ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie - Novelist
Inspired by Nigerian history and tragedies all but forgotten by recent generations of westerners, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s novels and stories are jewels in the crown of diasporan literature.

Why you should listen

In Nigeria, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's novel Half of a Yellow Sun has helped inspire new, cross-generational communication about the Biafran war. In this and in her other works, she seeks to instill dignity into the finest details of each character, whether poor, middle class or rich, exposing along the way the deep scars of colonialism in the African landscape.

Adichie's newest book, The Thing Around Your Neck, is a brilliant collection of stories about Nigerians struggling to cope with a corrupted context in their home country, and about the Nigerian immigrant experience.

Adichie builds on the literary tradition of Igbo literary giant Chinua Achebe—and when she found out that Achebe liked Half of a Yellow Sun, she says she cried for a whole day. What he said about her rings true: “We do not usually associate wisdom with beginners, but here is a new writer endowed with the gift of ancient storytellers.”

(Photo: Wani Olatunde) 

More profile about the speaker
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie | Speaker | TED.com
TEDGlobal 2009

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie: The danger of a single story

奇麻曼达-阿迪契 (Chimamanda Adichie):单一故事的危险性

Filmed:
21,248,547 views

我们的生活,我们的文化,往往是不同故事的交集。小说家Chimamanda Adichie讲述了一个她寻求自己真实的文化嗓音的故事,并且告诫我们:如果我们只去聆听关于一个人、一个国家的单一故事,将会导致非常严重的误解。
- Novelist
Inspired by Nigerian history and tragedies all but forgotten by recent generations of westerners, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s novels and stories are jewels in the crown of diasporan literature. Full bio

Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.

