Would you rather be blind or deaf? It’s one of those trite “would you rather” questions that comes up once in a while, but I think I’ve got my answer: I’d rather be blind.
I’ve got two main reasons for this. The first is conversation. A blind person can still converse somewhat normally (although obviously missing visual cues like facial expressions and hand gestures), but a deaf person depends on sign language. It’s much more difficult to just strike up a conversation with a deaf person.
Second, there’s music. I get pretty emotional sometimes when it comes to music, and I can’t imagine losing that. It’s much more rare for a visual to affect me as much; I’m not really sure why. My world, if I were deaf, would feel much more muffled and muted – as if I were an arm’s length from everything. Sound has an immediacy that visuals lack.
There’s more to it, I’m sure, but that’s what’s off the top of my head. I hope I never have to find out.