Letter from Birmingham Jail and Danger of a Single Story

[mylittlefrog1218]

Letter from Birmingham Jail and Adichie' Ted talk happened in different background. King's letter which was in 1963 and it was during the time that people was seeking for peace. In the letter, we saw lots of injustice to the black people. The whole letter is about how King was fighting human rights for colored people. They wanted equal rights as the white, they wanted respect, they wanted their children could be treated the same, etc. It showed civil contradiction. However, Adichie's speech happened in a peaceful time and she wants to tell everybody that judging a person or a country not by a single story. She uses her own story for an example showing how people think about Africa by just only knowing one single thing. She is trying to show us what a real Africa is and everybody should experience before judging.

Discussion question: sometimes when people has limited judgment, for example how Adichie's American roommate thinks of Africa, do you think it is also necessary for Africa to be more open to introduce themselves to the world so that people will know them more?

Comments

[nl1234]

That could be very possible if they don't want to be pictured that way they should rise up above all of the stereotypes and change their image. Both sides will have to meet each other half way. One by creating the image and the other understanding the image of Africa.

Discussion Question

[danimal]

Interesting question "do I think that it is also necessary for Africa to be more open to introduce themselves to the world so that people will know them more". I believe that ignorance is something that everyone has encountered at some point in their life as either a victim or an ignorant. While I believe that the more we understand about different cultures/behaviors the more accepting we are as we start to see these as norms. However, I don't think that it is the responsibility of any one person or race, especially those less privileged to try and educate those with closed views. I believe that this is something we all need to do as global community.