For the first nineteen months of her life, Helen Keller was like other pretty, happy babies in every way. Then a sudden illness destroyed her sight and hearing. Because she could not hear what other people were saying, the child could not learn to speak. For the next seven years, she lived in a world of darkness, without sounds or words.
The person who changed Helen.s world was her teacher, Anne Sullivan, who entered her life on March 3, 1887. Miss Sullivan had accepted a job which seemed impossible. She had agreed to teach a blind child who had never learned to act like a human being, because no one had ever been able to guide (指导) her in any way. No one could control her. She acted like a young animal, rushing wildly around, throwing things, and hitting anyone whom she could reach. Who could believe that such a child could be taught?
But Anne Sullivan was a very special kind of teacher. She had been blind during part of her own childhood and had learned to read Braille, a system of writing that uses raised dots which can be left by the fingers of a blind person. She had learned to see again after several operations (练习) , but she had never forgotten the experience of being blind.
Miss Sullivan understood Helen. She loved her and believed she could teach her.