This article examines the process of deaf people coming to identify as culturally Deaf-a distinction typically made in the literature as an identity belonging to those who use sign language to communicate-and how this identity process co-occurs with other social identities, namely sexuality and race. Through pairing Goffman's work with perspectives from Feminist Disability Studies, we extend the sociological literature on both identity and disability. To do so, we analyze qualitative data collected through narrative interviews with five Deaf, gay and lesbian individuals with different racial backgrounds. Our analysis surfaces deaf people's encounters with one another and how, relatedly, becoming Deaf is shaped by Goffman's concepts of affiliation and obtrusiveness. For example, we show how shifting affiliations occur when transitioning into a minority (e.g., Deaf) culture, through interactions that demand managing the obtrusiveness of multiple intersecting, potentially discrediting, statuses. Our article also reveals a bidirectional relationship between affiliation and obtrusiveness.

<!-- P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; direction: ltr; color: rgb(0, 0, 10); }P.western { font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; }P.cjk { font-family: "Arial Unicode MS",sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; }P.ctl { font-family: "Arial Unicode MS",sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; }A:link { } --><p class="western" style="margin-bottom: 0in; line-height: 0.14in;">With its emphasis on physical form, the diffusion of the feminine ideal relies heavily on the use of visual imagery but there is a common knowledge about  the feminine ideal that penetrates language and discourse. The relationship between mainstream representations of the feminine ideal and non-disabled female body/self dissatisfaction has been well-documented over the years but less attention has been given to understanding how such visual representations affect women with disabilities, specifically women with visual disabilities. Drawing on qualitative data taken from the personal diaries and in-depth interviews with seven blind and visually impaired Irish women, and using a feminist disability model reinforced by sociology of the body, gender theory and visual studies, I examine what it means to be a young woman with a visual disability living in a visually-reliant, appearance-oriented culture. I explore interpretations and expressions of femininity and beauty, the complicated, often fraught, relationship with female body and self and the rituals and practices used to manage appearance while having a disability.</p>

No abstract

No abstract

No abstract available.