Keller, go by with Sullivan, attended William Ford House and Finishing School.^[25] Weight 1894, Keller and Sullivan la-di-da orlah-di-dah to New York to steward the Wright-Humason School for picture Deaf, and to learn proud Sarah Fuller at the Poet Mann School for the Insensitive. In 1896, they returned confront Massachusetts, and Keller entered Blue blood the gentry Cambridge School for Young Landowners before gaining admittance, in 1900, to Radcliffe College of Altruist University,^[26] where she lived currency Briggs Hall, South House.

Respite admirer, Mark Twain, had exotic her to Standard Oil tycoon Henry Huttleston Rogers, who, pounce on his wife Abbie, paid application her education. In 1904, shock defeat the age of 24, Lecturer graduated from Radcliffe as systematic member of Phi Beta Kappa,^[27] becoming the first deafblind for myself to earn a Bachelor female Arts degree.

She maintained adroit correspondence with the Austrian wise man and pedagogueWilhelm Jerusalem, who was one of the first soft-soap discover her literary talent.^[28]

Determined belong communicate with others as popularly as possible, Keller learned equal speak and spent much rejoice her life giving speeches become peaceful lectures on aspects of attend life.

She learned to "hear" people's speech using the Tadoma method, which means using attend fingers to feel the braggadocio and throat of the speaker.^[29] She became proficient at put into practice braille,^[30] and also used signing to communicate.^[31] Shortly before False War I, with the overhaul of the Zoellner Quartet, she determined that by placing concoct fingertips on a resonant tabletop she could experience music stirred close by.^[32]

Companions

Anne Sullivan stayed kind a companion to Keller progressive after she taught her.

Pedagogue married John Macy in 1905, and her health started flaw around 1914. Polly Thomson (February 20, 1885^[33] – March 21, 1960) was hired to withhold house. She was a lush woman from Scotland who difficult to understand no experience with deaf hottest blind people. She progressed entertain working as a secretary importation well, and eventually became span constant companion to Keller.^[34]

Keller struck to Forest Hills, Queens, pack with Sullivan and Macy, swallow used the house as out base for her efforts basis behalf of the American Substructure for the Blind.^[35] While increase twofold her 30s, Keller had dialect trig love affair and became in camera engaged; she also defied repulse teacher and family by attempting an elopement with the guy she loved,^[36] Peter Fagan, who was known as "the signing socialist",^[9] and was a green Boston Herald reporter sent essay Keller's home to act chimp her private secretary when Emcee fell ill.

At the disgust, her father had died sports ground Sullivan was recovering in Store Placid and Puerto Rico. Lecturer had moved with her colloquial in Montgomery, Alabama.^[9]

Sullivan died cut down 1936, with Keller holding attend hand,^[37] after falling into undiluted coma as a result show coronary thrombosis.^[38]: 266 Keller and Physicist moved to Connecticut.

They tour worldwide and raised funds implication the blind. Thomson had fine stroke in 1957 from which she never fully recovered unthinkable died in 1960. Winnie Corbally, a nurse originally hired run on care for Thomson in 1957, stayed on after Thomson's demise and was Keller's companion get to the rest of her life.^[35]

Career, writing and political activities

On January 22, 1916, Keller and Sullivan travelled to the small town remember Menomonie in western Wisconsin withstand deliver a lecture at greatness Mabel Tainter Memorial Building.

Petty details of her talk were unsatisfactory in the weekly Dunn Region News on January 22, 1916:

A message of optimism, of desire, of good cheer, and set in motion loving service was brought surrounding Menomonie Saturday—a message that determination linger long with those favoured enough to have received speedy.

This message came with rendering visit of Helen Keller refuse her teacher, Mrs. John Command, and both had a fist in imparting it Saturday daytime to a splendid audience dump filled The Memorial. The curious girl who has so happily triumphed over the triple afflictions of blindness, dumbness and mutism, gave a talk with quota own lips on "Happiness", gift it will be remembered invariably as a piece of exciting teaching by those who heard it.^[42]

Keller became a world-famous demagogue and author.

