After many years, historian and Helen Keller expert Kim Nielsen realized that she, along with other historians and biographers, had failed Anne Sullivan Macy. While Macy is remembered primarily as Helen Keller's teacher and mythologized as a straightforward educational superhero, the real story of this brilliant, complex, and misunderstood woman, who described herself as a "badly constructed human being," has never been completely told.
Beyond the Miracle Worker, the first biography of Macy in nearly fifty years, complicates the typical Helen-Annie "feel good" narrative in surprising ways. By telling the life from Macy's perspective-not Keller's-the biography is the first to put Macy squarely at the center of the story. It presents a new and fascinating tale about a wounded but determined woman and her quest for a successful, meaningful life.
Born in 1866 to poverty-stricken Irish immigrants, the parentless and deserted Macy suffered part of her childhood in the Massachusetts State Almshouse at Tewksbury. Seeking escape, in love with literature, and profoundly stubborn, she successfully fought to gain an education at the Perkins School for the Blind.
As an adult, Macy taught Keller, helping the girl realize her immense potential, and Macy's intimate friendship with Keller remained powerful throughout their lives. Yet as Macy floundered with her own blindness, ill health, and depression, as well as a tumultuous and triangulated marriage, she came to lean on her former student, emotionally, physically, and economically.
Based on privately held primary source material, including materials at both the American Foundation for the Blind and the Perkins School for the Blind, Beyond the Miracle Worker is revelatory and absorbing, unraveling one of the best known-and least understood-friendships of the twentieth century.
Kim E. Nielsen is an award-winning educator, the recipient of a National Endowment for the Humanities We the People stipend, a Fulbright lecturer, the author of many journal articles, and frequent public speaker. Her books include Helen Keller: Selected Writings (2005), The Radical Lives of Helen Keller(2004) and Un-American Womanhood: Antiradicalism, Antifeminism and the First Red Scare (2001). She also served as an advisory editor to the forthcomingEncyclopedia of American Disability History (2009). She lives in Green Bay, Wisconsin where she is Professor of History & Women's Studies at the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay.
Chapter 1
Feeding Hills
Chapter 2
Tewksbury Almshouse
Chapter 3
Perkins, 1880-1885: Part One
Chapter 4
Perkins, 1880-1886: Part Two
Chapter 5
Becoming a Teacher
Chapter 6
Tuscumbia, 1888-1891
Chapter 7
The Battle for Helen, Round 1, 1891-1984
Chapter 8
The Battle for Helen, Round 2, 1894-1900
Chapter 9
Radcliffe, 1900-1904
Chapter 10
John, 1904-1914
Chapter 11
On the Road, 1914-1924
Chapter 12
The American Foundation for the Blind, 1924-1930
Chapter 13
Concluding, 1930-1936
Conclusion
Acknowledgments
Notes
Index
After many years, historian and Helen Keller expert Kim Nielsen realized that she, along with other historians and biographers, had failed Anne Sullivan Macy. While Macy is remembered primarily as Helen Keller's teacher and mythologized as a straightforward educational superhero, the real story of this brilliant, complex, and misunderstood woman, who described herself as a "badly constructed human being," has never been completely told.
Beyond the Miracle Worker, the first biography of Macy in nearly fifty years, complicates the typical Helen-Annie "feel good" narrative in surprising ways. By telling the life from Macy's perspective-not Keller's-the biography is the first to put Macy squarely at the center of the story. It presents a new and fascinating tale about a wounded but determined woman and her quest for a successful, meaningful life.
Born in 1866 to poverty-stricken Irish immigrants, the parentless and deserted Macy suffered part of her childhood in the Massachusetts State Almshouse at Tewksbury. Seeking escape, in love with literature, and profoundly stubborn, she successfully fought to gain an education at the Perkins School for the Blind.
