Helen Keller by Chelsey C.

      What do you think of someone you admire? Do you realize that they have grit because of early years full of strife. Facing adversity is a normal part of life. People minds sets and choices affect what they do with this adversity. There are those who take their adversity and use it as an impetus for a better life, leaping over those obstacles triumphantly. One such person is Helen Keller, who overcame adversity during her younger year, during her illness, and also with her education.

       To begin with, Helen Keller had a hard early life. According to Britannica.com, “Keller was afflicted at the age of 19 months with an illness [possibly scarlet fever] that left her blind and deaf.” She couldn’t hear or see, which must have been a difficult thing. Also “she was examined by Alexander Graham Bell at the age of 6.” She had to be examined because they had to see if she was blind and deaf. Furthermore “as a result he sent to her a 20 year old teacher, Anna Sullivan { Macy } from the Perkins institution for the blind in Boston.” Keller needed a teacher to help her with everything because she had no skills yet being blind and deaf. Despite her harsh beginning, she pushed herself into success with people’s assistance.

         Next, the illness that Helen Keller had was severe. Based on biography.com, it states that “she contracted an illness — called ‘brain fever’ by the family doctor — that produced a high body temperature.” The illness Helen Keller had made her super weak and affected her greatly. “Keller had also become very wild and unruly, she would kick and scream when angry, and giggle uncontrollably when happy.” This shows that the illness affected her actions. By the time Keller was 7, she and her teacher had invented more than 60 signs to communicate with each other. She needed to learn sign language because she couldn’t speak with other people. The illness Helen Keller had led her to learn differently.

         Lastly, the education of Helen Keller was one of struggles. In Wikipedia.org it is stated that “Keller and Sullivan moved to New York to attend the the Wright Humason school for the deaf and to learn from Sara Fuller at that school.” She had to go to a deaf school to learn sign language so she could speak with people. Also, “In 1904, at the age of 24, Keller graduated as a member of Phi Beta Kappa from Radcliffe, becoming the first deaf-blind person to earn a Bachelor of Arts degree.” That’s amazing because she got an education despite her condition As well, Helen Keller was “Determined to communicate with others as conventionally as possible, Keller learned to speak and spent much of her life giving speeches and lectures on aspects of her life.” Helen Keller learned how to speak even though she was blind and deaf. Nothing stopped Helen Keller from doing what she wanted. 

         To sum It up, there were several aspects of Helen Keller’s life that made her a success after a rough beginning. Her early life was marked with sickness, needing help with everything and, needing a teacher for that help. She got very sick with an illness that affected her and how she acted, as well as she had to learn how to sign. For education, she had to attend a different school for deaf people and graduated as the first blind and deaf person. Helen Keller was a remarkable person, and overall a remarkable woman who overcame her unique obstacles.