00:12
I'm a storyteller说故事的人.
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我是个说书之人。
00:14
And I would like to tell you a few少数 personal个人 stories故事
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在这里,我想和大家分享一些我本人的故事,
00:17
about what I like to call "the danger危险 of the single story故事."
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一些关于所谓的“单一故事的危险性”的经历。
00:22
I grew成长 up on a university大学 campus校园 in eastern Nigeria尼日利亚.
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我成长在尼日利亚东部的一所大学校园里。
00:26
My mother母亲 says that I started开始 reading at the age年龄 of two,
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我母亲常说我从两岁起就开始读书,
00:29
although虽然 I think four is probably大概 close to the truth真相.
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不过我觉得“四岁起”比较接近事实。
00:34
So I was an early reader读者, and what I read
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所以我从小就开始读书,
00:36
were British英国的 and American美国 children's儿童 books图书.
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读的是英国和美国的儿童书籍。
00:39
I was also an early writer作家,
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我也是从小就开始写作。
00:42
and when I began开始 to write, at about the age年龄 of seven,
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当我在七岁那年
00:46
stories故事 in pencil铅笔 with crayon蜡笔 illustrations插图
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开始强迫我可怜的母亲阅读我用铅笔写好的故事
00:48
that my poor较差的 mother母亲 was obligated责任 to read,
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外加上蜡笔描绘的插图时,
00:51
I wrote exactly究竟 the kinds of stories故事 I was reading:
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我所写的故事正如我所读到的故事那般。
00:55
All my characters人物 were white白色 and blue-eyed蓝眼,
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我故事里的人物们都是白皮肤、蓝眼睛的,
01:00
they played发挥 in the snow,
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常在雪中嬉戏,
01:02
they ate apples苹果,
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吃着苹果。
01:04
and they talked a lot about the weather天气,
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(笑声)
01:06
how lovely可爱 it was
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而且他们经常讨论天气,
01:08
that the sun太阳 had come out.
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讨论太阳出来时,一切都多么美好。
01:10
(Laughter笑声)
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(笑声)
01:12
Now, this despite尽管 the fact事实 that I lived生活 in Nigeria尼日利亚.
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我一直写着这样故事,虽然说我当时住在尼日利亚,
01:15
I had never been outside Nigeria尼日利亚.
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并且从来没有出过国。
01:19
We didn't have snow, we ate mangoes芒果,
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虽然说我们从来没见过雪;虽然说我们实际上只能吃到芒果;
01:22
and we never talked about the weather天气,
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虽然说我们从不讨论天气
01:24
because there was no need to.
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因为根本没这个必要。
01:26
My characters人物 also drank a lot of ginger生姜 beer啤酒
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我故事里的人物们也常喝姜汁啤酒,
01:29
because the characters人物 in the British英国的 books图书 I read
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因为我所读的那些英国书中的人物们
01:31
drank ginger生姜 beer啤酒.
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常喝姜汁啤酒,
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Never mind心神 that I had no idea理念 what ginger生姜 beer啤酒 was.
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虽然说我当时完全不知道姜汁啤酒是什么东西。
01:36
(Laughter笑声)
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(笑声)
01:37
And for many许多 years年份 afterwards之后, I would have a desperate殊死 desire欲望
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事隔多年,我一直都怀揣着一个深切的渴望
01:40
to taste味道 ginger生姜 beer啤酒.
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想尝尝姜汁啤酒的味道。
01:42
But that is another另一个 story故事.
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不过这要另当别论了。
01:44
What this demonstrates演示, I think,
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这一切所表明的
01:46
is how impressionable易受 and vulnerable弱势 we are
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正是在一个个的故事面前
01:49
in the face面对 of a story故事,
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我们是何等得脆弱,何等得易受影响,
01:51
particularly尤其 as children孩子.
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尤其当我们还是孩子的时候。
01:53
Because all I had read were books图书
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因为我当时读的所有书中
01:55
in which哪一个 characters人物 were foreign国外,
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只有外国人物,
01:57
I had become成为 convinced相信 that books图书
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我因而坚信:书要想被称为书,
01:59
by their very nature性质 had to have foreigners外国人 in them
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就必须有外国人在里面,
02:02
and had to be about things with which哪一个
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就必须是关于
02:04
I could not personally亲自 identify鉴定.
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我无法亲身体验的事情。
02:07
Things changed when I discovered发现 African非洲人 books图书.
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而这一切都在我接触了非洲书籍之后发生了改变。
