Topic > Analysis by Chimamanda Adichie “The Danger of a Single Story”

People imprisoned in a cave are unwilling to seek the light because they are afraid of the unknown truth of what is outside. They wish to remain in the cave and darkness they know. However, is what they know the truth? Their perhaps false knowledge, in the name of stereotypes, is deeply rooted in their mentality since they were children. These lies become stories, in various versions and points of view. However, some stories express the absolute and undeniable truth. Nonetheless, society does not even consider the need to revisit them, perhaps in a different light. Chimamanda Adichie's "The Danger of a Single Story" broadens the lens as she takes viewers on her journey to find her original voice, filled with experiences of dealing with her own and others' assumptions. He warns that racial and socioeconomic stereotypes lead to faulty attachments to one's identity. To break down the destructive power of these biases, Adichie suggests viewers discern different perspectives and then express their own stories. In Adichie's "The Danger of a Single Story" it can be argued that these deeply held stories can become false perspectives that negatively affect not the hirer, but the hirer. Therefore, to finally be free to be who they truly are, Adichie asks people to tear off these man-made labels and replace them with their humanity. Humanity is when people share a fundamental nature of compassion and love, regardless of their external differences. It all starts with a genuine smile. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay To begin with, when using a silenced history to define a diverse society, the danger of losing oneself emerges. Adichie doesn't recognize herself in ordinary American and British books, but she realizes: "But the unintended consequence was that I didn't know that people like me could exist in literature." Adichie's recognition of her existence in a compelling world of "literature" highlights that one's prejudices devalue one's personal potential. Therefore, this message comes close to the “unintentional” conflict of humans adopting each other's identity and not embracing their own. Racism developed centuries ago, but still exists today in the hands that hold guns and bombs against those who hold posters and books. Recently, thousands of Rohingya Muslim refugees in Bangladesh are hiding along the border and are being denied return to Myanmar. These refugees fled the hardships of the Rohingya genocide, a series of atrocities committed against them by Myanmar's leader, Win Myint. These persecutions include massive killings of civilians, burning of villages, rape and sexual violence. They don't know that diversity and significant economic value go hand in hand. Similar to Adichie underestimating her power in literature, Myanmar undervalued its potential to form a diverse and economically prosperous nation. Myint writes the fate of these refugees and ignores their value as part of a nation. Why would the leader kill them when no individual is the enemy of the country? For whose good? As seen from the essay, Adichie's "The Danger of a Single Story" expresses that these ancient narratives develop artificial filters that impact not who is judged, but who judges. Human beings are not characters within a story and social prejudices are not a fictional narrative. Every individual should oppose these inaccurate perceptions of reality and understand that their own.