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Some small minded and ignorant people believe that people from the continent of Africa are not intelligent. These people believe this because they lack exposure, have heard one sided stories, and have incomplete information. This is the “single story” of African people’s intelligence. What is a single story and why does it matter? A single story is one idea about a specific thing without knowing anything else about that idea. When you watch the news, most of what they show is the single story of that event. The news shows all these horrible events and solely focuses on the bad parts. Chimamanda Adichie, a young Nigerian author says, “The single story creates stereotypes, and the problem with stereotypes is not that they are untrue, but that they are …show more content…
According to the CIA world factbook, Nigeria is ranked at having the 67th worst GDP out of 230 countries. This demonstrates how difficult it is for these people to find proper and up to date educations. With the limited financial support comes limited resources however, 59% of people in Nigeria are able to read and write. To put that into perspective, India a country of 1.3 billion people holds the 26th highest IQ at 82. However, if you were to have the same number of people in India as Nigeria, only 38% of people in India could read and write. Even though India has a higher GDP rating at 71 out 230, they still have a lower overall IQ and lower reading and writing percentage. So Nigeria has less GDP and only 186 million people but ranks higher in IQ compared to India which ranks higher in GDP but lower in IQ even though India has 1.3 billion people (That’s 7 times as much). These facts show that people from Africa are not intelligent because with less money, less resources, less exposure, and less help, they still are able to “outsmart” 43 other
Chimamanda Adichie, in one of her eye-opening speeches, The Danger of a Single Story, provides the audience with a new insight into the negative impacts that can occur as a result of viewing a story from a single perspective and not putting in an effort to know it from all available viewpoints. Adichie in her simple, yet well-grounded speech, filled with anecdotes of her personal experiences effectively puts across her argument against believing in stereotypes and limiting oneself to just a single story using a remarkable opening, the elements of logos, pathos and ethos, repetitions, as well as maintaining a good flow of thoughts throughout the speech.
Timmy was struck at the news. How could he have not made competitive? He had practiced so hard. Throughout practice and until the first game, Timmy was pretty much a downer. He wished that he had never signed up for the tournament.
Through most of my time in high school, I always found myself writing more of exploratory writing for two simple reasons; it took a shorter amount of time, and relating writing to my personal experiences was something I had no need to look up. Exploratory writing is a time to take advantage to relate your own personal experiences and an attempt to make a connection with a certain reading. The experiences you have will not be exactly the same as you’re classmate and might be very enjoyable to read. Lamott and Hairston both use explanatory and exploratory writing in their essays by explaining the techniques of what good writers do and applying their own personal experiences. By applying both explanatory and exploratory in their essay they are able to provide the reader with new ideas they can adopt to improve their writing skills.
In 2009 Chimamanda Adichie gave a TED talk about the ‘danger of a single story’. A single story meaning, one thought or one example of a person becoming what we think about all people that fit that description, a stereotype if you will. In today’s America, I believe that we have all felt the wave of stereotypical views at some point or another. Adichie gives many relatable examples throughout her life of how she has been affected by the single story. Her story brings about an issue that all humans, from every inch of the earth, have come to understand on some level. A young child reading only foreign books, a domestic helper that she only perceived as poor. Her college roommates single story about Africans and her own formation of a single
The single story is created because people do not try to go past the single story and find out what truly is happening. The human race can inherently be judgmental and so the single story is created. If people were to put their judgments aside and take the time to learn the stories of the people then the issue would be prevented. People and societies are so complex that it is morally wrong to say that there is a single story because once one says there is a single story then the stories of thousands of people are forgotten. This made me realize how much our society in the US really does create single stories for the smaller and less fortunate countries because that is all we see them as. This will definitely make me think more about if a single story is really true and dive deeper into stories to get the full story because the full story deserves to be told. Another insight gained is that everybody can fall victim to a single story because sometimes we only see one side of the story in the news and it can be hard to find the other
A single story is many things: an assumption, a prejudice, and even a single-sided point of view. It is a way of sharing information that implants a preconceived notion about a place or a group of people in the minds of others. Single stories “…show a people as one thing, as only one thing, over and over again, and that is what they become” (Adichie “The Danger of a Single Story”) in the minds of those subjected to the stories. It highlights differences, and fails to truly convey what a place or a group of people really is. An American’s assumption that all of Africa is a tribal, poverty-stricken, uneducated area is an example of a single story, but many only believe that because it was all they were ever told. A
“When we reject the single story, when we realize that there is never a single story about any place, we regain a kind of paradise” (5). Our present world has saturated itself with single stories causing people to become shocked when they meet anything other than their single story. This issue has developed into a danger in society. A danger that has “robbed people of dignity” (4), obscured society’s vision of equality, and emboldened differences in culture rather than similarities. Chimamanda Adichie demonstrates this through her own personal experience in her speech “The Danger of a Single Story.” Adichie’s speech addresses how an isolated point of view creates stereotypes, and therefore, is a harm to our society. In response, I agree
Head to head hits are still a prevalent issue in the Nfl. Should head to head hits lead to an ejection from the game? If a player in college football commits an intentional helmet to helmet hit, the penalty is an ejection. If college football can input this penalty, couldn’t the NFL? We see that former football players who suffered many concussions over their playing careers, have long lasting effects. Some current players feel as though that they can’t control where their hits land and injuries are just a part of the game. Some fans feel as though all these penalties are taking the fun away the game. Former NFL players are an example of what helmet to helmet hits can do.
