Sunday Reading Task
Three Talks by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Hello, readers! This blog is a response to the Sunday Reading Task assigned by Dr. Dilip Barad sir , Department of English, MKBU. For this Particular task, sir instructed us to watch three short talks by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. After viewing these talks, we are required to outline the learning outcomes. In this blog, I will reflect on my understanding of these three talks. Before delving into the talks, let's begin with an introduction to Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie.
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Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie born on 15th September, 1977 is a Nigerian writer whose works include Novel , short stories and Non - Fiction. She was described in the Times Literary Supplement as " the most Prominent " of a "Procession of Critically acclaimed Young authors " of Nigerian Fiction who are attracting a wider audience, Particularly in her second home , the United states. Adichie has written several novels, among which "Purple Hibiscus" (2003) , "Half of a Yellow sun" (2006) , Americanah (2013) , Short - stories, the book length essays 'We should all be Feminists' (2014) and Dear ljeawele , or a Feminist Manifesto in Fifteen suggestions (2017) , and a Memoir, 'Notes on Grief' (2021).
Now , Let us discuss about the three talks one by one :-
□ Talk 1 :- ' The Dangers of a Single Story' :-
In this talk, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie discussed the importance of recognizing and challenging the stereotypes and narrow Perspectives that can arise from hearing only one narrative about a group of people or a Particular place. She shared her personal anecdotes and experiences to illustrate how the limited narratives we encounter can lead to misunderstandings, Prejudice and oversimplified views of others. She reflects on her younger self and talked about her Personal experiences. She was an early reader, and also an early writer.
"She wrote exactly the kinds of stories she was reading. "
Things changed when she discovered African books. Because of the writers like - Chinua Achebe and Camara Laye, she went through a Mental shift in her perception of literature.
"She started to write about things she recognized."
She shared that African writers saved her from having a single story of what books are. She came from a conventional , middle class Nigerian family. Her father was a Professor and mother was an administrator. As per the norm they had live in domestic help, who would often come from nearby rural villages. When Adichie turned Eight, they got a new houseboy named - Fide. Adichie's mother talked about him and his Family's poverty. She shared in her talk that whenever she didn't finish her Food, Her mother states that ;
"Finish Your Food! Don't you know? People like Fide's family have nothing."
So, she felt enormous pity for Fide's family. One Saturday, she visited to Fide's village and his mother showed a beautifully Patterned basket made of dyed raffia that his brother had made. Adichie illustrates that ;
"Their Poverty was her single story of them."
It limits our way of looking and understanding. But, there is always something that we need to look upon. Another experience of her, when she left Nigeria and to go to University in the United states. When she was 19, Her American roommate was shocked and Surprised upon hearing her speak English so well. That is how her roommate had a single story of Africa. She stated that;
"She would see Africans in the same way that , she as a child had seen Fide's family."
Adichie finds that the single story of Africa ultimately comes from western literature. A few years ago she visited Mexico from the U.S. There were debates going about Immigration. Suddenly she realised that she has been so immersed in the media coverage of Mexicans. She had bought into the single story of Mexicans. It is impossible to talk about the single story without talking about Power. The Concept of nkali from Igbo word.
"It is a noun that loosely translates to "be greater than another."
Power is the ability not just to tell the story of an another Person but to make it definitive story of that Person. The Palestinian Poet Mourid Barghouti writes ; "If you want to dispossess a People , the Simplest way to do it is to tell their story and to start with Secondly."
Further In her talk about The Dangers of a Single Story , she states that ;
" The Single Story Creates Stereotypes ,and the Problem with Stereotypes is not that they are Untrue, but that they are incomplete. They make one story become the only story."
She even shared her Personal Journey and experiences also. According to her, Stories can break the dignity of a People, but stories can also repair the broken dignity. She Concluded her talk with this thought ;
"When we rejected the single story, when we realize that there is never a single story about any Place , we regain a kind of Paradise."
□ Learning Outcome :-
1. Adichie's talk helps us understand that relying on a single story or Stereotype about a group of people can be misleading and unfair.
2. Adichie Promotes critical thinking by urging us to question the narratives we encounter and not accept them Blindly.
3. This talk by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie teaches us to avoid making hasty Judgemens or Prejudiced Opinions about others based on limited Information.
