The Country of the Blind

Retinitis pigmentosa (RP) is a painless, degenerative eye condition that leads to blindness. The disease progresses incrementally, enabling people with RP, including Andrew Leland – editor of The Believer and former host of The Organist podcast – to contemplate their oncoming blindness. Though society often marginalizes blind people, Leland argues that blindness reveals new ways to exist in the world.

Blindness

In the popular imagination, blind people are absolutely sightless, but most blind people don’t live in total darkness. Unfortunately, the shadows they may perceive with their eyes don’t help them function in the world.