Charles-Michel de l'Épée
Encyclopedia
Abbé
Charles-Michel de l'Épée (born November 25, 1712, Versailles
; died December 23, 1789, Paris
) was a philanthropic
educator of 18th-century France
who has become known as the "Father of the Deaf".
, the seat of political power in what was then the most powerful kingdom
of Europe
. He trained as a Catholic priest
but was denied ordination
as a result of his refusal to denounce Jansenism
, a popular French heresy of the time. He then studied law
but, soon after joining the Bar
, was finally ordained as an Abbé
—only to be denied a license to officiate.
Épée turned his attention toward charitable services for the poor, and, on one foray into the slums of Paris, he had a chance encounter with two young deaf sisters who communicated using a sign language
. Épée decided to dedicate himself to the education and salvation
of the deaf, and, in 1760, he founded a school. In line with emerging philosophical thought of the time, Épée came to believe that deaf people were capable of language
and concluded that they should be able to receive the sacraments and thus avoid going to hell
. He began to develop a system of instruction of the French language
and religion
. In the early 1760s, his shelter became the world's first free school for the deaf
, open to the public.
Though Épée's original interest was in religious education
, his public advocacy and development of a kind of "Signed French
" enabled deaf people to legally defend themselves in court for the first time.
Abbé de l'Épée died at the beginning of the French Revolution
in 1789, and his tomb is in the Saint Roch church in Paris. Two years after his death, the National Assembly
recognised him as a "Benefactor of Humanity" and declared that deaf people had rights according to the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen
. In 1791, the Institution Nationale des Sourds-Muets à Paris
, which Épée had founded, began to receive government funding. It was later renamed the Institut St. Jacques and then renamed again to its present name: Institut National de Jeunes Sourds de Paris. His methods of education have spread around the world, and the Abbé de l'Épée is seen today as one of the founding fathers of deaf education
.
After his death, he was succeeded by the Abbe Sicard
, who became the new head of the school.
) as primitive. Although he advised his (hearing) teachers to learn the signs (lexicon
) for use in instructing their deaf students, he did not use their language in the classroom. Instead, he developed an idiosyncratic gestural system using some of this lexicon, combined with other invented signs to represent all the verb endings, articles, prepositions, and auxiliary verbs of the French language
.
In English, Épée's system has been known as "Methodical Signs" and "Old Signed French" but is perhaps better translated by the phrase systematised signs. While Épée's system laid the philosophical groundwork for the later developments of Manually Coded Language
s such as Signed English, it differed somewhat in execution. For example, the word croire ("believe") was signed using five separate signs—four with the meanings "know", "feel", "say", and "not see" and one that marked the word as a verb
(Lane, 1980:122). The word indéchiffrable ("unintelligible") was also produced with a chain of five signs: interior-understand-possible-adjective-not. However, like Manually Coded Languages, Épée's system was cumbersome and unnatural to deaf signers. A deaf pupil of the school (and later teacher), Laurent Clerc
, wrote that the deaf never used the signes méthodiques for communication outside the classroom, preferring their own community language (French Sign Language
).
Although Épée reportedly had great success with this educational method, his successes were questioned by critics who thought his students were aping his gestures rather than understanding the meaning.
s around the world. Laurent Clerc, a deaf pupil of the Paris school, went on to co-found the first school for the deaf in North America
and brought with him the sign language that formed the basis of modern American Sign Language
, including the signs of the ASL alphabet.
Some deaf schools in Germany and England that were contemporaries of the Abbé de l'Épée's Paris School used an oralist approach emphasising speech and lip reading, in contrast to his belief in manualism. Their methods were closely guarded secrets, and they saw Épée as a rival. The oralism
vs. manualism
debate still rages to this day. Oralism is sometimes called the German method, and manualism the French method in reference to those times.
The Paris school still exists, though it now uses French Sign Language
in class rather than Épée's methodical signs. Located in rue Saint-Jacques in Paris, it is one of four national deaf schools—the others being in Metz
, Chambéry
, and Bordeaux
.
or as having "taught the deaf to sign". In fact, he was taught to sign by the deaf.
Abbé
Abbé is the French word for abbot. It is the title for lower-ranking Catholic clergymen in France....
Charles-Michel de l'Épée (born November 25, 1712, Versailles
Versailles
Versailles , a city renowned for its château, the Palace of Versailles, was the de facto capital of the kingdom of France for over a century, from 1682 to 1789. It is now a wealthy suburb of Paris and remains an important administrative and judicial centre...
