Rhetorical Devices Used in Adichie's Ted-Talk "The Danger of a Single Story"

Nigerian writer Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, addresses the consequences of allowing one narrative to take over a perspective. Having noticed numerous oversimplifications in the Western portrayal of Africa, Adichie’s purpose in her speech is to criticize the phenomenon of the “single story”, when a general and one-sided perspective is formed about a complex topic. She connects to her own past experiences, describes a common misperception of Africa, and clarifies the conflicting potential of stories in order in order to EMPHASIZE that forming an opinion solely based on one viewpoint is dangerous because it emphasizes the differences between peoples, ultimately moving the audience to reconsider any “single story” that they have already accepted. First, Adichie provides examples of her own experiences with the single story phenomenon in order to show that she, too, has fallen to this mindset multiple times. For example, she recounts her reaction of seeing different perspectives of the family of the house boy, Fide. “It had not occurred to me that anybody in the family could actually make something. All I had heard about is how poor they were”. In this line, Adichie explains her surprise at seeing the different capabilities of Fide’s family, after previously only hearing about their poverty from her mother. The use of the word “actually” in the first sentence shows how her deeply engrained perception of poverty had unconsciously led her to believe that they didn’t have any other noteable attributes. Prior to that moment, the identity of Fide’s family was fixed in that manner. By showing her own experiences of falling victim to a single story, Adichie implies that she too is guilty of the same issue, which makes it easier for the audience to identify with her. In doing so, she allows the audience members to empathize, creating a more reflective, rather than accusatory, tone that makes it easier for them to try to identify their own “single story” experiences. Adichie then illustrates a global misperception of Africa to show how people with authority can shape the perspectives of populations through by spreading a “single story.” She claims, “But what is important about his (John Locke’s) writing is that it represents the beginning of a tradition of telling African stories in the West. A tradition of Sub-Saharan Africa as a place of negatives, of difference, of darkness, of people who, in the words of the wonderful poet, Rudyard Kipling, are "half devil, half child." Through this quote, Adichie is able to show the audience indirectly of the main “single story” that she often experiences and they might be capable of. Through the characterization of “half devil, half child”, she shows the two main popularized perceptions of Sub-Saharan Africa: as being evil and not as intellectually capable. In addition, Adichie makes sure to only state two specific figures, Rudyard Kipling and John Locke, as proponents of the African “single story” in her speech. However, these figures are very significant in hte realm of Western literature and writing, their opinion is trusted. This credibility to their opinion, combined with the popularity of their work, and their word choices of “darkness” and “negatives” lead to an increase in the perspective that the two groups ar different. By allowing one perspective to dominate, these narratives magnify perceived differences, illustrating exactly the danger that Adichie warns about. Lastly, Adichie highlights the dual nature of stories to accentuate the audience’s duty to seek nuanced perspectives. “Stories have been used to dispossess and to malign. But stories can also be used to empower, and to humanize.” Through the juxtaposition of “dispossession” and “empowerment”, Adichie explains how the same stories that have the ability to dispossess a group of their complexity can also provide empowerment by acknowledging shared humanity. In doing so, she reinforces that the danger of the single story is due to its ability to intensify divisions, while multiple stories diminish this separation. Furthermore, her use of the conjunction “but” to start a sentence draws attention from the audience, and gives more emphasis to the positive possibilities of what stories can do. Thus, there is a sense of responsibility given to the audience to be able to seek out more stories in order to gain more understanding in any “single story” that they might possess. This conclusion ends her speech on a hopeful note, demonstrating that the divisions created by single stories are temporary, but not the effects of nuanced and complex stories. Ultimately, Adichie aims to prevent future occurrences of the “single story” phenomenon by showcasing prevalent examples and creating an indirect call to action. More than 15 years later in the age of social media, her message still remains relevant. Today, people scroll past posts without checking to verify the information consumed on social media. Unless effort is made to actively obtain a complex viewpoint, these platforms perpetuate and increase the same discrepancies that Adichie warned about.