2. Born in 1914, William Gibson spent most of his childhood in
an area of New York City called the Bronx. His mother
encouraged him to achieve beyond normal expectations
and tutored her son so that he could skip grades in school.
While he joined in the street games and adventures of other
children, Gibson also loved to read and spent much of his
time absorbed in the lives of fictional characters. His love of
writing began at an early age as well. In sixth grade, the
budding author started buying notebooks, hoping to fill them
with a novel about an uncle killed during wartime. Though
he never wrote the novel, his interest in writing never
diminished.
In spite of his fascination with books, young Gibson did not
excel in school. He had little interest in subjects such as
arithmetic, science, and history, and he struggled to keep
up with his classmates in an accelerated high school.
Gibson did experience success with his
writing, however, and was published for the first time in a
school newspaper after winning a contest. It was the first of
several writing awards that he received in high
school, and, as a result, the class prophet predicted that he
would one day become a Hollywood writer.
William Gibson,
playwright
3. Gibson attended the City College of New York for four semesters but, on
the bad advice of a teacher, enrolled in a science program that both bored
and baffled him. His only inspiration came in literature classes, and it was
the praise of a literature professor-coupled with his expulsion from college
for not completing any other courses-that finally motivated Gibson to
devote his life to writing. It took twenty years before he actually made a
living at his chosen profession, however. Until then, Gibson was supported
by his wife and occasionally sought income by playing the piano or working
other part-time jobs.
Besides The Miracle Worker, his most popular play is Two for the
Seesaw. Both were produced on Broadway and made into motion pictures.
Gibson was actively involved in planning the Broadway productions of
these two plays in the late 1950s but became upset over script changes
made by the producer and director. In 1982, he wrote a sequel to The
Miracle Worker, called Monday after the Miracle, based on the life of Helen
Keller as a college student with Annie Sullivan as her tutor and translator.
William Gibson died November 27, 2008. He was 94 and had lived in
Stockbridge, Mass.
4.
5.
6. Anne Sullivan
Born on April 14, 1866, in Feeding
Hills, Massachusetts, Anne Sullivan was a
gifted teacher best known for her work with
Helen Keller, a deaf, blind, and mute child she
taught to communicate.
At only 21 years of age, Sullivan showed great
maturity and ingenuity in teaching Keller and
worked hard with her pupil, bringing both
women much acclaim. Sullivan even helped
Keller write her autobiography.
Helen Keller
7. • Anne Sullivan’s parents immigrated to the United States from Ireland
during the Great Famine of the 1840s. The couple had five children, but
two died in their infancy.
• Sullivan and her two surviving siblings grew up in impoverished
conditions, and struggled with health problems. At the age of five, Anne
contracted an eye disease called trachoma, which severely damaged her
sight. Her mother, Alice, suffered from tuberculosis and had difficulty
getting around after a serious fall. She died when Anne was eight years
old.
• Even at an early age, Sullivan had a strong-willed personality. She
sometimes clashed with her father, Thomas, who was left to raise Sullivan
and her siblings after their mother's death. Thomas—who was often
abusive—eventually abandoned the family. Anne and her infirm younger
brother, Jimmie, were sent to live at the Tewksbury Almshouse, a home
for the poor. Some reports say that Sullivan also had a sister who was sent
to live with relatives.
8. • Tewksbury Almshouse was dirty, rundown, and
overcrowded. Sullivan's brother Jimmie died just
months after they arrived there, leaving Anne
alone. While at Tewksbury, Sullivan learned about
schools for the blind and became determined to
get an education as a means to escape poverty.
She got her chance when members from a special
commission visited the home. After following the
group around all day, she worked up the nerve to
talk to them about sending her to a special
school.
9. Sullivan left Tewksbury to attend the Perkins School for the Blind in
1880, and underwent surgery to help improve her limited vision.
Still, Sullivan faced great challenges while at Perkins. She had never
been to school before and lacked social graces, which put her at odds
with her peers. Humiliated by her own ignorance, Sullivan had a quick
temper and liked to challenge the rules, which got her in trouble with
her teachers. She was, however, tremendously bright, and she soon
advanced academically.
Sullivan did eventually settle down at the school, but she never felt
like she fit in there. She did develop close friendships with some of her
teachers, including the school's director Michael Anagnos. Chosen as
the valedictorian of her class, Sullivan delivered a speech at her June
1886 graduation. She told her fellow students that "duty bids us go
forth into active life. Let us go cheerfully, hopefully, and earnestly, and
set ourselves to find our especial part.
10. http://www.biography.com/people/anne-sullivan-9498826
Anagnos helped Sullivan find a job after graduation. The
Keller family had written him looking for a governess for
their daughter Helen, who was deaf, blind, and mute. In
March 1887, Sullivan traveled to Tuscumbia, Alabama, to
work for the Keller family. Sullivan had studied the
instruction methods used with Laura Bridgman, a deaf and
blind student she had known at Perkins, before going to
Alabama.