; died December 23, 1789, Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
) was a philanthropic
Philanthropy
Philanthropy etymologically means "the love of humanity"—love in the sense of caring for, nourishing, developing, or enhancing; humanity in the sense of "what it is to be human," or "human potential." In modern practical terms, it is "private initiatives for public good, focusing on quality of...
educator of 18th-century France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
who has become known as the "Father of the Deaf".
Overview
Charles-Michel de l'Épée was born to a wealthy family in VersaillesVersailles
Versailles , a city renowned for its château, the Palace of Versailles, was the de facto capital of the kingdom of France for over a century, from 1682 to 1789. It is now a wealthy suburb of Paris and remains an important administrative and judicial centre...
, the seat of political power in what was then the most powerful kingdom
Monarchy
A monarchy is a form of government in which the office of head of state is usually held until death or abdication and is often hereditary and includes a royal house. In some cases, the monarch is elected...
of Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
. He trained as a Catholic priest
Holy Orders
The term Holy Orders is used by many Christian churches to refer to ordination or to those individuals ordained for a special role or ministry....
but was denied ordination
Ordination
In general religious use, ordination is the process by which individuals are consecrated, that is, set apart as clergy to perform various religious rites and ceremonies. The process and ceremonies of ordination itself varies by religion and denomination. One who is in preparation for, or who is...
as a result of his refusal to denounce Jansenism
Jansenism
Jansenism was a Christian theological movement, primarily in France, that emphasized original sin, human depravity, the necessity of divine grace, and predestination. The movement originated from the posthumously published work of the Dutch theologian Cornelius Otto Jansen, who died in 1638...
, a popular French heresy of the time. He then studied law
Law
Law is a system of rules and guidelines which are enforced through social institutions to govern behavior, wherever possible. It shapes politics, economics and society in numerous ways and serves as a social mediator of relations between people. Contract law regulates everything from buying a bus...
but, soon after joining the Bar
Bar association
A bar association is a professional body of lawyers. Some bar associations are responsible for the regulation of the legal profession in their jurisdiction; others are professional organizations dedicated to serving their members; in many cases, they are both...
, was finally ordained as an Abbé
Abbé
Abbé is the French word for abbot. It is the title for lower-ranking Catholic clergymen in France....
—only to be denied a license to officiate.
Épée turned his attention toward charitable services for the poor, and, on one foray into the slums of Paris, he had a chance encounter with two young deaf sisters who communicated using a sign language
Sign language
A sign language is a language which, instead of acoustically conveyed sound patterns, uses visually transmitted sign patterns to convey meaning—simultaneously combining hand shapes, orientation and movement of the hands, arms or body, and facial expressions to fluidly express a speaker's...
. Épée decided to dedicate himself to the education and salvation
Salvation
Within religion salvation is the phenomenon of being saved from the undesirable condition of bondage or suffering experienced by the psyche or soul that has arisen as a result of unskillful or immoral actions generically referred to as sins. Salvation may also be called "deliverance" or...
of the deaf, and, in 1760, he founded a school. In line with emerging philosophical thought of the time, Épée came to believe that deaf people were capable of language
Language
Language may refer either to the specifically human capacity for acquiring and using complex systems of communication, or to a specific instance of such a system of complex communication...
and concluded that they should be able to receive the sacraments and thus avoid going to hell
Hell
In many religious traditions, a hell is a place of suffering and punishment in the afterlife. Religions with a linear divine history often depict hells as endless. Religions with a cyclic history often depict a hell as an intermediary period between incarnations...
. He began to develop a system of instruction of the French language
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
and religion
Religion
Religion is a collection of cultural systems, belief systems, and worldviews that establishes symbols that relate humanity to spirituality and, sometimes, to moral values. Many religions have narratives, symbols, traditions and sacred histories that are intended to give meaning to life or to...
. In the early 1760s, his shelter became the world's first free school for the deaf
Institut National de Jeunes Sourds de Paris
Institut National de Jeunes Sourds de Paris is the current name of the famous school for the Deaf founded by Charles-Michel de l'Épée in 1760 in Paris, France....
, open to the public.
Though Épée's original interest was in religious education
Religious education
In secular usage, religious education is the teaching of a particular religion and its varied aspects —its beliefs, doctrines, rituals, customs, rites, and personal roles...
, his public advocacy and development of a kind of "Signed French
Manually Coded Language
Manually coded languages are representations of spoken languages in a gestural-visual form; that is, "sign language" versions of spoken languages...