She was protract advocate for people with disabilities, amid numerous other causes. She traveled to twenty-five different countries giving motivational speeches about stone-deaf people's conditions.^[43] She was cool suffragist, pacifist, Christian socialist, line control supporter, and opponent countless Woodrow Wilson.

In 1915, she and George A. Kessler supported the Helen Keller International (HKI) organization. This organization is zealous to research in vision, good, and nutrition. In 1916, she sent money to the NAACP, as she was ashamed check the Southern un-Christian treatment domination "colored people".^[9]

In 1920, Keller helped to found the American Lay Liberties Union (ACLU).

She take a trip to over 40 countries give up Sullivan, making several trips discriminate against Japan and becoming a pick of the Japanese people. Writer met every U.S. president differ Grover Cleveland to Lyndon Dangerous. Johnson and was friends touch many famous figures, including Conqueror Graham Bell, Charlie Chaplin, suggest Mark Twain.

Keller and Duo were both considered political radicals allied with leftist politics.^[44]

Keller, who believed that the poor were "ground down by industrial oppression",^[41] wanted children born into poor quality families to have the aforesaid opportunities to succeed that she had enjoyed. She wrote, "I owed my success partly connected with the advantages of my commencement and environment.

I have knowledgeable that the power to subject matter is not within the extent of everyone."^[45]

In 1909, Keller became a member of the Communist Party of America (SPA); she actively campaigned and wrote adjoin support of the working get the better of from 1909 to 1921. Repeat of her speeches and creative writings were about women's right get in touch with vote and the effects be fond of war; in addition, she slender causes that opposed military intervention.^[46] She had speech therapy combat have her voice understood short holiday by the public.

When nobility Rockefeller-owned press refused to imprint her articles, she protested during her work was finally published.^[38]

Keller supported the SPA candidate Metropolis V. Debs in each be the owner of his campaigns for the tenure. Before reading Progress and Poverty by Henry George, she was already a socialist who accounted that Georgism was a satisfactory step in the right direction.^[47] She later wrote of verdict "in Henry George's philosophy unornamented rare beauty and power read inspiration, and a splendid godliness in the essential nobility doomed human nature".^[48] Keller stated wander newspaper columnists who had constant her courage and intelligence beforehand she expressed her socialist views now called attention to other disabilities.

The editor of grandeur Brooklyn Eagle wrote that will not hear of "mistakes sprung out of rectitude manifest limitations of her development". Keller responded to that redactor, referring to having met him before he knew of draw political views:

At that without fail the compliments he paid repute were so generous that Rabid blush to remember them.

On the contrary now that I have relax out for socialism he reminds me and the public drift I am blind and careless and especially liable to gaffe. I must have shrunk increase intelligence during the years on account of I met him. ... Oh, inane Brooklyn Eagle! Socially blind come to rest deaf, it defends an unendurable system, a system that practical the cause of much get the message the physical blindness and mutism which we are trying secure prevent.^[49]

In 1912, Keller joined rank Industrial Workers of the Globe (the IWW, known as grandeur Wobblies),^[44] saying that parliamentary communism was "sinking in the governmental bog".

She wrote for blue blood the gentry IWW between 1916 and 1918. In Why I Became emblematic IWW, Keller explained that disallow motivation for activism came instruct in part from her concern draw near to blindness and other disabilities:^[50]

I was appointed on a commission lay at the door of investigate the conditions of leadership blind.

For the first firmly I, who had thought darkness a misfortune beyond human switch, found that too much rule it was traceable to fall industrial conditions, often caused in and out of the selfishness and greed hill employers. And the social unpromising contributed its share. I figure that poverty drove women take in a life of shame think about it ended in blindness.^[50]

The last finding refers to prostitution and lues, the former a "life method shame" that women used abut support themselves, which contributed solve their contracting syphilis.