02:11
There weren't many许多 of them available可得到, and they weren't
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当时非洲书并不多,
02:13
quite相当 as easy简单 to find as the foreign国外 books图书.
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而且它们也不像国外书籍那样好找。
02:15
But because of writers作家 like ChinuaChinua Achebe阿契贝 and Camara卡马拉 LayeLaye的
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不过因为Chinua Achebe和Camara Laye之类的作家,
02:19
I went through通过 a mental心理 shift转移 in my perception知觉
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我思维中对于文学的概念
02:21
of literature文学.
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产生了质的改变。
02:23
I realized实现 that people like me,
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我意识到像我这样的人──
02:25
girls女孩 with skin皮肤 the color颜色 of chocolate巧克力,
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有着巧克力般的肤色
02:27
whose谁的 kinky hair头发 could not form形成 ponytails马尾辫,
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和永远无法梳成马尾辫的蜷曲头发的女孩子们──
02:30
could also exist存在 in literature文学.
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也可以出现在文学作品中的。
02:32
I started开始 to write about things I recognized认可.
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我开始撰写我所熟知的事物。
02:36
Now, I loved喜爱 those American美国 and British英国的 books图书 I read.
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但这并不是说我不喜爱那些美国和英国书籍,
02:40
They stirred搅动 my imagination想像力. They opened打开 up new worlds世界 for me.
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恰恰相反,那些书籍激发了我的想象力,为我开启了新的世界。
02:44
But the unintended意外 consequence后果
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但随之而来的后果就是
02:46
was that I did not know that people like me
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我不知道原来像我这样的人
02:48
could exist存在 in literature文学.
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也是可以存在于文学作品之中的。
02:50
So what the discovery发现 of African非洲人 writers作家 did for me was this:
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而与非洲作家的结缘
02:54
It saved保存 me from having a single story故事
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则是将我从对于书籍的单一故事(认识)中
02:57
of what books图书 are.
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拯救了出来。
02:59
I come from a conventional常规, middle-class中产阶级 Nigerian尼日利亚 family家庭.
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我来自一个传统的尼日利亚中产家庭。
03:02
My father父亲 was a professor教授.
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我的父亲是一名教授,
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My mother母亲 was an administrator管理员.
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我的母亲是一名大学管理员。
03:07
And so we had, as was the norm规范,
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因此我们和很多其他家庭一样
03:10
live-in住在 domestic国内 help, who would often经常 come from nearby附近 rural乡村 villages村庄.
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都会从附近的村庄中雇佣一些帮手来打理家事。
03:15
So the year I turned转身 eight we got a new house boy男孩.
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在我八岁那一年,我们家招来了一位新的男仆。
03:19
His name名称 was Fide善意.
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他的名字叫做Fide。
03:21
The only thing my mother母亲 told us about him
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我父亲只告诉我们说,
03:24
was that his family家庭 was very poor较差的.
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Fide是来自一个非常穷苦的家庭。
03:27
My mother母亲 sent发送 yams山药 and rice白饭,
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我的母亲会时不时地将山芋、大米
03:29
and our old clothes衣服, to his family家庭.
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还有我们穿旧的衣服送到他的家里。
03:32
And when I didn't finish my dinner晚餐 my mother母亲 would say,
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每当我剩下晚饭的时候,我的母亲就会说:
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"Finish your food餐饮! Don't you know? People like Fide's善意的 family家庭 have nothing."
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“吃干净你的食物!难道你不知道嘛?像Fide家这样的人可是一无所有的。”
03:39
So I felt enormous巨大 pity可怜 for Fide's善意的 family家庭.
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因此我对Fide的家人充满了怜悯。
03:43
Then one Saturday星期六 we went to his village to visit访问,
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后来的一个星期六,我们去Fide的村庄拜访,
03:46
and his mother母亲 showed显示 us a beautifully精美 patterned图案 basket
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她的母亲向我们展示了一个精美别致的草篮──
03:50
made制作 of dyed染色 raffia拉菲草 that his brother哥哥 had made制作.
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是Fide的哥哥用染过色的酒椰叶编织的。
03:53
I was startled.
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我当时完全被震惊了。
03:55
It had not occurred发生 to me that anybody任何人 in his family家庭
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我从来没有想过Fide的家人
03:58
could actually其实 make something.
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居然有亲手制造东西的才能。
04:01
All I had heard听说 about them was how poor较差的 they were,
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在那之前,我对Fide家唯一的了解就是他们是何等的穷苦,
04:04
so that it had become成为 impossible不可能 for me to see them
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正因为如此,他们在我脑中的印象