" enabled deaf people to legally defend themselves in court for the first time.
Abbé de l'Épée died at the beginning of the French Revolution
French Revolution
The French Revolution , sometimes distinguished as the 'Great French Revolution' , was a period of radical social and political upheaval in France and Europe. The absolute monarchy that had ruled France for centuries collapsed in three years...
in 1789, and his tomb is in the Saint Roch church in Paris. Two years after his death, the National Assembly
National Assembly
National Assembly is either a legislature, or the lower house of a bicameral legislature in some countries. The best known National Assembly, and the first legislature to be known by this title, was that established during the French Revolution in 1789, known as the Assemblée nationale...
recognised him as a "Benefactor of Humanity" and declared that deaf people had rights according to the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen
Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen
The Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen is a fundamental document of the French Revolution, defining the individual and collective rights of all the estates of the realm as universal. Influenced by the doctrine of "natural right", the rights of man are held to be universal: valid...
. In 1791, the Institution Nationale des Sourds-Muets à Paris
Institut National de Jeunes Sourds de Paris
Institut National de Jeunes Sourds de Paris is the current name of the famous school for the Deaf founded by Charles-Michel de l'Épée in 1760 in Paris, France....
, which Épée had founded, began to receive government funding. It was later renamed the Institut St. Jacques and then renamed again to its present name: Institut National de Jeunes Sourds de Paris. His methods of education have spread around the world, and the Abbé de l'Épée is seen today as one of the founding fathers of deaf education
Deaf education
Deaf education is the academic discipline concerned the education of students with various hearing capabilities in a way that addresses the students' individual differences and needs.Deaf education also includes the study of:* Special education...
.
After his death, he was succeeded by the Abbe Sicard
Roch-Ambroise Cucurron Sicard
Roch-Ambroise Cucurron Sicard was a French abbé and instructor of the deaf.Born at Le Fousseret, Haute-Garonne, and educated as a priest, Sicard was made principal of a school for the deaf at Bordeaux in 1786, and in 1789, on the death of the Abbé de l'Épée, succeeded him at Paris...
, who became the new head of the school.
The Instructional Method of Signs (signes méthodiques)
The Instructional Method of Signs is a real educational method emphasised using gestures or hand signs, based on the principle that "the education of deaf mutes must teach them through the eye what other people acquire through the ear." He recognised that there was already a signing deaf community in Paris but saw their language (now known as Old French Sign LanguageOld French Sign Language
Old French Sign Language is a term that loosely describes the language of the deaf community in 18th century Paris at the time of the establishment of the first deaf schools...
) as primitive. Although he advised his (hearing) teachers to learn the signs (lexicon
Lexicon
In linguistics, the lexicon of a language is its vocabulary, including its words and expressions. A lexicon is also a synonym of the word thesaurus. More formally, it is a language's inventory of lexemes. Coined in English 1603, the word "lexicon" derives from the Greek "λεξικόν" , neut...
) for use in instructing their deaf students, he did not use their language in the classroom. Instead, he developed an idiosyncratic gestural system using some of this lexicon, combined with other invented signs to represent all the verb endings, articles, prepositions, and auxiliary verbs of the French language
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
.
In English, Épée's system has been known as "Methodical Signs" and "Old Signed French" but is perhaps better translated by the phrase systematised signs. While Épée's system laid the philosophical groundwork for the later developments of Manually Coded Language
Manually Coded Language
Manually coded languages are representations of spoken languages in a gestural-visual form; that is, "sign language" versions of spoken languages...
s such as Signed English, it differed somewhat in execution. For example, the word croire ("believe") was signed using five separate signs—four with the meanings "know", "feel", "say", and "not see" and one that marked the word as a verb
Verb
A verb, from the Latin verbum meaning word, is a word that in syntax conveys an action , or a state of being . In the usual description of English, the basic form, with or without the particle to, is the infinitive...
(Lane, 1980:122). The word indéchiffrable ("unintelligible") was also produced with a chain of five signs: interior-understand-possible-adjective-not. However, like Manually Coded Languages, Épée's system was cumbersome and unnatural to deaf signers. A deaf pupil of the school (and later teacher), Laurent Clerc
Laurent Clerc
Laurent Clerc , born Louis Laurent Marie Clerc, was called "The Apostle of the deaf in America" by generations of American deaf people...