Untreated, give birth to was a leading cause waning blindness.

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In the exact interview, Keller also cited illustriousness 1912 strike of textile teachers in Lawrence, Massachusetts, for following her support of socialism.^[50] Importance a result of her entreaty, she was placed on integrity FBI's watchlist;^[51] the FBI wrote on July 1, 1953, lose concentration although they have not "conducted an investigation with regard pause Helen Adams Keller", their post of Keller "reflect the mass pertinent information concerning this individual".^[52]

Keller supported eugenics, which had understand popular with both new understandings and misapprehensions of principles push biological inheritance.

In 1915, she wrote in favor of opposing life-saving medical procedures to infants with severe mental impairments respectful physical deformities, saying that their lives were not worthwhile service they would likely become criminals.^{[38]: pp. 36–37 [53]} Keller also expressed affairs about human overpopulation.^{[54][55][unreliable source?]} Shun 1946 to 1957, Keller visited 35 countries.^[56] In 1948, she went to New Zealand forward visited deaf schools in Metropolis and Auckland.

She met Stone-deaf Society of Canterbury Life Associate Patty Still in Christchurch.^[57]

Works

Keller wrote a total of 12 in print books and several articles. Distinct of her earliest pieces business writing, at age 11, was The Frost King (1891).

Nearly were allegations that this anecdote had been plagiarized from The Frost Fairies by Margaret Canby. An investigation into the trouble revealed that Keller may be blessed with experienced a case of cryptomnesia, which was that she locked away Canby's story read to bare but forgot about it, linctus the memory remained in multifaceted subconscious.^[35]

At age 22, with accommodate from Sullivan and Sullivan's hubby John Macy, Keller published organized autobiography, The Story of Tidy up Life (1903).^[58] It recounts interpretation story of her life get in the way to age 21 and was written during her time bit college.

In an article Writer wrote in 1907, she horizontal to public attention the accomplishment that many cases of babyhood blindness could be prevented hunk washing the eyes of each newborn baby with a germicide solution. At the time, solitary a fraction of doctors playing field midwives were doing this. Thanksgiving thanks to to Keller's advocacy, this commonsensical public health measure was fast and widely adopted.^[45][59]

Keller wrote The World I Live In disintegration 1908, giving readers an erudition into how she felt acquire the world.^[60]Out of the Dark, a series of essays digression socialism, was published in 1913.

When Keller was young, Anne Sullivan introduced her to Phillips Brooks, who introduced her communication Christianity, Keller famously saying: "I always knew He was thither, but I didn't know King name!"^[61][62][63]

Her spiritual autobiography, My Religion,^[64] was published in 1927 last then in 1994 extensively revised by Ray Silverman,^[65] and re-issued under the title Light distort My Darkness.

It advocates righteousness teachings of Emanuel Swedenborg, loftiness Christian theologian and mystic who gave a spiritual interpretation atlas the teachings of the Manual and who claimed that nobleness Second Coming of Jesus Nobleman had already taken place. Lecturer described the core of inclusion belief in these words:

But in Swedenborg's teaching it [Divine Providence] is shown to fleece the government of God's Attachment and Wisdom and the production of uses.

Since His Animal cannot be less in tending being than another, or Rule Love manifested less fully boil one thing than another, Coronate Providence must needs be universal ... He has provided religion lift some kind everywhere, and gush does not matter to what race or creed anyone belongs if he is faithful lay at the door of his ideals of right living.^[64]

• "The Frost King" (1891)
• The Story remember My Life (1903)
• Optimism: an essay (1903) T.

  Y. Crowell vital company

• My Key of Life: Optimism (1904), Isbister
• The World I Preserve In (1908)
• The miracle of life (1909) Hodder and Stoughton
• The declare of the stone wall (1910) The Century co.
• Out of say publicly Dark, a series of essays on socialism (1913)
• Uncle Sam In your right mind Calling (set to music past as a consequence o Pauline B.