As an adult, Macy taught Keller, helping the girl realize her immense potential, and Macy's intimate friendship with Keller remained powerful throughout their lives. Yet as Macy floundered with her own blindness, ill health, and depression, as well as a tumultuous and triangulated marriage, she came to lean on her former student, emotionally, physically, and economically.
Based on privately held primary source material, including materials at both the American Foundation for the Blind and the Perkins School for the Blind, Beyond the Miracle Worker is revelatory and absorbing, unraveling one of the best known-and least understood-friendships of the twentieth century.
Kim E. Nielsen is an award-winning educator, the recipient of a National Endowment for the Humanities We the People stipend, a Fulbright lecturer, the author of many journal articles, and frequent public speaker. Her books include Helen Keller: Selected Writings (2005), The Radical Lives of Helen Keller(2004) and Un-American Womanhood: Antiradicalism, Antifeminism and the First Red Scare (2001). She also served as an advisory editor to the forthcomingEncyclopedia of American Disability History (2009). She lives in Green Bay, Wisconsin where she is Professor of History & Women's Studies at the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay.
Chapter 1
Feeding Hills
Chapter 2
Tewksbury Almshouse
Chapter 3
Perkins, 1880-1885: Part One
Chapter 4
Perkins, 1880-1886: Part Two
Chapter 5
Becoming a Teacher
Chapter 6
Tuscumbia, 1888-1891
Chapter 7
The Battle for Helen, Round 1, 1891-1984
Chapter 8
The Battle for Helen, Round 2, 1894-1900
Chapter 9
Radcliffe, 1900-1904
Chapter 10
John, 1904-1914
Chapter 11
On the Road, 1914-1924
Chapter 12
The American Foundation for the Blind, 1924-1930
Chapter 13
Concluding, 1930-1936
Conclusion
Acknowledgments
Notes
Index
Chapter 1
Feeding Hills
Chapter 2
Tewksbury Almshouse
Chapter 3
Perkins, 1880-1885: Part One
Chapter 4
Perkins, 1880-1886: Part Two
Chapter 5
Becoming a Teacher
Chapter 6
Tuscumbia, 1888-1891
Chapter 7
The Battle for Helen, Round 1, 1891-1984
Chapter 8
The Battle for Helen, Round 2, 1894-1900
Chapter 9
Radcliffe, 1900-1904
Chapter 10
John, 1904-1914
Chapter 11
On the Road, 1914-1924
Chapter 12
The American Foundation for the Blind, 1924-1930
Chapter 13
Concluding, 1930-1936
Conclusion
Acknowledgments
Notes
Index
Kim E. Nielsenis an award-winning educator, the recipient of a National Endowment for the Humanities We the People stipend, a Fulbright lecturer, the author of many journal articles, and frequent public speaker. Her books includeHelen Keller- Selected Writings(2005),The Radical Lives of Helen Keller(2004) andUn-American Womanhood- Antiradicalism, Antifeminism and the First Red Scare(2001). She also served as an advisory editor to the forthcomingEncyclopedia of American Disability History(2009). She lives in Green Bay, Wisconsin where she is Professor of History & Women's Studies at the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay.
“Kim E. Nielsen’s richly textured biography provides a more
interesting and complex narrative of Macy’s early years and the
later life that she and Keller shared…Nielsen writes about
disability and America’s past as well as any scholar today, and
she does so unsentimentally and with subtlety, sensitive to the
nuance and ambiguity that characterize the best history and
biography.”—Journal of American History
A remarkable story of a vulnerable woman in a culture that allowed
women neither freedom nor power. Still, somehow Anne, an almost
blind orphan living in a poorhouse, managed to secure an education
and carve out an independent life for herself and her student,
Helen Keller. Anne Sullivan Macy is a feminist hero.—Mary Pipher,
author of Reviving Ophelia and Seeking Peace
"A considerate yet equitable biography of a complex woman whose
singular contributions to the burgeoning field of education for the
blind have often been misjudged."—Booklist
"Nielsen overcomes all the obstacles her recalcitrant subject
throws in her path, and creates a portrait of Sullivan's life that
is complex with all its contradictions and
inconsistencies."—Georgina Kleege, Disability Studies Quarterly
"Engaging and excellently researched . . . Nielsen shows how tragic
Annie's 'secret' and 'shameful' past had been-a drama worthy of
Dickens. . . . The extraordinary story of Annie Sullivan and Helen
Keller is an exemplary reminder that perseverance in the face of
obstacles can yield miracles."—Sidney Callahan, America
"How remarkable it is to learn about the complicated,
flesh-and-blood person behind the feisty legend at the water pump.
