Hi!
Throughout history, there have been divisions among people based off of external qualities. Some of these qualities included skin color, eye color, hair type, etc. These qualities form categories based on race. In biology, there is no genetic code that defines what race one is. There are small variations in strains of DNA between the human species. Many experiments have been done to look for something that simply isn’t there. In the film, Race, the power of illusion: Episode 1, it demonstrated the stereotypes that have formed over time to distinguish African Americans and Caucasians. One of the stereotypes that stood out to me was when a white female said that many believe that African Americans have an extra muscle in their leg that helps them dominate the track and running competitions. This was interesting to me because many experiments could be done to prove this wrong and that no matter the persons skin color, all humans have the same body parts.
The stereotypes that were seen in the film can relate back to Chimamanda Adiche’s story about single stories. Often times, many single stories or stereotypes are formed off of media representation or what they have heard about. Children especially are influenced to believe these single stories because they are vulnerable and can be easily influenced. Growing up Chimamanda read many books and wrote about what she read about, which mainly included white characters. She wrote about things and people that she couldn’t relate to, but was easily influenced by what seemed right to her. Single stories form without actual evidence or relevancy. The most interesting quote that Adiche said on the Ted Talks show was that stereotypes are often created that are not necessarily true, but incomplete. This is important because many fail to realize that although some may fit a description, it can’t be applied to everyone. When we regret a single story about a person or a place, we open up the opportunities to embellish on our own knowledge and reality.