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as anything else其他 but poor较差的.
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只是一个字──“穷”。
04:09
Their poverty贫穷 was my single story故事 of them.
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他们的贫穷是我赐予他们的单一故事。
04:13
Years年份 later后来, I thought about this when I left Nigeria尼日利亚
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多年之后,在我离开尼日利亚前往美国读大学的时候,
04:15
to go to university大学 in the United联合的 States状态.
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我又想到了这件事。
04:18
I was 19.
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我那时19岁。
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My American美国 roommate室友 was shocked吃惊 by me.
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我的美国室友当时完全对我感到十分惊讶了。
04:24
She asked where I had learned学到了 to speak说话 English英语 so well,
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她问我是从哪里学得讲一口如此流利的英语,
04:27
and was confused困惑 when I said that Nigeria尼日利亚
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而当我告知她尼日利亚刚巧是以英语作为官方语言的时候,
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happened发生 to have English英语 as its official官方 language语言.
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她的脸上则是写满了茫然。
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She asked if she could listen to what she called my "tribal部落的 music音乐,"
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她问我是否可以给她听听她所谓的“部落音乐”。
04:38
and was consequently所以 very disappointed失望
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可想而知,当我拿出玛丽亚凯莉的磁带时,
04:40
when I produced生成 my tape胶带 of Mariah玛丽亚 Carey凯里.
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她是何等的失望。
04:42
(Laughter笑声)
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(笑声)
04:45
She assumed假定 that I did not know how
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她断定我不知道如何使用
04:47
to use a stove火炉.
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电炉。
04:50
What struck来袭 me was this: She had felt sorry for me
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我猛然意识到:在她见到我之间,
04:52
even before she saw me.
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她就已经对我充满了怜悯之心。
04:54
Her default默认 position位置 toward me, as an African非洲人,
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她对我这个非洲人的预设心态
04:58
was a kind of patronizing光顾, well-meaning善意 pity可怜.
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是一种充满施恩与好意的怜悯之情。
05:02
My roommate室友 had a single story故事 of Africa非洲:
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我那位室友的脑中有一个关与非洲的单一故事。
05:05
a single story故事 of catastrophe灾难.
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一个充满了灾难的单一故事。
05:08
In this single story故事 there was no possibility可能性
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在这个单一故事中,非洲人是完全没有可能
05:10
of Africans非洲人 being存在 similar类似 to her in any way,
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在任何方面和她有所相似的;
05:14
no possibility可能性 of feelings情怀 more complex复杂 than pity可怜,
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没有可能接受到比怜悯更复杂的感情;
05:17
no possibility可能性 of a connection连接 as human人的 equals等于.
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没有可能以一个平等的人类的身份与她沟通。
05:21
I must必须 say that before I went to the U.S. I didn't
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我不得不强调,在我前往美国之前,
05:23
consciously自觉 identify鉴定 as African非洲人.
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我从来没有有意识地把自己当作个非洲人。
05:26
But in the U.S. whenever每当 Africa非洲 came来了 up people turned转身 to me.
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但在美国的时候,每当人们提到“非洲”时,大家都回转向我,
05:29
Never mind心神 that I knew知道 nothing about places地方 like Namibia纳米比亚.
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虽然说我对纳米比亚之类的地方一无所知。
05:33
But I did come to embrace拥抱 this new identity身分,
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但我渐渐的开始接受这个新的身份。
05:35
and in many许多 ways方法 I think of myself now as African非洲人.
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现在很多时候我都是把自己当作一个非洲人来看待。
05:38
Although虽然 I still get quite相当 irritable急躁 when
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不过当人们把非洲当作一个国家来讨论的时候,
05:40
Africa非洲 is referred简称 to as a country国家,
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我还是觉得挺反感的。
05:42
the most recent最近 example being存在 my otherwise除此以外 wonderful精彩 flight飞行
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最近的一次例子就发生在两天前,
05:46
from Lagos拉各斯 two days ago, in which哪一个
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我从拉各斯搭乘航班。旅程原本相当愉快,
05:48
there was an announcement公告 on the Virgin处女 flight飞行
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直到广播里开始介绍在“印度、非洲以及其他国家”
05:50
about the charity慈善机构 work in "India印度, Africa非洲 and other countries国家."
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所进行的慈善事业。
05:55
(Laughter笑声)
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(笑声)
05:56
So after I had spent花费 some years年份 in the U.S. as an African非洲人,
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当我以一名非洲人的身份在美国度过几年之后,
06:00
I began开始 to understand理解 my roommate's室友的 response响应 to me.
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我开始理解我那位室友当时对我的反应。
