Be Aware of the “Single Story”

“The Danger of a Single Story” ~Adichie:

The Danger of a Single Story – C N Adichie | Foluke's African Skies

  • Limited representation → appearance, cultures, food/drink preferences
    • Children = impressionable and vulnerable to stories 
  • Availability in literature 
    • Foreign books (majority) vs African books
  • Stereotypes/Defining qualities → incomplete 
    • Patronizing pity 
      • Ex. African → poverty 
      • Ex. Mexicans → illegally crossing border
    • “Authentically African” 
    • “What if my roommate knew about…?” 
      • Thriving individuals from Nigeria 
  • Power – the ability to make one story the definitive story of another person
    • America’s culture and economic power → many stories of America
    • “Normalized political fear”  
  • Consequences of the single story: 
    • Robs people of dignity
    • Emphasizes differences, not similarities

I hope you enjoyed my post about the importance of telling the full story, not just its parts. This was fully inspired by Adichie’s speech known as “The Danger of a Single Story.” This exists in the form of a TED Talk as well, so feel free to check it out! I will leave the link here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D9Ihs241zeg

Thank you for reading!

~ Devin