sense of 'stupid' as a secondary meaning in the 19th century, but since 'stupid' has now become the primary meaning, even though the term is still widely understood in the secondary meaning in the particular expression, it is now unsuitable to refer to Deaf people. Language The history of Deaf Americans, for the most part, parallels that of American Sign Language (ASL). Although Deaf American identity is now strongly tied to the use of American Sign Language, its roots can be found in early deaf communities on the American East Coast, including those that communicated using Martha's Vineyard Sign Language. Martha's Vineyard Sign Language bloomed from necessity due to a high number of hereditary deaf Americans in the area. The language became so popular, even the hearing Vineyard workers adopted it. The Vineyard language contributed hundreds of signs to the modern ASL utilized today. An important event in the history of Deaf Americans was the introduction of the methodical sign system of the Abbé de l'Epée to deaf children at the American School for the Deaf in 1817 by Laurent Clerc, a French signer who accompanied Thomas Gallaudet to become the first teacher at the school. This tradition continued until 1880 when oralism (promoting speaking) began to replace manualism (promoting signing) as the dominant approach to deaf education, almost obliterating ASL and deaf culture in America. Oralism was the main philosophy in deaf education until 1965 when the linguist William Stokoe argued that ASL should be regarded as a full language with all of the expressive power of any oral language. This gradually led to an increase in the respectability and use of signing. Deaf art The accomplishments of Deaf artists have been noted with many factors contributing to a natural attraction to visual arts. Three factors have been noted: biological factor, isolation factor, and the Deaf essence factor.As "people of the eye," Deaf people are naturally attracted to the visual arts.A desire to express themselves to the world through visually accessible medium may be a reason for such a strong Deaf artist community. Due to frustration with limited communication in home and school life (leading to feelings of isolation), many Deaf artists report that art creates a way for them to freely express their thoughts and feelings. Similar to the art of other marginalized and oppressed groups, Deaf art tends to be a vessel through which one's Deaf identity