4. Adichie's talk reminds us of our responsibility as individuals to be mindful of the stories we tell and Consume.
□ Talk 2 :- 'We should all be Feminists :-'
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's "We Should All Be Feminists" is an essay that advocates for gender equality. In it, she highlights the importance of recognizing and challenging the societal norms and stereotypes that perpetuate gender discrimination. Adichie argues that feminism is not just a movement for women but a necessary and beneficial perspective for all of society. Her eloquent and thought-provoking talk encourages individuals to actively support gender equality and question the biases that hold us back from achieving it. In this talk she remembered her childhood friend Okuloma and Okuloma was that Person with whom she Could argue with, laugh with and truly talk to. He was also the first Person to call Adichie a Feminist. In one of the argument between both of them Okuloma looked at her and said that ;
"You know, You are a Feminist."
At that time Adichie did not know exactly the meaning of the word Feminist meant and she did not want Okuloma to know that she did not know. So, she looked up for the word Feminist in the dictionary. Further, she talked that Some Years later she wrote a novel , about a man who among the other things beats his wife and whose story ends doesn't very well. While Adichie was Promoting her novel in Nigeria , a Journalist wanted to advance her and his advise was ; "Feminists are women who are unhappy because they cannot find husbands."
So, she decided to call herself 'A happy Feminist'.
Gender matters everywhere in the world. A World of happier men and happier women who are true to themselves. We must raise our Sons and daughters differently. It is the belief that only man can hold a Power. Even In today's time we can see gender based discrimination. She questioned that ;
"Why do we teach girls to aspire marriage and we don't teach boys the same?"
We are all social beings and we internalize ideas from our Socialization. The Problem with gender is that, " It Prescribes how we should be rather than recognizing how we are. "
If we take cooking as an example, we know that women in general are more likely to do the household work than men,But the question arises that why is that So? It shows gender discrimination. Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie illustrates that ;
"People's attitude and mindsets are very important that what we believe and what we value about gender."
Cooking is a very useful skills for boys to have. So, From the beggining Parents should teach the same for their son and daughter. She also defends the term Feminist. In Closing , she Concludes the talk by saying that ;
"Yes, there is a Problem with gender as it is today we must Fix it, we must do better. All of us, women and men,must do better.
□ Learning Outcome :-
1. Feminism means equality. It is about treating men and women the same, giving them the same chance and respect.
2. Do not believe in Stereotypes. It is nothing like that men and Women have to act in Certain ways because of their gender.
3. Have Conversations about gender equality and Feminism to make the world a better Place for everyone.
4. Finally, we should all work to make the world fair for everyone , regardless to their gender.
□ Talk 3 :- Harvard University - Importance of Truth in Post Truth era :-
In the Year 2018 , Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie was invited as a guest Speaker at Harvard University. where she delivered a Speech about the power of living in truth. She Spoke about the value of truth. She first began the talk with the Interpretation of her name, 'Chimamanda' which means Personal Spirit which can never be broken. Many People finds difficulty in Pronounce her name. She Shared one Personal anecdote that once she went in an event and there the anchor mispronounced her name as - Chimichanga. The Point of this story is Context matters. She stated that ;
"Always remember Context and never disregard intent."
The title of her address is between two major Points :- "Do not lie or Don't lie too often." She gave examples about her height and stuck in traffic. We did not have the Courage to embrace the truth. She Puts one question that ;
"Should we call a lie a lie when is a lie a lie ?"
She Spoke about the importance of truth. Telling the truth is an act of Courage. " It is hard to tell ourselves the truth about our failures, fragilities , uncertainties . It is hard to tell that we haven't done our best , which we could have. "
She had learned from literature that we humans are flawed , all of us are flawed. We don't need to be Perfect. We all need to be right and Just. Be Courageous enough to telling the truth always. Moreover Be Courageous enough to accept that life is messy, our life will not perfectly match our Ideology. Be Courageous enough to say that " I don't know." She stated that ;
It takes Courage to admit truth which we do not know."
She illustrates that if you feel dissatisfaction, nurture that dissatisfaction, get into the System and change the system. Everybody's story is potentially Universal. It is Just need to be told well. Always be Truthful.
Thanks for Visiting..✨️😊
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