In our discussion of cochlear implants, which, in my mind, sometimes seemed distasteful eugenics, I found myself grappling with some difficult questions: how different my experience of the world would be. What would happen if I communicated via American Sign Language instead of English? Does the existence of sign language benefit the world in any significant way? What would be lost if the world lost sign language? In trying to answer these questions, I remember an aphorism my brother once shared with me that I have never forgotten: "There are two types of narcissism," he told me: "The one to assume that one's experiences are unique, and that of assuming that one's experiences are universal. "These two poles often clash in debates over the respective merits of universalism and relativism. Is assuming that an experience is universal disrespectful of phenomenological differences between cultures? Or assuming that an experience is culturally specific Is it disrespectful to the spirit of humanity that unites all people? Here, the specific issue at hand is that of linguistic relativity Linguistic relativity (also known as the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis) holds that either. the language one speaks determines the way one experiences the world (in the strong version of this hypothesis), or influences the way one experiences the world (in the weak version Accuracy). of the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis would suggest in my opinion that the phenomenological experience of being deaf (and communicating via sign language) is significantly different from that of being hearing, and that the loss of sign language , or any other language, should be of concern. for us.It turns out that one of the most useful areas for studying linguistic relativity is that of...... middle of paper ......f. The first team member explained to the second how to set up the dollhouse according to the picture. In the case of the hearing team, this task was tedious and ultimately unsuccessful: the instructions were often wordy, redundant, or unspecific. The deaf describer, for his part, was able to orient the piece of furniture in space thanks to the very language he used! The results were both more efficient and more precise. Perhaps this study in itself does not prove linguistic relativism between ASL and English; the study only tested language use and not language experience. But it is not a big step to imagine that we experience space differently when our very language is spatial. In either case, it is clear that using ASL is a creative experience distinct from using English, not simply a different way of describing..