I mean, it is a very reasonable concern. Upon hearing Helen’s story, it’s very easy to see how it might have been a Clever Hans situation. At surface level, Helen Keller’s story sound a lot like Clever Hans.
The difference between the two is that Keller’s claims actually stood up to scrutiny. Hans could never perform his feats in independent and controlled testing. Keller was able to function and communicate independently with people for decades. But if they are not aware of this history, I can see why people are skeptical.
HerbGrower@slrpnk.net 3 weeks ago
I haven’t heard of her so I guess I can start with my guess of what the 1800s was like.
Napoleonic wars leaving millions dead.
People pushed into overcrowded towns and cities, fuelling disease outbreaks like cholera.
Potato famine and British government approach of “lol don’t care” resulting in over a million dead.
CascadianGiraffe@lemmy.world 3 weeks ago
It’s ok, she hasn’t heard of her either
AppleTea@lemmy.zip 3 weeks ago
Suppose someone in that era became def and blind as an infant/toddler. Do you suppose they’d ever be able to learn to communicate?