I chose to write about this option because I think is an interesting topic that we should be aware of, because of what’s happening in the world today. If we just base our opinions just from one side of the story, our opinions will always be flawed and inaccurate. Around school and the community I always hear about people talking about events in the Middle East and how all the people from that country are radical terrorists. But the reality is, it’s not true. Just because we hear about car bombings and religious wars in the Middle East doesn't mean that everyone from that region is a explosion-seeking maniac. I also observed how some people always try to assert their opinion about others, when it is obvious that all they are doing is just reciting racial stereotypes. If we continue to form single stories about other ethnicities, the future generations will have an altered view of other cultures and the world around them.
The problem of single story is that it just excludes facts from us that are necessary for us to better understand others. This compares to the topic that we discussed in our Socratic Circle in class. I personally think that textbooks should have the voice of minorities in it because like Adiche mentioned, if we just read about accomplishments that were done by white men, eventually we'll come to associate that only white men can have the power to triumph and succeed and that minorities can never stand up to themselves. For example if the textbooks chose to omit the accomplishments of African-Americans in civil rights, then in later generations African-Americans won't have the courage to stand up for their rights because they never learned what their ancestors did, so in their mind they will always think they are inferior to the white man. Likewise when news stations become politically biased like Fox News or msnbc people only tend to hear one side of the story which can radically alter the views towards the government, and possibly reality.
In regards to history,I believe that if we just present the history in a single-story format, a lot of history will be altered and forgotten. If the history presents a single-story on the cruel nature of early Native Americans, students like myself will come to associate that ALL Native Americans had cruel and unusual rituals early in the day, rather than focusing on the beneficial rituals they accomplished, like medicine and science.
I thought that your post was very well put together and really explained the main point that you were trying to portray. i also agree with everything you said.If we only see one side of everything then thats all we will ever know, and the other side will be non-existent. anyways nice job.
ReplyDeleteNice post. You summarized what Adichie said very well. I agree with what Adichie said about single stories and I agree with you too. Forming a one sided opinion about someone or some country based on race, religion, political view, etc. is just wrong. I felt super guilty after watching this video because even though I don’t project or tell other people the single stories I think about, I’m still subconsciously forming a single story. I liked the example in your first paragraph about the Middle East, because there is a lot of that single story going on right now. That example relates to Adichie’s example about Africa in that all the media and all the news seems to focus on in those particular places are the bad things going on or the poverty of these places. Although the news gives us updates it is another source feeding us the single story. Anyways, nice post and I like feeding your fish.
ReplyDeleteI agree with everything that you said about how a single story cannot justify everything. You pretty much summarized everything that Adichie said, but in a more brief way. I also think that some of the things that Adichie said related to what we talked about in the Socratic Circle and 1984. I really liked it when you gave that example about the white men in the textbooks, and how people who aren't mentioned in the textbooks about doing something successful might make them feel inferior to the white people. I really enjoyed reading that part of your blog post. Awesome!
ReplyDeleteSundeep, you’re just amazing as always. I agree with everything you described and listed. Not all facts in this world depend on only one story. “I personally think that the idea that she is trying to pass to her audience is not to have only one view in anything.” This is a very good conclusion of what Chimamanda Adichie was trying to say, by using lots of her personal experience. I also like the way that you used the examples that Adichie used in her life to support the theme. I have a little suggestion though, that is, you can use your own personal experience of why people should not have only one view in anything. I believe that you can find a lot of examples from your experience just like what I did. Since your essays are always this amazing, I will follow your post every single week to learn more ideas from your writing.
ReplyDeletewell first of all I feed your fish which is pretty cool haha i get distracted so easily
ReplyDeletei thought your essay was really good; it was clear and understandable. what made it so good was your examples. Examples help me on basically everything that I dont understand, I rely on examples. Like in the video, she used examples, I understood it. And with your examples I understood it even more. You did a great job.
Good job, I thought your post was well written. You brought up some of the important main points talked about, which was very good. I definately agree that we cannot leave out minority viewpoints and must be careful to not examine events from only one angle. This is critical to maintaining fairness and equality in society. We cannot forget both the accomplishments and the failures of the majorities and the minorities; however, it often very hard to include everything in a single history book. Seemingly inevitably, something that someone sees as important will be left out. I think that to solve this, everyone needs to be fair and communicate to fix these problems when they happen. I will also leave us with these questions: is there not in truth one single, universal story which encompasses all of the little ones, whether the little stories are of the majority or the minority? And, do we not all, including Adiche, you, and me, construct in our minds our own incomplete, single story?
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