Question

Helen's statement, "We worked hard and faithfully, yet we did not quite reach our goal" tells us about her failure to achieve the goal at the Wright-Humason School in New York City. What was the goal that she failed to achieve there?

Answer 1

In the summer of 1984, Helen Keller went to Wright-Humason School for the Deaf in New York City to receive the training for vocal culture and lip reading. It was with the help of Miss Reamy, the German teacher, who used the manual alphabet, that helped Helen acquire a small vocabulary. They also talked together in German and, in a few months Helen could understand almost everything she said.

At the school, Helen acquired the knowledge of German easily. It was French that troubled her. Madam Olivier, the French lady did not know the manual alphabet and was obliged to give her instruction orally. She couldn't learn what Madam Olivier said as she couldn't read her lips easily. 

Helen's progress in lip-reading and speech was not what her teachers hoped. The ambition to speak like other people was not accomplished. Helen Keller made the mistake of 'guessing' what was being said. She also jumped into conclusions that aggravated her difficulty. She then believed that the exceptions of her teachers and also herself was set too high. And this she regarded as the reason for the pitfall. Thus, the progress of Helen Keller was not what she and her teachers expected. This is when she worked hard and effectively but couldn't reach the goal.