A521.2.3.RB_BorutyAlan_The Danger of a Single Story

The Danger of a Single Story

Chimamanda Adichie captivated me from the first word and held me until her final word.  In between those she used her words in a way that created an eighteen minute ‘aha’ moment for me.  I find it interesting that I have known the word stereotype for as long as I can remember, but this is the first time I have been told the single-story concept.  This concept goes a long way to explain where stereotypes originate.  Of course I have been told not to judge a book by its cover, do not judge until you know everything and then do not judge, and I have even been reminded that there is always more than one side to every story.  But, at the risk of proving my own ignorance, I always interpreted those guidelines as moral restrictions on judgement…sins.  Then from out of nowhere and some 45 years later, a young woman from Nigeria that I have never heard of before provides me with an academic theory that could at least begin to explain the why of stereotyping, hatred, and full-on racism that plagues American communities from coast to coast today.  That academic theory is called the single story.  I am not trying to minimize these issues at all; they are extremely complex.  However, people are dying horrific deaths in alarming numbers at the hands of people who may not truly understand why they are doing it.  In this case, ‘because it has always been this way’ is even worse than it normally is in justifying inappropriate/criminal behavior.  This ends my rant on the sub-topic, back to Ms. Adichie’s presentation on the single story.

Anything that can make a person question their equality in humanity, I will concede is powerful.  Adichie (2009) introduces power as inseparable to the discussion of the single story.  She describes power using an Igbo word ‘ntali’ or “to be greater than another” and explains that principle of ntali defines the stories told in the same way it defines the economic and political worlds.  Those with power are greater than others and are therefore inherently better qualified to control those things.  Having control of the story gives those with power the ability to definitively tell another person’s story which gives them fundamental control of who that person is or is not.  The consequence of this single story is that it robs people of their dignity and ultimately, their humanity (Adichie, 2009).

The single stories that Ms. Adichie discusses are all focused on people (individuals and groups) and /or places and things.  We are of course focused on the organizational springboard story in Module two.  In Module 1, we discussed the true power of the right story told the right way.  In this module we specifically focused on the eight elements of a good springboard story.  Of the eight elements, Denning (2011) singled out having a clear and worthwhile change idea, authentically true, positive tone, and told in a minimalist fashion as the four most important elements to get right in a springboard story.  It did not occur to me earlier and the reading did not specify, but these specific elements would indirectly serve to reduce the power of the storyteller and the story to cause harm to anyone or anything in the story.  Although Ms. Adichie’s presentation was not focused on an organizational audience, it did not contradict any of the material that Module 2 presented.  I did question how the springboard story is created.  The organizational springboard story is essentially a single story but only by design, not effect.  The difference is in the four elements Denning considers to be the most important.  I believe if those elements are properly utilized, they will protect the springboard story from becoming a single story.

Chimamanda Adichie told this difficult story brilliantly.  It was difficult because it was the story of stereotyping, prejudice, racism, repression and intolerance.  These are behaviors of ignorance fueled by the single story.  It was brilliant because she told her story without a hint of resentment, anger, or racism in her words or her tone.  She chose instead to educate her audience on the importance of the story, warn us of the dangers of the single story and encourage us not to base our conclusions on single story information.

Throughout the presentation Adichie (2009) remained faithful to stories stating “Stories matter.  Many stories matter.  Stories have been used to dispossess and to malign, but stories can also be used to empower and to humanize.  Stories can break the dignity of a people, but stories can also repair that broken dignity” (min. 17:35).

 ~Pete

References:

Adichi C. N., (2009). The danger of a single story. TED Global (July 2009). Retrieved from: http://www.ted.com/talks/chimamanda_adichie_the_danger_of_a_single_story?language=en (2016 August, 19)

Denning, S. (2011). The Leader's Guide to Storytelling: Mastering the Art and Discipline of Business Narrative. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.