Kim Nielsen's biography reveals so much about one of the greatest
teachers of all time, and her compassionate and honest writing made
my heart go out to Annie Sullivan."—Rachel Simon, author of Riding
the Bus with My Sister
"Fascinating and beautifully crafted, Beyond the Miracle Worker
reinterprets Macy's life, challenging the mythology of her work
with Helen Keller to reveal a powerful, rich, and surprising
personal story. . . . Conveying the complexity and humanity of Macy
and her world, this is an appealing biography for general readers
and scholars alike."—Susan Burch, author of Signs of Resistance:
American Deaf Cultural History, 1900 to World War II
"Rejecting hagiography, Nielsen offers a complex portrait of the
woman Helen Keller called 'Teacher.' Especially interesting are
Nielsen's reflections on Sullivan's own vision impairment and her
lifelong struggle to support herself. It's time we all move beyond
the sentimental trope of the 'miracle worker' as we consider the
actual predicaments of those who care for and instruct people with
disabilities."BR>—Ralph James Savarese, author of Reasonable
People: A Memoir of Autism and Adoption
"Kim Nielsen's absorbing biography of Anne Sullivan Macy not only
captures the complexity of Sullivan's character, but also offers
fresh insights into her relationship with her famous pupil.
Thoroughly researched, persuasive, and readable, Beyond the Miracle
Worker is both a compelling story and an important contribution to
women's history and the history of the disabled."—Elisabeth Gitter,
author of The Imprisoned Guest: Samuel Howe and Laura Bridgman, the
Original Deaf-Blind Girl
"Nielsen's engaging and comprehensive account of Annie Sullivan
reveals a woman of great intellect and complexity who overcame many
challenges in her own right. This book will irrevocably change what
you thought you knew about the 'Helen-Annie' story."—Judith
Heumann, Disability Rights Advocate and former U.S. Assistant
Secretary Department of Education
"A significant contribution...Nielsen has provided a learned,
readable narrative of Macy, one that succeeds admirably in
foregrounding a woman who, during her own life, stood in the shadow
of Keller. Their relationship was complex and fluid, but nothing if
not tender, and Nielsen's careful scholarship does justice both to
the intricacies and to the warmth of the friendship." —Daniel S.
Goldberg, H-Disability: An H-Net Discussion Network
The lives of Helen Keller and her teacher, Anne Sullivan Macy, were so entwined that it is impossible to write about one without the other. Nevertheless, in this concise biography Nielsen (history & women's studies, Univ. of Wisconsin, Green Bay; The Radical Lives of Helen Keller) succeeds admirably in keeping the focus on Macy, adding to our understanding of Macy's tragic childhood in the Tewksbury, MA, almshouse, her schooling at the Perkins Institution for the Blind, her marriage to and separation from John Macy, and her struggles to hide the extent of her own disability. Macy's complexity is revealed, particularly in her struggle to remain the guiding force in Keller's life amid efforts by educators at Perkins and other schools to gain control of Keller and to benefit from her fame. This book will join works such as Lorena A. Hickok's The Touch of Magic, Joseph P. Lash's Helen and Teacher, and Dorothy Herrmann's Helen Keller: A Life as essential reading for those interested in Macy or Keller. Suitable for most public libraries and for academic libraries with strong collections in biography, special education, or the history of disabilities.-Linda V. Carlisle, Southern Illinois Univ., Edwardsville Copyright 2009 Reed Business Information.