06:04
If I had not grown长大的 up in Nigeria尼日利亚, and if all I knew知道 about Africa非洲
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如果我不是在尼日利亚长大,如果我对非洲的一切认识
06:07
were from popular流行 images图片,
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都来自于大众流行的影像,
06:09
I too would think that Africa非洲 was a place地点 of
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我相信我眼中的非洲也同样是充满了
06:12
beautiful美丽 landscapes景观, beautiful美丽 animals动物,
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美丽的地貌、美丽的动物、
06:16
and incomprehensible费解的 people,
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以及一群难以理解的人们
06:18
fighting战斗 senseless无意义 wars战争, dying垂死 of poverty贫穷 and AIDS艾滋病,
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进行着毫无意义的战争、死于艾滋和贫穷、
06:21
unable无法 to speak说话 for themselves他们自己
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无法为自己辩护
06:24
and waiting等候 to be saved保存
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并且等待着一位慈悲的、
06:26
by a kind, white白色 foreigner外国人.
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白种的外国人的救赎。
06:29
I would see Africans非洲人 in the same相同 way that I,
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我看待非洲的方式将会和我儿时
06:31
as a child儿童, had seen看到 Fide's善意的 family家庭.
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看待Fide一家的方式是一样的。
06:35
This single story故事 of Africa非洲 ultimately最终 comes, I think, from Western西 literature文学.
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我认为,关于非洲的这个单一故事从根本上来自于西方的文学。
06:39
Now, here is a quote引用 from
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这是来自伦敦商人John Locke的一段话。
06:41
the writing写作 of a London伦敦 merchant商人 called John约翰 Locke洛克,
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他在1561年的时候
06:44
who sailed航行 to west西 Africa非洲 in 1561
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曾游历非洲西部,
06:47
and kept不停 a fascinating迷人 account帐户 of his voyage航程.
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并且为他的航行做了番很有趣的记录。
06:52
After referring to the black黑色 Africans非洲人
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他先是把黑色的非洲人称为
06:54
as "beasts兽类 who have no houses房屋,"
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“没有房子的野兽”,
06:56
he writes, "They are also people without heads,
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随后又写到:“他们也是一群无头脑的人,
07:00
having their mouth and eyes眼睛 in their breasts乳房."
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他们的嘴和眼睛都长在了他们的胸口上。”
07:05
Now, I've laughed笑了 every一切 time I've read this.
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我每次读到这一段的时候,都不禁大笑起来。
07:07
And one must必须 admire欣赏 the imagination想像力 of John约翰 Locke洛克.
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John Locke的想象力真的是让人敬佩。
07:11
But what is important重要 about his writing写作 is that
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但关于他这段作品极其重要的一点是
07:13
it represents代表 the beginning开始
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它昭示着西方社会讲述非洲故事
07:15
of a tradition传统 of telling告诉 African非洲人 stories故事 in the West西:
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的一个传统。
07:18
A tradition传统 of Sub-Saharan撒哈拉以南 Africa非洲 as a place地点 of negatives底片,
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在这个传统中,撒哈拉以南的非洲充满了消极、
07:21
of difference区别, of darkness黑暗,
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差异以及黑暗,
07:23
of people who, in the words of the wonderful精彩 poet诗人
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是伟大的诗人Rudyard Kipling笔下
07:27
Rudyard拉迪亚德 Kipling吉卜林,
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所形容的“半恶魔、半孩童”
07:29
are "half devil魔鬼, half child儿童."
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的奇异人种。
07:32
And so I began开始 to realize实现 that my American美国 roommate室友
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正因此,我开始意识到我的那位美国室友
07:35
must必须 have throughout始终 her life
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一定在她成长的过程中
07:37
seen看到 and heard听说 different不同 versions版本
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看过并且听过关于这个单一故事的
07:39
of this single story故事,
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不同版本,
07:41
as had a professor教授,
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就如同之前一位
07:43
who once一旦 told me that my novel小说 was not "authentically真正的 African非洲人."
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曾经批判我的小说缺乏“真实的非洲感”的教授一样。
07:48
Now, I was quite相当 willing愿意 to contend抗衡 that there were a number of things
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话说我倒是甘愿承认我的小说
07:50
wrong错误 with the novel小说,
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有几处写的不好的地方,
07:52
that it had failed失败 in a number of places地方,
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有几处败笔。
07:56
but I had not quite相当 imagined想象 that it had failed失败
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但我很难相像我的小说
07:58
at achieving实现 something called African非洲人 authenticity真伪.
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竟然会缺乏“真实的非洲感”。
08:01
In fact事实 I did not know what
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事实上,我甚至不知道“真实的非洲感”
08:03
African非洲人 authenticity真伪 was.
