Hope-Action: Freire's Concept of Esperançar and the Case of Music and Deafness

• In Event: Freirean Praxis in Dehumanizing Times

Abstract

When opportunities and dreams are curtailed by social, political, and ideological constraints, or yet, by domesticating the mind with our cages of understanding of what is temporarily im/possible, Paulo Freire's articulation of esperançar -- hope as action to make things happen and not a mere wait -- may transform lives. Therefore, since music is still considered by the dominant society as an auditorial phenomenon, esperançar can be a pathway for challenging the social, political, and ideological barriers that congenitally Deaf people face when choosing to engage in music for entertainment and/or as an profession.

Author

• Ana Lucia Cruz, STLCC - Meramec