11. QUICK FACTS
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NAME: Anne Sullivan
OCCUPATION: Educator
BIRTH DATE: April 14, 1866
DEATH DATE: October 20, 1936
EDUCATION: Perkins School for the Blind
PLACE OF BIRTH: Feeding Hills, Massachusetts
PLACE OF DEATH: Forest Hills, New York
FULL NAME: Johanna Mansfield Sullivan Macy
AKA: Johanna Sullivan
AKA: Anne Sullivan
MAIDEN NAME: Johanna Mansfield Sullivan
BEST KNOWN FOR
Anne Sullivan was a teacher who, at age 21, taught Helen Keller, who was
deaf, mute, and blind, how to communicate and read Braille.
12. At only 21 years of age, Sullivan showed great
maturity and ingenuity in teaching Keller. She
wanted to help Keller make associations
between words and physical objects, and
worked hard with her rather stubborn and
spoiled pupil. After isolating Keller from her
family in order to better educate her, Sullivan
began working to teach Keller how to
communicate with the outside world. During
one lesson, she finger-spelled the word
"water" on one of Keller's hands as she ran
water over her student's other hand. Keller
finally made her first major
breakthrough, connecting the concept of sign
language with the objects around her.
Thanks to Sullivan's instruction, Keller
learned nearly 600 words, most of her
multiplication tables, and how to read Braille
within a matter of months.
Formal portrait of Anne Sullivan
taken around the time she first
journeyed to Tuscumbia, AL to
teach Helen Keller .
13. News of Sullivan's success with
Keller spread, and the Perkins
school wrote a report about their
progress as a team. Keller became
a celebrity because of the
report, meeting the likes
of Thomas Edison, Alexander
Graham Bell, and Mark Twain.
14. Sullivan decided that Keller could benefit
from the Perkins School's program, and
the two spent time there off-and-on
throughout Anne's adolescence. They also
sought aid for Keller's speech at the
Wight-Humason School in New York City.
When Keller's family could no longer
afford to pay Sullivan or manage Helen's
school costs, a number of wealthy
benefactors—including millionaire
Andrew Carnegie—stepped in to help
them defray their costs.
Despite the physical strain on her own
limited sight, Sullivan helped Keller
continue her studies at Radcliffe College
in 1900. She spelled the contents of class
lectures into Keller's hand, and spent
hours conveying information from
textbooks to her. As a result, Keller
became the first deaf-blind person to
graduate from college.
15. Working with Keller on an
autobiography, Sullivan met
John A. Macy, a Harvard
University instructor. Macy
helped edit the
manuscript, and he fell in
love with Sullivan. After
refusing several marriage
proposals from him, she
finally accepted. The two
were wed in 1905.
Sullivan, however, did not let her marriage affect her life with Keller.
She and her husband lived with Keller in a Massachusetts farmhouse.
The two women remained inseparable, with Sullivan traveling with
Keller on numerous lecture tours. On stage, she helped relay Keller's
words to the audience, as Keller had never learned to speak clearly
enough to be widely understood.
16. • By the late 1920s, Sullivan
had lost most of her vision.
She experienced chronic pain
in her right eye, which was
then removed to improve her
health. For several
summers, Sullivan visited
Scotland, hoping to restore
some of her strength and
vitality.
• Sullivan died on October 20, 1936, at her home in Forest Hills, New York. Her ashes
were placed at the National Cathedral in Washington, D.C.—a distinct honor, as it
is also the final resting place of President Woodrow Wilson and other
distinguished individuals. At her funeral, Bishop James E. Freeman said, "Among
the great teachers of all time she occupies a commanding and conspicuous place. .
. . The touch of her hand did more than illuminate the pathway of a clouded mind;
it literally emancipated a soul."
• Sullivan's story lives on through film and theatrical productions. Her work with
Keller was immortalized in the play The Miracle Worker, which was later turned
into the 1962 film starring Patty Duke as Keller and Anne Bancroft as Sullivan. The
latest Broadway revival of the show debuted in 2010.
17. Trachoma
Trachoma is an infectious disease caused by the Chlamydia
trachomatis bacterium which produces a characteristic
roughening of the inner surface of the eyelids. Also called granular
conjunctivitis and Egyptian ophthalmia, it is the leading cause of
infectious blindness in the world.
Globally, about 40 million people have an active infection and as
many as 8 million people are visually impaired as a result of this
disease.
Without antibiotics, the only way to remove the granular mass was a
scraping operation, which left trauma to the eyes—photosensitivity.
18. Sullivan's story lives on through film and
theatrical productions. Her work with
Keller was immortalized in the play The
Miracle Worker, which was later turned
into the 1962 film starring Patty Duke as
Keller and Anne Bancroft as Sullivan. The
latest Broadway revival of the show
debuted in 2010.
21. Helen Keller
Helen Adams Keller was an
American author, political
activist, and lecturer. She was the
first deaf/blind person to earn a
Bachelor of Arts degree. She
became the icon for the
handicapped person. She travels
the world and gives lectures on the
value of all humans and the
importance of education. Helen
writes several books which include
The Story of My Life, Light in My
Darkness, and Teacher.
25. Sullivan's story lives on through film and
theatrical productions. Her work with
Keller was immortalized in the play The
Miracle Worker, starring Anne Bancroft as
Sullivan.
