ENTRE LÍNGUA, CULTURA E ACESSIBILIDADE: Modos de Subjetivação de Sujeitos Surdos e de Sujeitos Ouvintes/Profissionais da Saúde

Abstract

The theme of this study is grounded in experiences of engagement with the Deaf community since 2007, particularly through work as an interpreter accompanying Deaf individuals in health-related services in the city of Naviraí, Mato Grosso do Sul. We start from the assumption that Deaf subjects, as users of Brazilian Sign Language (Libras), are situated in a predominantly hearing society, and we hypothesize that this population still faces difficulties in terms of inclusion, social relations, and linguistic accessibility. We further assume that, especially in the health sector, insufficient knowledge of Libras among professionals and administrators compromises the effective realization of legally guaranteed rights.Thus, the general objective of this study is to analyze the narratives of Deaf subjects and hearing health professionals with regard to discursive relations mediated by the languages in use and their effects on meanings of inclusion, participation, and the representation of Deaf subjects in health care settings. The specific objectives are: (1) to trace, in and through the narratives of Deaf and hearing subjects, representations of the Deaf population regarding inclusion; (2) to discuss modes of subjectivation through linguistic, identity, and cultural markers as participants speak about the difficulties they experience; and (3) to analyze how health professionals represent Libras and how these representations shape discursive relations with Deaf subjects. The guiding questions are: (1) How do knowledge–power relations interfere with the processes of subjectivation of Deaf and hearing populations? (2) What representations do health professionals construct about deafness, Deaf people, and sign language? (3) To what extent is the legal guarantee of accessibility for Deaf subjects fulfilled in health care services? The theoretical-methodological framework draws on Foucault’s archeo-genealogical approach and on a transdisciplinary discursive perspective, particularly the work of Coracini and Eckert-Hoff, as well as Deaf Studies, especially Quadros and Strobel. The corpus consists of eleven dialogical interviews: five with Deaf participants and six with hearing health professionals, conducted in the municipality of Naviraí, Mato Grosso do Sul. Interviews with Deaf participants were conducted in Libras, while those with hearing professionals were conducted in Portuguese; all interviews were audio- and video-recorded and subsequently transcribed into Portuguese. The results indicate that, although efforts have been made to promote accessibility, the experiences of Deaf subjects remain marked by significant challenges. There is a noticeable gap between what is ensured by legislation and what is effectively practiced in health care services. Linguistic, identity, and cultural factors play a crucial role in shaping how Deaf subjects perceive and experience these encounters. Although Libras is legally recognized, it continues to face barriers to being fully established as a language of meaning-making and interaction in institutional contexts. This dissertation is organized into four sections. The first addresses the historical relationship between deafness and health in Brazil and examines the linguistic status and social visibility of Libras. The second explores the interface between deafness and health by analyzing perspectives, linguistic accessibility, and the discourses produced in interactions between physicians and Deaf patients. The third presents the theoretical-methodological foundations. The fourth is dedicated to the analysis of the narratives of Deaf and hearing subjects, focusing on modes of subjectivation and discursive practices in health care encounters. Finally, the concluding section revisits the research objectives and outlines possible directions for further discussions on deafness, language, and inclusion in institutional settings.