Question

Describe the role of Anne Sullivan in the mental growth of Helen?

Answer 1

Quick Answer

Anne Sullivan's role in Helen Keller's life was her dedicated caretaker, teacher, defender, and life-long friend. Everywhere that Helen went she was accompanied by Anne, whom she called "Teacher." Anne taught Helen how to communicate using sign language, and this had a transformative impact on the young girl, as it gave her complete access to the world and human connection.

Expert Answers

MWESTWOOD | CERTIFIED EDUCATOR

Without Anne Sullivan, Helen Kellerwould have been walled into a dark, hopeless world. Miss Sullivan was Helen's lifeline. 

It was the stalwart and persistent Miss Sullivan who managed to figuratively and literally lead Helen to water. Water was the object which allowed Helen to make the connection between the spelling of the word water into the palm of her hand and the object named. The expression "water is life" also applies to Helen's mental connection with the signing and the object. It was then that her fruitful life began. Because she understood that Anne was spelling the word for the substance spilling from the pump, Helen then was able to leave her self-contained life and go out into the world, where she could interact with others and learn.

When Helen began her learning, Miss Sullivan was very patient with her. She made raised letters for Helen to learn the alphabet. She also used real objects, such as fossils to teach about dinosaurs, so that Helen would have something to touch, allowing her to make connections with the time period and concepts. The appreciative Helen once said, "All the best of me belongs to her" (Ch.1). Through Miss Sullivan, Helen formed friendships with other people. Helen further described her close relationship with Miss Sullivan in these words: "Her being is inseparable from my own, and the footsteps of my life are in hers" (Ch. 7).

Miss Sullivan was always Helen's defender. For instance, when Helen was at the Gilmer School, she became slightly ill and the director, Mr. Gilmer, felt that Helen was "breaking down." He made such changes in her coursework that would have prohibited Helen from taking her final examination with her class. Miss Sullivan consulted with Mrs. Keller. Consequently, her mother withdrew both Helen and her sister, Mildred, from this school. Helen's preparations for college continued smoothly after this incident.



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