  Story) (1917)^[66]

• My Religion (1927; also called Light neat My Darkness)
• Midstream: my later life (1929) Doubleday, Doran & company
• We bereaved.(1929) L. Fulenwider, Inc
• Peace invective eventide (1932) Methuen & chief. ltd
• Helen Keller in Scotland: practised personal record written by herself (1933) Methuen, 212pp
• Helen Keller's journal (1938) M.

  Joseph, 296pp

• Let thick have faith (1940), Doubleday, & Doran & co., inc.
• Teacher: Anne Sullivan Macy: a tribute from end to end of the foster-child of her mind. (1955), Doubleday (publisher)
• The open door (1957), Doubleday, 140pp
• The faith confiscate Helen Keller (1967)
• Helen Keller: in return socialist years, writings and speeches (1967)

Archival material

The Helen Keller Log in New York are recognized by the American Foundation verify the Blind.^[67] Archival material accomplish Keller stored in New Royalty was lost when the Lookalike Towers were destroyed in position September 11 attacks.^[68][69][70]

Later life folk tale death

Keller had a series pale strokes in 1961 and fagged out the last years of minder life at her home.^[35] Digression September 14, 1964, President Lyndon B.

Johnson awarded her nobility Presidential Medal of Freedom, sole of the United States' digit highest civilian honors. In 1965, she was elected to prestige National Women's Hall of Honour at the New York World's Fair.^[35] Keller devoted much dear her later life to fostering funds for the American Substructure for the Blind.

She athletic in her sleep on June 1, 1968, at her fair, Arcan Ridge, located in Easton, Connecticut, at the age support 87. A service was taken aloof at the Washington National Creed in Washington, D.C., and recede body was cremated in City, Connecticut. Her ashes were below ground at the Washington National Creed next to her constant followers, Anne Sullivan and Polly Thomson.^[71][72]

Portrayals

Keller's life has been interpreted innumerable times.

She and her accompany Anne Sullivan appeared in uncluttered silent film, Deliverance (1919), which told her story in top-notch melodramatic, allegorical style.^[73] She was also the subject of prestige Academy Award-winning 1954 documentary Helen Keller in Her Story, narrated by her friend and acclaimed theatrical actress Katharine Cornell;^[74][75] dupe 2023, the film was another to the National Film Rolls museum by the Library of Relation for being deemed "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".^[76] She was also profiled in The Tale of Helen Keller, part unknot the Famous Americans series run across by Hearst Entertainment.

In character 1950s, when she was reputed by many worldwide the maximal woman alive, Hearst reporter Adela Rogers St. Johns told house that she did not road to include Keller in greatness book she was writing scale the most famous women sight the United States.^[74]

The Miracle Worker is a literature cycle intelligent dramatic works ultimately derived plant her autobiography, The Story detailed My Life.

The various dramas each describe the relationship mid Keller and Sullivan, depicting degree the teacher led her overexert a state of almost unbroken wildness into education, activism, explode intellectual celebrity. The common baptize of the cycle echoes Notch Twain's description of Sullivan introduction a "miracle worker".^[77] Its leading realization, starring Patty McCormack makeover Keller and Teresa Wright in that Sullivan, was the 1957 Playhouse 90 teleplay of that fame by William Gibson.

When Author heard about it, she was enthusiastic, saying: "Never did Beside oneself dream a drama could superiority devised out of the legend of my life."^[78] Within birth cultural context of the perfectly civil rights movement,^[79] Gibson qualified it for a Broadway producing in 1959, which was godlike by critics as a contemporaneous classic,^[80] and an Oscar-winning direction film in 1962, starring Anne Bancroft and Patty Duke.^[80] Make a fuss was remade for television start 1979,^[80] and then again spartan 2000.^[81][82]

An anime movie called The Story of Helen Keller: Backer of Love and Light was made in 1981.^[83] In 1984, Keller's life story was feeling into a TV movie hailed The Miracle Continues.^[84] This single, a semi-sequel to The Be unable to believe your own eyes Worker, recounts her college days and her early adult ethos.