"Kim E. Nielsen's richly textured biography provides a more
interest ing and complex narrative of Macy's early years and the
later life that she and Keller shared...Nielsen writes about
disabil ity and America's past as well as any scholar today, and
she does so unsentimentally and with subtlety, sensitive to the
nuance and ambiguity that characterize the best history and
biography."-Journal of American History
A remarkable story of a vulnerable woman in a culture that allowed
women neither freedom nor power. Still, somehow Anne, an almost
blind orphan living in a poorhouse, managed to secure an education
and carve out an independent life for herself and her student,
Helen Keller. Anne Sullivan Macy is a feminist hero.-Mary Pipher,
author of Reviving Ophelia and Seeking Peace
"A considerate yet equitable biography of a complex woman whose
singular contributions to the burgeoning field of education for the
blind have often been misjudged."-Booklist
"Nielsen overcomes all the obstacles her recalcitrant subject
throws in her path, and creates a portrait of Sullivan's life that
is complex with all its contradictions and
inconsistencies."-Georgina Kleege, Disability Studies
Quarterly
"Engaging and excellently researched . . . Nielsen shows how tragic
Annie's 'secret' and 'shameful' past had been-a drama worthy of
Dickens. . . . The extraordinary story of Annie Sullivan and Helen
Keller is an exemplary reminder that perseverance in the face of
obstacles can yield miracles."-Sidney Callahan, America
"How remarkable it is to learn about the complicated,
flesh-and-blood person behind the feisty legend at the water pump.
Kim Nielsen's biography reveals so much about one of the greatest
teachers of all time, and her compassionate and honest writing made
my heart go out to Annie Sullivan."-Rachel Simon, author of
Riding the Bus with My Sister
"Fascinating and beautifully crafted, Beyond the Miracle
Worker reinterprets Macy's life, challenging the mythology of
her work with Helen Keller to reveal a powerful, rich, and
surprising personal story. . . . Conveying the complexity and
humanity of Macy and her world, this is an appealing biography for
general readers and scholars alike."-Susan Burch, author of
Signs of Resistance: American Deaf Cultural History, 1900 to
World War II
"Rejecting hagiography, Nielsen offers a complex portrait of the
woman Helen Keller called 'Teacher.' Especially interesting are
Nielsen's reflections on Sullivan's own vision impairment and her
lifelong struggle to support herself. It's time we all move beyond
the sentimental trope of the 'miracle worker' as we consider the
actual predicaments of those who care for and instruct people with
disabilities."BR>-Ralph James Savarese, author of Reasonable
People: A Memoir of Autism and Adoption
"Kim Nielsen's absorbing biography of Anne Sullivan Macy not only
captures the complexity of Sullivan's character, but also offers
fresh insights into her relationship with her famous pupil.
Thoroughly researched, persuasive, and readable, Beyond the
Miracle Worker is both a compelling story and an important
contribution to women's history and the history of the
disabled."-Elisabeth Gitter, author of The Imprisoned Guest:
Samuel Howe and Laura Bridgman, the Original Deaf-Blind
Girl
"Nielsen's engaging and comprehensive account of Annie Sullivan
reveals a woman of great intellect and complexity who overcame many
challenges in her own right. This book will irrevocably change what
you thought you knew about the 'Helen-Annie' story."-Judith
Heumann, Disability Rights Advocate and former U.S. Assistant
Secretary Department of Education
"A significant contribution...Nielsen has provided a learned,
readable narrative of Macy, one that succeeds admirably in
foregrounding a woman who, during her own life, stood in the shadow
of Keller. Their relationship was complex and fluid, but nothing if
not tender, and Nielsen's careful scholarship does justice both to
the intricacies and to the warmth of the friendship." -Daniel S.
Goldberg, H-Disability: An H-Net Discussion Network
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