Comparison - Hellen Keller And Mary Ingalls

Interestingly, in real life both stories happened at almost the same time (mid 1880's), but in the case of Mary Ingalls (Little House on the Pairie), in truth Laura stayed at home and cared for a blind Mary for 9 years...

In Helen's and Mary's case both were stricken with Scarlet Fever at a very young age, but unlike Helen who later developed Encephalitis, Mary did not go blind until age 14, and did not lose her hearing...

Unlike the ficitonalized story in Little House on the Prairie, Mary did not marry, but after attending a school for the blind was homebound for the rest of her life, unlike Helen who as we know did learn to live with her terrible handicap and in fact became a world traveler.

However, for Mary to remain at home and not end up in an asylum was a blessing, since as Annie described it (because in real life that's how it was), the asylum was hell on Earth for someone who lived in one during that time in history, but very fortunately both Helen and Mary had loving and caring families that allowed them to live without that terrible experience, as Annie and her brother experienced at a very young age.

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