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When we talk in oral languages, one of the element we must control is our tone.

Speaking loudly or whispering can influence our message, much like the words we use. Every situation requires different vocal tones. Also, depending on the language the "neutral" vocal tone will change. let use the perspective that native Ecuadorian speakers have on native Spaniard speakers; they are simply too loud, grotesque and sound backwards.

In sign languages, the vocal tone is equivalent to hands movements and facial expressions. When we sign we move our hands in a space which is generally noted vertically between the head and waist and horizontally an area double the size of our back.Deafness blog image. The signing space. Image depicting two figures with a marked cube around them representing the area in which the movement of hands occurs while speaking in a visual-gestural language.

However, interesting fact is this space is no universal. Every sign language has its own. Depending which one we are talk we can be "shouting" or not. If we take Spanish Sign Language and British Sign Language, we can see this difference.

Spanish Sign Language (LSE) example:

British Sign Language (BSL) example:

If we are not familiar with sign language, they might look similar. However, with time we see LSE is more expressive and had a larger signing space than BSL. This is something typical of the Spanish character against the British.

One of the moments we need to consider the size of this space is when filming. As we know, the famous blue box is passé, so nowadays when recording we must take care of this space. Cutting a deaf person's hands or arms when he is signing is like cutting the sound intermittently when a reporter is speaking. 

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