Important character sketch of last chapters of Helen Keller.
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Helen Keller
Helen Keller is the protagonist and author of this memoir, telling the story of her life up to age 22. Born in Tuscumbia, Alabama, Helen was stricken with a disease that left her both deaf and blind early on in life, and she struggled to express herself until her teacher, Anne Sullivan, came to work with her when she was seven years old. From then on, Helen's life became a story of progress and success, as she constantly surmounted obstacles and became the first deaf-blind person to obtain a Bachelor's degree.
Anne Sullivan
Johanna Mansfield Sullivan Macy, known as Anne Sullivan, came into Helen’s life on third of March 1887. She herself had been blind in her youth, and after her vision was partially restored, she decided to dedicate her life to teaching others like her. Through Miss Sullivan's patient teaching that was perfectly tailored to Helen's interests and needs, Helen achieved great success, the likes of which no one expected from her.
Arthur H. Keller
The father of Helen and Mildred, and a captain in Confederate Army prior to his work as a newspaper editor. His family is descended from Casper Keller, a native of Switzerland, who settled in Maryland. Helen loved her father, and remarked that he was a particularly good storyteller. She also commented on his fondness for hunting. Arthur died in the summer of 1896.
Mildred Keller
The younger sister of Helen Keller. For a long time, Helen regarded her little sister as an intruder on her mother's attention. Eventually, the two developed a close relationship, though Mildred was never truly able to understand Helen's finger language. Mildred also attended the Cambridge School with Helen for six months.
Martha Washington
The daughter of Helen's cook, Belle, and a good friend of Helen's in the early days of her illness, when few others could understand her. The two got up to great mischief and adventurous exploration of their surroundings.
Mr. Anagnos
Michael Anagnos was the Director of Perkins Institute for the Blind, as well as a good friend of Helen's in her early life. Her story, "The Frost King," was intended as a birthday present to him, but after it was uncovered that the story had been unwittingly plagiarized, his relationship with her was tainted.
Dr. Alexander Graham Bell
He was the inventor of the telephone and a teacher of the deaf. Helen dedicated her autobiography to Dr. Alexander Graham Bell, and spent much time with him throughout her life. Dr. Bell was the one who took Helen to the World's Fair for the first time.
Kate Adams
was the mother of Helen Keller. She was married to Arthur Keller who was much elder to her. She patiently took care of Helen when she contracted the debilitating illness. Helen remembers her mother affectionately soothing her pain as she suffered from pain. She was a source of tenderness and love for Helen. She worried endlessly for Helen’s well-being. Often staying up late and taking care of her as she cried. Kate nurtured her daughters sense of learning by making her understand about everyday things. Being attached to her mother, Helen was envious of her sister for sharing her mother’s affections. The bond between Kate and Helen was very deep. She was someone whom Helen worshipped and admired deeply.
Mr. Arthur Gilman
was the principal of Cambridge School for the young ladies. He was not only an efficient teacher but also someone who aroused Helen's interest in history and literature. Mr Gilman would read out the papers to Helen during her examinations using manual alphabet and then read out what she had written so that she could correct her answers. He was extremely affectionate towards Helen. A difference of opinion between Mr. Gilman and Miss Sullivan regarding Helen’s studies was the reason why Helen’s mother withdrew her two daughters from the school.
Bishop Brooks
Brooks was a very joyful person in Helen's life who told her to think beyond the boundaries of caste and religion. He taught Helen that love is a universal religion a nd Geometry.
Mr. William Endicott
When Helen Keller went to Boston, she met many people. One of these people was Mr. William Endicott. She became friends with him and with his daughter. They invited Helen to visit their home outside of Boston. They lived in an oceanside area north of the city of Boston called Beverly Farms. They treated Helen a great deal of kindness, which she described as "the seed from which many pleasant memories have since grown." She enjoyed interacting with their dogs and horse, as well as exploring their property. They had a rose garden and the beach was close by. Mr. Endicott described the ships that sailed by Beverly Farms from Boston to Helen. These ships were on their way east to Europe.
Helen Keller was born on 27th June 1880 in
Tuscumbia in Alabama. Her father, Arthur H. Keller, was a descendant of Caspar
Keller who was a native of Switzerland. He was a captain in the confederate
army. Helen’s mother was Kate Adams who was Arthur’s second wife and was many
years younger. At the age of nineteen months, Helen became very ill with brain
fever. When the fever subsided, Helen was left blind and deaf forever. Helen was
quite eager to learn. Despite her handicap she had learnt some crude signs of
communication and also how to fold the clothes etc. later, she showed
exceptional capabilities for learning and very soon could learn to read, write
or even speak. She had voracious passion for learning, knowledge and
exploration.
Like Wordsworth, she learnt to find solace in nature and its
peaceful serenity. Her power of observation was commendable. How beautifully
she has described the details of her observations! Even those with eyes and
ears cannot describe as beautifully as she has done. Natural beauty was
abundant around her house. The Keller homestead was quite near a rose- bower.
Its old fashioned garden was the paradise of her childhood. Before Miss
Sullivan's arrival, this garden was the place where Helen went to find comfort
and hide her hot face in the cool leaves and grass. Helen felt extremely happy
in that garden of flowers, wandering happily from spot to spot. She could
recognize each vine and plant by touching them.
Helen was a prodigy child since her early childhood!
However, the challenges she faced were quite arduous---as if Nature had planned
a special obstacle course for her to help her bring her best out! After being
rendered blind and disabled in hearing and speaking, Helen's frustration to
learn more and more about life mounted very high. Her hearing disability
combined with visual disability made the teaching and learning more
challenging. Helen was a very industrious girl; she always did her best to
learn. She had such a natural, innate passion for learning which always
motivated her. Manual alphabet, reading, arithmetic, etc., all were formidable
challenges for her initially, but Helen overcame them. The most arduous of all
of them was learning to speak. Learning to speak is almost an impossible task
for those who have hearing disability. So Helen had to work very hard.
She had to repeat each word and sentence many times for the right tone and
pronunciation. She practiced untiringly. At times she became discouraged and
weary too, but she never gave up. She faced all the difficulties courageously.
Her courage and perseverance are source of inspiration for all mankind!
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