So, to get us all up to speed on "stuttering stereotypes for 2019," (hint: there ain't no such thing!) here are three examples of recent nuanced portrayals of stuttering on screen. These characters are not villains, dunces, or terrified of their own shadow. With 70 million PWS around the globe, we finally have a growing collection of on-screen stories with people who stutter as regular people with hopes, dreams and love interests.
An update to last year’s blog post, by popular demand from friends, colleagues, and many Internet strangers! Now that Hodor's story has been fully explained, we once again return to the question: does Hodor have aphasia?
One of my favorite stuttering explanations / response to being teased comes from a former 5th grade student of mine. I had asked him if the other kids at school ever comment on his speech.
"Well, yesterday, I was talking and this kid interrupted me while I was stuttering. He was like, 'Hey man, what's wrong with you? Do you have like a glitch or something?' So I said 'Yeah, I do.' And he was like, 'Oh, OK,' and then we kept playing."
Stuttering is in the spotlight this week, thanks to the amazing, emotional performance by 23-year-old stuttering comedian Drew Lynch on America's Got Talent.
Don't get me wrong, I love it when speech pathology topics make mainstream pop culture news. Many communication disorders are unknown and/or are poorly understood in the general populace, so it's great to get a conversation going.
However, when those conversations serve to perpetuate misinformation and stigma, that ain't gonna fly.
In anticipation of last night's premiere of HBO's Game of Thrones Season 5, Business Insider published an article about the ubiquitous and beloved character Hodor: "This is the actual condition that makes 'Game of Thrones' Hodor 'hodor'".
Just in time for record-breaking winter weather in Chicago, I watched Disney's new animated feature Frozen this weekend. The story is a modern take on Hans Christian Andersen's The Snow Queen. It tells the tale of Elsa, a young queen with magical winter powers; and her younger sister Anna, who searches for her queen-sister to break the eternal winter that Elsa has inadvertently caused.
Throughout the film, I was struck by how many of Elsa's reactions, choices, and thoughts parallel the experience of stuttering. Stuttering is not a "superpower" in the way that ice-magic is, but Elsa's personal journey in Frozen shows that her frosty fingers are really just the tip of her personal iceberg.
I had the great delight of watching Lake Bell’s In a World... last night. The film is a practical demonstration of popular voice trends in modern America, and why it’s so important for everyone to cultivate and care for their voice.
Chicago, IL
312.870.0352
Chicago, IL
312.870.0352
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Chicago, IL 60603
312.870.0352
8 S Michigan Ave, Suite 812
Chicago, IL 60603
312.870.0352