When we put together a playlist for our Blind Games workshop, we found that depictions of blindness fell into a handful of archetypes. A fascinating one is when blindness gets linked to the supernatural.
In songs of love or devotion, being blinded is usually a metaphor for being struck by some higher power: Tom Waits' "Blind Love", Thomas Dolby's "She Blinded Me With Science", and Springsteen's "Blinded By The Light" are all examples.
Beyond pop songs, in many literary and theatrical traditions, lacking a sense of sight often comes with special abilities attached: Tiresias the blind oracle of Thebes, the blind swordsman in the Zatochi franchise of samurai films, and Marvel Comics' Daredevil all fit into that category of "blind superheroes".
In 1969, The Who brought these theatrical and pop traditions together in their rock opera Tommy, recreated for the screen in 1975. Here Elton John takes a scornful look at Roger Daltrey's superpowers in one of the film's many pivotal scenes:
In songs of love or devotion, being blinded is usually a metaphor for being struck by some higher power: Tom Waits' "Blind Love", Thomas Dolby's "She Blinded Me With Science", and Springsteen's "Blinded By The Light" are all examples.
Beyond pop songs, in many literary and theatrical traditions, lacking a sense of sight often comes with special abilities attached: Tiresias the blind oracle of Thebes, the blind swordsman in the Zatochi franchise of samurai films, and Marvel Comics' Daredevil all fit into that category of "blind superheroes".
In 1969, The Who brought these theatrical and pop traditions together in their rock opera Tommy, recreated for the screen in 1975. Here Elton John takes a scornful look at Roger Daltrey's superpowers in one of the film's many pivotal scenes:
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