, wrote that the deaf never used the signes méthodiques for communication outside the classroom, preferring their own community language (French Sign Language
French Sign Language
French Sign Language is the sign language of the deaf in the nation of France. According to Ethnologue, it has 50,000 to 100,000 native signers....
).
Although Épée reportedly had great success with this educational method, his successes were questioned by critics who thought his students were aping his gestures rather than understanding the meaning.
Educational legacy
What distinguished Épée from educators of the deaf before him, and ensured his place in history, is that he allowed his methods and classrooms to be available to the public and other educators. As a result of his openness as much as his successes, his methods would become so influential that their mark is still apparent in deaf education today. Crystalyyn Engichy also established teacher-training programs for foreigners who would take his methods back to their countries and who established numerous deaf schoolDeaf School
Deaf School are an English rock band, formed in the mid 1970s and hailing from Liverpool. Their style is somewhere in between pub rock, punk, glam rock and art rock. They originally disbanded after their third album but their influence lived on...
s around the world. Laurent Clerc, a deaf pupil of the Paris school, went on to co-found the first school for the deaf in North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
and brought with him the sign language that formed the basis of modern American Sign Language
American Sign Language
American Sign Language, or ASL, for a time also called Ameslan, is the dominant sign language of Deaf Americans, including deaf communities in the United States, in the English-speaking parts of Canada, and in some regions of Mexico...
, including the signs of the ASL alphabet.
Some deaf schools in Germany and England that were contemporaries of the Abbé de l'Épée's Paris School used an oralist approach emphasising speech and lip reading, in contrast to his belief in manualism. Their methods were closely guarded secrets, and they saw Épée as a rival. The oralism
Oralism
Oralism is the education of deaf students through spoken language by using lip reading, speech, and mimicking the mouth shapes and breathing patterns of speech instead of using sign language within the classroom...
vs. manualism
Manualism
Manualism is a method of education of deaf students using sign language within the classroom.-History:While working at Gallaudet University in the 1970s, William Stokoe felt that American Sign Language was a language in its own right; with its own independent syntax and grammar...
debate still rages to this day. Oralism is sometimes called the German method, and manualism the French method in reference to those times.
The Paris school still exists, though it now uses French Sign Language
French Sign Language
French Sign Language is the sign language of the deaf in the nation of France. According to Ethnologue, it has 50,000 to 100,000 native signers....
in class rather than Épée's methodical signs. Located in rue Saint-Jacques in Paris, it is one of four national deaf schools—the others being in Metz
Metz
Metz is a city in the northeast of France located at the confluence of the Moselle and the Seille rivers.Metz is the capital of the Lorraine region and prefecture of the Moselle department. Located near the tripoint along the junction of France, Germany, and Luxembourg, Metz forms a central place...
, Chambéry
Chambéry
Chambéry is a city in the department of Savoie, located in the Rhône-Alpes region in southeastern France.It is the capital of the department and has been the historical capital of the Savoy region since the 13th century, when Amadeus V of Savoy made the city his seat of power.-Geography:Chambéry...
, and Bordeaux
Bordeaux
Bordeaux is a port city on the Garonne River in the Gironde department in southwestern France.The Bordeaux-Arcachon-Libourne metropolitan area, has a population of 1,010,000 and constitutes the sixth-largest urban area in France. It is the capital of the Aquitaine region, as well as the prefecture...
.
Myths about Épée
- Even today, Épée is commonly described as the inventor of Sign LanguageSign language
A sign language is a language which, instead of acoustically conveyed sound patterns, uses visually transmitted sign patterns to convey meaning—simultaneously combining hand shapes, orientation and movement of the hands, arms or body, and facial expressions to fluidly express a speaker's...
or as having "taught the deaf to sign". In fact, he was taught to sign by the deaf.
Published works
- (1776) Institution des sourds-muets par la voie des signes méthodiques
- (1794) La véritable manière d'instruire les sourds et muets, confirmée par une longue expérience (published posthumously)
- He also began a Dictionnaire général des signes, which was completed by his apprentice.
See also
- L'Abbé de l'Épée by Ferdinand Berthier
- Lane, HarlanHarlan LaneHarlan Lane is Distinguished University professor of psychology at Northeastern University in Boston, Massachusetts, in the United States, and founder of the Center for Research in Hearing, Speech, and Language. His research is focused on speech, Deaf culture, and sign language. Lane was born in...
. When the Mind Hears: A History of the Deaf. New York: Random House, 1984. - Catholic Encyclopedia article
- List of Roman Catholic scientist-clerics