The danger of a single story video

By: Chimamanda Adichie

Chimamanda talked about the danger of a single story, seeing only one side of the story. She talked about her roommate in the United States who could only see Chimamanda as poor and non-knowledgeable of doing even simple things for example like using the stove and that’s only because she is African.

Chimamanda remembered herself when she was in Africa and how her mom described a family as poor when she wanted to explain to her and tell her how they have to give them food so they can survive. One day Chimamanda and her family went to this poor family’s house but Chimamanda was very surprised about how creative they are and how they can actually make beautiful things. Chimamanda did have a single story about this family; she could only see them as poor. As well as her American roommate in America who had a single story about Africa that she could only see Africans as poor.

Chimamanda put her shoes in the others and thought what If she didn’t live in Africa, what if she lived her hall life in the United States and have been told repeatedly that Africans are poor, she found out that she will have the same thoughts about Africa as her roommate.

In the case of Africa people have made the image of Africans as poor, dark and can’t speak for themselves, but that’s only one side of the story.

Single story begins when certain people say the same thing over and over again until people believe that this is who they are. They make one story become the only story, but that only makes people feel different than other people instead of similar which also lead to stereotyping.

In the end Chimamanda wanted to send a message to everyone that there is never ever a single story.