Nigerian novelist Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, gives a compelling speech, The Danger of a Single Story, which discusses the issues of single stories we unknowingly believe in. Single stories are stories that we have read or been taught, which have unintended consequences in portraying and perpetuating stereotypes of others. Adichie appeals to her audience using logos, ethos, and pathos effectively by explaining how common it is for us to have these single perspectives, as well as demonstrating how susceptible we are to believing them as the only truth. Through the use of figurative devices in the anecdotes she offers, Adichie persuades us to be conscious about fostering stereotypes by asking us to reject the single story narratives and actively pursue to share and uncover the untold truths. It is clear that she is comparing a single story to the same stereotype.
In her TED talk, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie talks through the role of perception in her life and the way that it changes social relationships. We have all had plenty of experiences that surprise us in regard to perception, such as the first time we meet someone from another culture, or meeting someone from our past in a new light. We have been inundated with stereotypes and preconceived notions since we were children, through stories, media, parents, teachers, and friends. Moreover, these presuppositions that we carry are rarely, if ever, based on anything substantial, yet they show up in every aspect of our life. Adichie calls the notion of this one-sided preconceived bias the “single story.” This “single story” is interesting due to the fact that even if we can overcome it, we are still affected by it. Adichie speaks about how even though she had become enlightened to this dilemma, she is still subject to it. As for her experience, she states that,
In Chimamda Ngozi Adichie’s “The Danger of the Single Story” talk, Adichie’s main focus is to make the audience realize the stereotypes that people tend to unconsciously adhere to. Adichie begins her talk by relating to the audience and providing a personal experience of how she as a child became a victim of the single story effect. Adichie talks about her life as a middle class girl who was born and raised in Nigeria and how she grew up with a mindset that people of lower social status were not capable of doing the same things she was. Adichie continues with a story about the houseboy whom her mom hired to help around the house. Adichie would observe this boy and developed sympathy for him because he was so poor. One day, however, Adichie
A single story can create stereotypes of a person’s humanity before they create their own, it can even harm a dignity of a person. From the speech “The Danger of a Single Story” from the series of “Ted Talk” by Nigerian novelist Chimamanda Adichie, Adichie argues about the danger of a single story in her life experience about how a medias in our society can influence what people think about someone from another country. “The single story creates stereotypes” Adichie says, “show a people as one thing, as only one thing, over and over again, and that is what they become… the problem with stereotypes is not that they are untrue, but that they are incomplete. They make one story become the only story” (Adichie). She gives several examples of a single
The purpose of the speech provided by Chimamanda Adichie is to portray the various impacts a single story can have on both an individual and a society. This is because of the usage of stereotypes provided by the media which creates an overall image, that everyone believes to be true. This is prominent when she says “A single story creates stereotypes, and the problem with stereotypes is not that they are untrue, but that they are incomplete.” Having a single story also confines the world to generalized outlooks on cultures, religions and nationalities. Due to this, individuals must seek for diversity and different perspectives, in which everyone should be able to see the world as it is, not just the aspect that the media portrays. Through
A single story is a misconception and a stereotype of a certain group. A generalization that is formulated through media and everyday interactions. Creating these single stories can cause us to make an unfair and incomplete assumption. This summer, I read the novel, The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini, and found myself shocked to see that I made an assumption about the main character’s home-life. The single story I made was based on what I had seen in the media; I assumed that because Amir Jan lived in Afghanistan that he was living in poverty and was in need of basic resources; Khaled proved me wrong by showing the high class and complex childhood Amir had, along with showing me the other social classes present.
Watching the TED talk about the single story really hit close to home for me. Growing up people made up their own single stories about me and my family numerous times. These experiences are what caused me to hide a big part of my life and where I came from for many years. As I reflect back on the years where I felt ashamed of where I came from, I am disappointed with humanity and I realize now that so many people nowadays lack common respect and compassion towards others. Although I am hurt to have been affected by a single story, I am also thankful for the experience because I was able to grow from it, learn from it, and now I am able to tell my story and honor the experiences that brought me here today.