TED Talks Chimamanda Adichie: The danger of a single story

[superego]

Originally Posted by Johnny

Barack Obama has said this a few times, “Africa’s future lies with Africans”. The Western world won’t develop Africa. We have to start the process, and only then will they join.

She wasn't selling Africa to the outside world She was selling Africa to YOU- People outside Africa, and I don't mean geographically, but people who are African and keep insulting and degrading Africa. Onli painting one story.

When you do so, it doesn't mess up Africa cuz it decreases western or other external investment etc. It diminishes Africa most because you, yes, you who do not pride in it either run abroad and don't strive to make it better, or you while at home in Africa help make people lose hope and despise it and one by one everyone says- can't beat em so join em...too bad to be fixed so I might as well join in bribing police and fueling the corruption. If I get a chance I will cut my piece of the damn cake since Africa is a 'dead rotten corpse'.

We Africans just like the founding fathers and early aMericans when aMerica was 1000xs more filthy than Nigeria is now, yet they sold aMerica well to each other and had good dreams for it, and told other stories of it till they made the other stories the main reality for a bit(Note- 'bit' because now aMerica is the most dangerous, corrupt, human standard derogatory country).

Yes, the biggest danger of just one story is the danger it brings from within and not without. Some scripturalists say- your profession is your possession or somn of sort.

It will remain cold till you see, focus on and fan the spark, even if you think it's just a tiny spark!

[Onye_Ukpabi]

I am just so proud of you Ms Adichie...I can't stop listening to this speech over and over again! May God continue to give you the strenght to carry on.

[Anike]

I like this. It's a really balanced view.

[rockofages]

I must commend the literary genius of Chimamanda, and am proud of our common Nigerian heritage. I decided to emigrate from Nigeria about 15 years ago for fear of losing my sanity due to the perennial power outage, random armed robbery attacks, brazen and unbridled corruption in virtually all facets of public and private endeavours I was involved in for 10 years after my graduation from the Law School and enrolment into the Nigerian Bar.

During those 10 years of my Nigerian working experience, I was Legal Adviser to Government, Merchant and Commercial Banks, as well as in the Private Bar.

When I desired to start a family, it dawned on me that the Nigeria in which I grew up with virtually constant power supply, free and qualitative public education up to University level had become history. My mother was a primary school teacher while my father was a civil servant, yet they were able to raise 6 children with University education with their meagre earnings. This can only be a dream in today's Nigeria. Armed robbery was a strange phenomenon during my childhood because it was exclusively engaged in by "dare-devils" like Doctor Oyenusi and Mighty Joe. Today, armed robbers are as educated and articulate as participants in this blog. Our country which was once the supplier of electric power to neighouring West African countries in addition to her citizenry, is now the leading consumer of power generating sets in the world. Our roads are in a sorry state of repair, making short-distance journeys seem like intercontinental travels. How about the unnecessary loss of lives to preventable road mishaps, shameful medicare, criminal gangsters (otherwise known as cultists). We know the rest of the story...

I have no doubt in the ability of the individual Nigerian, having come across Nigerians of distinction in practically every profession of reckon around the world. My worry is that the average "Nigerian at Home" has accepted the retardation of our 50 year-old nation as normal. The average "Nigerian Abroad" is proud of her heritage yet depressed by the sorry state of our nation. Our people deserve better, considering the wealth and talent that we are blessed with. We are among the 30 wealthiest nations in the world yet our people are among the 30 poorest in the world.

I have come to the conclusion that freedom is of the mind and not the body. We may seem to be free from colonialism and imperialism, but until the power to change our destiny lies in our hands by way of our votes, we are not free. Our nation has been held hostage by a criminal ruling cabal for decades - that is our single story.

[Bill Carson]

Originally Posted by valteena

I believe you didn't really take in the essence of her speech. Pls go and really listen to it again. I did not understand her to say or even imply like you claim that negative stories of Africa should not be told. She only said that there isn't just one story to Africa. That there is another and that, that other story of Africa should be told as well.

We all no that there are two sides to a coin and both side of the coin needs to seen for one to better appreciate its value.

As grim as we all think the issues of Africa is, good things still does come out of that continent you know. And the story of those good things needs to be told as well.

No one but you are trying to rewrite the history of Africa by eclipsing whatever positives exist probably because you're disillusioned. Telling the truth about Africa means exactly that. The truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth which includes the good, the bad, and the ugly. And that is all this gem of a lady is advocating period.

Johntina is trying to tackle a very complex presentation by Adichie without giving it a single story line. Am of the opinion that most contributors to this Interesting thread are fundamentally in agreement with Adichie. My own variation with Adichie’s take, is that she somehow expects us to go to bed sleep and wake up with a utopian idea of Nigeria being a regular country. Am afraid Nigeria is at war and the sooner we know it the better for the achievement of her ultimate goal which is an equitable Nigeria.

She is afraid of the outflow of capital Investment if all we do is shout loud single stories about Nigeria, which cynics will see as her young and naïve mind at work, In the last Seven Hundred years, Africa has been seen and used as a primary source of raw materials (Slavery, logging, etc) and the powers to be are not in a hurry to change that. In as much as we try to tell the other story of beautiful landscape, educated workforce and thriving economy the absence of critical inward soul search will render her good intentions for Nigeria a mirage.

China was a backward and defeated nation when Chairman Mao came and decided to stop China’s single story, the positive story of China came as a natural flow of waking up from slumber, the consequence of China waking up was the creation of two stories of joy & pain, with joy gradually taking over (Am not in anyway advocating mass murder as the case of China, but Nigeria solution for Nigeria).

Adichie’s presentation of her childhood is not that much different from most other childhoods in this forum growing up in Nigeria middle class household, which then was less than five percent of the population and probably much less now with the deliberate killing of the Nigeria Middleclass Structure. In any statistical analysis less than five percent of a population study is not classified as “Significant” except in health and crime related surveys. To try and sell the pleasures (lifestyle) of less than five percent of a population as the other side of the coins is not short of massaging the truth.

The positive everyday stories Adichie is keen to tell the world can only be told by individuals not the world media. The stories of everyday heroism, happy Childhood (Tom Sawyer’s type), good Samaritans etc, are personal journeys not institutionalized concept (as corruption, unfortunately is today’s everyday story of Nigeria). Ironically, Nollywood with it’s imperfections does capture occasionally that other story.

We have to be careful not to create an Obama (untouchable) out of this young beautiful, eloquent, intelligent and impressionable young lady by getting into attack mood anytime someone challenges her single story speech.

[Mmesomachukwu]

Quintessential Speech !!
Quintessential Chimamanda !!!