As Adichie notes, readers are at the mercy of the library to which they have access. They are “impressionable and vulnerable,” and if they are presented with only a single story, they are likely to believe that this is the only story. So, the unintended consequence of any book may be that it forms a reader’s only knowledge and reference point about the topics in that book. When a reader’s viewpoint is limited in this way, there is no possibility of understanding the real complexity and diversity that makes up the world.
Thus, for readers who know nothing about Africa beyond the stories told in Western literature and on Western television, they are presented only with the negative image of Africa that the West sees and presents. They do not see the side of Africa that Adichie presents in her talk: the middle class Africa with educated citizens and normal families. Single stories create stereotypes, which may be true, but are incomplete.
Based upon this analysis, Adichie argues that, as readers/viewers, we must be careful to read and view stories from all sides. This is the only way to avoid the danger of buying into a single story and failing to obtain a three-dimensional picture of the world around us.
Adichie also notes the power dynamics that are inherent in the decisions about which stories are told, which books get published, whose words are heard. Those in power get to make these decisions; and those whose stories are never told or heard are left powerless. In Achidie’s words, “stories matter.”
In addition to Adichie’s call to be better consumers of literature and media, her argument also raises another argument, one that she does not explicitly address, but that is the logical corollary of what she does say. If we want to avoid stereotypes in our world and encourage true understandings of others, we must provide diverse libraries and we must encourage everyone to delve into the stories of the others who share our planet. In this way, we can destroy the insidious power of stereotypes and begin to build empathy for those of other countries and other cultures.