Helen participated more in her family and in day-to-day life than one might expect of a child who had been struck with such a devastating disability—Helen excitedly greeted her parents’ visitors and expressed curiosity about communication and the way her family did things. "My students can't get enough of your charts and their results have gone through the roof." “Would not have made it through AP Literature without the printable PDFs. Unlike many children her age, Helen's unique circumstances allowed her to befriend individuals from all walks of life—prominent authors, poets, inventors, scientists, and educators from all around the United States and across the world. Helen Adam Keller was born in Tuscumbia, Alabama on June 27, 1880. LitCharts Teacher Editions. There are many themes in the narrative. For Helen, language was far out of reach at the beginning of her life, and she had to work harder than most to acquire it. The Story of My Life study guide contains a biography of Helen Keller, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis. Children who see and hear acquire language by imitation, and eventually learn to listen, speak, read, and write as a natural progression of their abilities. You can check them out below: https://www.gradesaver.com/the-story-of-my-life/study-guide/themes. Her disability threatened to put her in danger once or twice, but despite this, Helen was able to get up to tricks and hijinks, mystifying and even frustrating those around her. Detailed explanations, analysis, and citation info for every important quote on LitCharts. Education changed Helen's life and empowered her achieve things that one would not expect a person with her handicaps to achieve. Helen's story is a true example of how adaptable and powerful children are. Without commitment and perseverance, Helen would not have been able to overcome her challenges. Read the Study Guide for The Story of My Life…, View the lesson plan for The Story of My Life…, View Wikipedia Entries for The Story of My Life…. Helen Keller was born on June 27th, 1880 in Tuscumbia, a small town in Northern Alabama. Helen’s mother helped her through a difficult time by showing her love, patience, and compassion. As Helen reflects on the period following her illness, it does not seem to be a time marked by total sadness and isolation—instead, she was constantly surrounded by the company of her family, especially her mother, who worked with her tirelessly to try and help little Helen find a way to communicate. Teach your students to analyze literature like LitCharts does. In the outdoors, she does not need sight or hearing to understand what is around her; she can feel the power of her surroundings through touch and smell, and does not have to rely on verbal communication. Helen Keller was born on June 27, 1880 in the small town of Tuscumbia, Alabama. One of Helen's greatest ambitions was to speak like other people. Helen felt every object in the house, and had some sense of what things were. Helen’s feistiness and combativeness extended to her defenseless infant sister, whom Helen did not fully understand and saw largely as a nuisance. Before she began her education, Helen lived life in the dark, frustrated and angry because those around her could not understand her. Thanks for exploring this SuperSummary Study Guide of “The Story of My Life” by Helen Keller. First, Helen herself possessed strong mental fortitude, and continually pushed herself because she strove to rise to the standard of everyone around her. Her feisty attitude remained strong as ever as she embarked on an imbalanced but seemingly joyful friendship with one of her parents’ servant’s children, and with Martha she continued to explore the world around the house and the nature and animals there. Copyright © 1999 - 2020 GradeSaver LLC. Suduiko, Aaron ed. Helen's success against all odds is a result of many individuals' determination to see her achieve. Finally, the continuous encouragement and strength of Helen's family and friends also helped her to reach the immense goals she set. Helen feels at home when she is out in nature more so than anywhere else. A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality study guides that feature detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, quotes, and essay topics. In Boston, she learned history first-hand; at the World's Fair, she immersed herself in different cultures without leaving the U.S.; in Washington, she met many prominent government officials whose support and encouragement greatly contributed to her success. Our, LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in. Summary of The Story of My Life.