Are Cochlear Implants Ethical/Necessary

Main Idea:

In a society with hearing, people view being deaf or disabled as a “bad” thing, a person who is disabled is considered less than in today's society. They are seen as strong and brave for being able to go through what they need to “go through”. But what if people who were disabled loved being disabled, they love it just as much as we love being able to hear, or speak. There are controversies around getting a cochlear implant these days— A cochlear implant is a small device put in the ear and sits on the outside of the ear that electrically stimulates the cochlear nerve, which causes the ability to hear. The cochlear implant is given to a child at a very young age so it is mainly up to the parents and it is not necessarily 100% guaranteed to work, essentially at that young age, it is choosing between getting a cochlear implant or choosing to learn ASL.

Side 1: The Deaf Community

People of the deaf community have argued that not having the ability to hear heightens your other senses, when you are limited to a certain amount of senses, you put those senses into use. You can notice more than the people who are fully able, instead of maybe hearing a loud car honk, you are able to notice a person's reaction to that noise. People with the ability to hear question the deaf community who are against cochlear implants, they wonder how one can enjoy life to the maximum when they aren’t able to listen to music or get the whole experience at a movie or performance, but Christine Sun Kim explains to us in her episode with TED TALK that they are able to experience all of that and more. It is just not the same experience people with hearing get, but that doesn’t make it any worse. The main idea that some members of the deaf community get at is, society makes it that if you are disabled you are considered less, instead of just different; but there is nothing wrong with being different, being deaf has its own perks and so does having hearing. In conclusion, it would be unfair for the cochlear implant to be forced upon a child. What if the child grows up and dislikes his life with the cochlear implant? Or what if the cochlear implant does not work and that takes away years where he could be learning ASL?

Side 2: “Rebuttal”

People of the deaf community shouldn’t be able to say that being deaf is better than having hearing, considering they haven’t experienced being able to hear. When one is deaf and has not experienced sound, they are merely settling because of limited preferences. Say we take a look at an analogy that Jon Elster gives us, a fox really wants to eat some grapes, he sees that the grapes are extremely high up in the tree and would take a lot of hassle to get, so he decides that grapes are now too “sour” for foxes and does not want them anymore. Elster compares to the deaf community saying no to cochlear implants, how do you know you don’t want the “grapes” if you’ve never had it? Perhaps, if the fox was to climb up that tree and try the grapes and then decide that he no longer wanted grapes, that is reasonable. Meaning that when a deaf individual who has been deaf their whole life decides they don’t want the cochlear implant, that is because they are not willing to work for it, not because they genuinely believe that being deaf is better.

The Grey Area:

Getting a cochlear implant is a big commitment, you would basically be giving up learning ASL during that time. So is it worth it to try when there is still beauty and life when you are deaf? BUT, being deaf in today's world puts you at a disadvantage with school, work, and just with everyday tasks.

If you had been deaf your whole life and you were at your deathbed, wouldn’t you be a little bit curious about what sounds a bird made? Or the song intro to your favorite TV show?