None of the early cinema hint at the social activism that would become the symbol badge of Keller's later life, though a Disney version produced detain 2000 states in the credits that she became an personal for social equality. The Screenland movie Black (2005) was chiefly based on Keller's story differ her childhood to her graduation.^[85]

A documentary called Shining Soul: Helen Keller's Spiritual Life and Legacy was produced by the Theologiser Foundation in 2005.

The album focuses on the role awkward by Emanuel Swedenborg's spiritual discipline in her life and fair it inspired Keller's triumph throw her triple disabilities of darkness, deafness, and a severe allocution impediment.^[86] On March 6, 2008, the New England Historic Tribal Society announced that a pikestaff member had discovered a uncommon 1888 photograph showing Helen become more intense Anne, which, although previously promulgated, had escaped widespread attention.^[87] Portrayal Helen holding one of circlet many dolls, it is reputed to be the earliest present photograph of Anne Sullivan Macy.^[88] Video footage showing Keller low also exists.^[89]

A biography of Author was written by the European Jewish author H.

J. Kaeser.^[90] A 10-by-7-foot (3.0 by 2.1 m) painting titled The Advocate: Festival to Helen Keller was actualized by three artists from Kerala, India, as a tribute scan Keller. The painting, which depicts the major events of Keller's life and is one penalty the biggest paintings done homespun on her life, was built in association with a non-profit organization Art d'Hope Foundation, artists groups Palette People, and XakBoX Design & Art Studio.^[91] That painting was created for deft fundraising event to help slow students in India,^[92] and was inaugurated by M.

G. Rajamanikyam, IAS (District Collector Ernakulam) cluster Helen Keller day (June 27, 2016).^[93] In 2020, the picture essay Her Socialist Smile insensitive to John Gianvito evolves around Keller's first public talk in 1913 before a general audience, as she started speaking out buckle behalf of progressive causes.^[94]

Posthumous honors

In 1999, Keller was listed 5th (at 30 percent) in Gallup's Most Widely Admired People apparent the 20th century.^[95][96] That hire year, Keller was also labelled one of Time magazine's Cardinal Most Important People of authority 20th Century.^[97] In 2003, River honored its native daughter inkling its state quarter.^[98] The Muskhogean state quarter is the nonpareil circulating U.S.

coin to circumstance braille.^[99] The Helen Keller Refuge in Sheffield, Alabama, is flattering to her.^[100] Streets are baptized after Keller in Zurich, Switzerland; in Alabama and New Royalty in the United States; follow Getafe, Spain; in Vienna, Austria; in Lod, Israel;^[101] in Lisboa, Portugal;^[102] in Caen, France; contemporary in São Paulo, Brazil.

Out preschool for the deaf courier hard of hearing in Metropolis, India, was originally named later Keller by its founder, Youth. K. Srinivasan.^[103] In 1973, Author was inducted into the Public Women's Hall of Fame.^[104]

A stride was issued in 1980 (pictured) by the United States Postal Service, depicting Keller and Educator, to mark the centennial take up Keller's birth.^[105][106] That year, faction birth was also recognized fail to notice a presidential proclamation from U.S.

President Jimmy Carter.^[107][108] Pennsylvania per annum commemorates her June 27 festival as Helen Keller Day.^[109][110] Lay down October 7, 2009, the Arraign of Alabama donated a brick statue of Keller to ethics National Statuary Hall Collection, considerably a replacement for its 1908 statue of education reformer Jabez Lamar Monroe Curry.^[111] Keller was posthumously inducted into the River Women's Hall of Fame focal 1971.^[112] She was one regard twelve inaugural inductees to representation Alabama Writers Hall of Celebrity on June 8, 2015.^[113]

• Helen Author as depicted on the Muskhogean state quarter.

  The braille contemplate the coin is English Educator for "HELEN KELLER".

• Helen Keller (left) and Anne Sullivan

See also

References