First written for television
and aired in 1957, “The
Miracle Worker” was
adapted for Broadway in
1959 and won the 1960
Tony Award for best play.
26. Patty Duke with the real
Helen Keller.
Helen Keller and Patty Duke -- For those who
do not get the significance of this meeting -Patty Duke played Keller in both the play and
the film The Miracle Worker, for which she
won the Oscar at age 16. Two extraordinary
women. Then when Patty Duke got older she
played Anne Sullivan as an adult; Anne Sullivan
was Helen's teacher.
27.
28. Dramatis Personae
Helen Keller
Annie Sullivan
Captain Keller
Kate Keller
James Keller
Anagnos
Aunt Ev
Doctor
Viney
Percy
Martha
Blind Children
Jimmie’s voice
The Crones
29. Setting: The Keller Homestead, Ivy Green, Tuscumbia, Alabama
The pump is a focal point on the stage.
33. Conflicts
• Man v. nature—Helen had a high fever when she
was 18+ months old which left her blind, deaf, and
mute.
• Man v. man—Annie fights with Helen; James fights
with his father, Helen fights with everyone; Kate
and Capt. Keller’s arguments
• Man v. himself—Helen is frustrated
being locked within herself with no
way to communicate; Annie doubts
herself constantly and is haunted by
her past
• Man v. society—handicapped
persons were often shut away in
institutions like animals, with no
help or hope.
Annie is a Yankee!
34. • Man v. himself—
Helen is frustrated
being locked within
herself with no way
to communicate; she
wants to be like
everyone else.
35.
36. Annie has her own ghosts to bury. Her past of poverty, blindness of trachoma, rats,
cadavers, and the loss of her little brother, Jimmie….
Annie has to overcome her past, her Yankee/Irish background, her youth, the fact that
no one has ever taught a multiple-handicapped child…
“How can an inexperienced half-blind Yankee schoolgirl manage her?”
37. Annie must
undo
all of
Helen’s
bad habits.
Captain Keller,
Aunt Ev,
James Keller,
and baby
Mildred
Kate struggles to console an
out-of-control Helen.
38. “I treat her like a seeing child because I ask her to see;
I expect her to see, don’t undo what I do!”
40. Main Climax: “Wah, Wah”—
Helen connects that words are
names for things.
41. Other Climaxes
• James stands up to Keller.
• Kate and Keller get their daughter back.
• Annie’s voices go away and she learns to love
again.
42. Denouement: Helen asks
Annie her name and
hands over the key. Annie
Responds with “Teacher”
And “I love Helen—
Forever and ever.”
43. Exposition
• Opening scene—provides the
info on the illness that harms
Helen.
• Annie’s background, her
tough childhood, her loss of
brother Jimmie, and struggles
with school. Kate is Keller’s
second wife, and Helen is her
firstborn. Kate is not that
much older than James.
Mildred is just an infant.
• Captain Keller was a captain in
the Confederate army during
the Civil War. He runs the local
newspaper in Tuscumbia.
44. Foreshadowing
Annie has never taught before; in fact, she was a tough student herself
with more battles than the Confederates.
No one has ever taught a multiple handicapped child before.
Annie is young—with Irish determination and lots of energy to
physically battle Helen’s stubborn tantrums.
Annie is just as stubborn as Helen.
Helen was a bright child—speaking early…before the illness robbed her
of her sight and hearing.
“Did you know she began talking when she was only six months
old? She could say water. Well, not really. Wah-wah. But she meant
water! She knew what it meant at only six months old! I never saw
a child so bright or outgoing!”
She is like a little safe, locked, that no one can open.
Perhaps there is a treasure inside.”
45. Flashback
The voices from Annie’s past—the old crones
and her brother Jimmie’s voice saying that she
promised they’d be together forever and ever.
46. • “Old Stonewall
indeed!”
• “One blind child to
teach another”
• Kate promises to help
by not interfering with
Annie, but the Captain
interferes.
• “The room’s a wreck
but her napkin is
folded…”
• Helen hides the key by
dropping it down the
well, never knowing that
Annie is watching her.
• Helen “teaches” the
dog, Belle, to sign.
Irony
47. Helen will not play the finger game with Annie, but she gets
jealous when Annie plays it with Percy.
48. Dramatic Irony
James brings the
ladder around to
rescue Annie after
Helen has locked
her in the
room, but the
Captain yells at
him, so he starts
to take it back…
49. Symbolism
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The pump
Keys/Open doors
Sign language
Helen’s motion meaning “Mother”
Annie’s voices from the past
The buttons
The doll with the open/close eyes
The battles between Annie/Helen,
Captain/James, etc.
• Annie’s voices from the past
50. Themes
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Annie says that God owes her a resurrection.
There is power and magic in language.
Hope & Determination
Discipline & Obedience v. Understanding &
Comprehension
Manners & Customs
Motivation & Self-Understanding
Dedication to a Cause
Family Systems & Outsiders
Pity v. Love
Places of Learning & Change
Tactile Learning & Sign Language
51. The first time her parents communicate with her;
The Kellers get their daughter back.
Percy gets Annie back “in touch”
with Helen in the summer house.