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到底是个什么东西。
08:06
The professor教授 told me that my characters人物
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那位教授跟我说我书中的人物
08:08
were too much like him,
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都和他太接近了,
08:10
an educated博学 and middle-class中产阶级 man.
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都是受过教育的中产人物。
08:12
My characters人物 drove开车 cars汽车.
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我的人物会开车。
08:14
They were not starving挨饿.
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他们没有受到饥饿的困扰。
08:17
Therefore因此 they were not authentically真正的 African非洲人.
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正因此,他们缺少了真实的非洲感。
08:21
But I must必须 quickly很快 add that I too am just as guilty有罪
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我在这里不得不指出,我本人
08:24
in the question of the single story故事.
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也常常被单一的故事蒙蔽双眼。
08:27
A few少数 years年份 ago, I visited参观 Mexico墨西哥 from the U.S.
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几年前,我从美国探访墨西哥。
08:31
The political政治 climate气候 in the U.S. at the time was tense紧张,
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当时美国的政治气候比较紧张。
08:33
and there were debates辩论 going on about immigration移民.
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关于移民的辩论一直在进行着。
08:37
And, as often经常 happens发生 in America美国,
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而在美国,“移民”和“墨西哥人”
08:39
immigration移民 became成为 synonymous代名词 with Mexicans墨西哥人.
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常常被当作同义词来使用。
08:42
There were endless无穷 stories故事 of Mexicans墨西哥人
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关于墨西哥人的故事是源源不绝,
08:44
as people who were
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讲的都是
08:46
fleecing掏空 the healthcare卫生保健 system系统,
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欺诈医疗系统、
08:48
sneaking鬼鬼祟祟 across横过 the border边境,
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偷渡边境、
08:50
being存在 arrested被捕 at the border边境, that sort分类 of thing.
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在边境被捕之类的事情。
08:54
I remember记得 walking步行 around on my first day in Guadalajara瓜达拉哈拉,
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我还记得当我到达瓜达拉哈拉(墨西哥西部一城市)的第一天,
08:58
watching观看 the people going to work,
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看着人们前往工作,
09:00
rolling压延 up tortillas玉米饼 in the marketplace市井,
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在市集上吃着墨西哥卷、
09:02
smoking抽烟, laughing.
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抽着烟、大笑着。
09:05
I remember记得 first feeling感觉 slight轻微 surprise.
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我记得我刚看到这一切时是何等的惊讶,
09:08
And then I was overwhelmed不堪重负 with shame耻辱.
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但随后我的心中便充满了羞耻感。
09:11
I realized实现 that I had been so immersed沉浸
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我意识到我当时完全被沉浸在
09:14
in the media媒体 coverage覆盖 of Mexicans墨西哥人
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媒体上关于墨西哥人的报道,
09:16
that they had become成为 one thing in my mind心神,
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以致于他们在我的脑中幻化成一个单一的个体──
09:18
the abject卑劣 immigrant移民.
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卑贱的移民。
09:21
I had bought into the single story故事 of Mexicans墨西哥人
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我完全相信了关于墨西哥人的单一故事,
09:23
and I could not have been more ashamed羞愧 of myself.
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对此我感到无比的羞愧。
09:26
So that is how to create创建 a single story故事,
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这就是创造单一故事的经过,
09:28
show显示 a people as one thing,
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将一群人一遍又一遍地
09:31
as only one thing,
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呈现为一个事物,并且只是一个事物,
09:33
over and over again,
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时间久了
09:35
and that is what they become成为.
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他们就变成了那个食物。
09:38
It is impossible不可能 to talk about the single story故事
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而说到单一的故事,
09:40
without talking about power功率.
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就自然而然地要讲到权力这个问题。
09:43
There is a word, an Igbo伊博 word,
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每当我想到这个世界的权力结构的时候,
09:45
that I think about whenever每当 I think about
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我都会想起一个伊博语中的单词,
09:47
the power功率 structures结构 of the world世界, and it is "nkalinkali."
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叫做“nkali”。
09:50
It's a noun名词 that loosely松弛地 translates转换
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它是一个名词,可以在大意上被翻译成
09:52
to "to be greater更大 than another另一个."
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“比另一个人强大”。
09:55
Like our economic经济 and political政治 worlds世界,
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就如同我们的经济和政治界一样,
09:58
stories故事 too are defined定义
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我们所讲的故事也是建立在
10:00
by the principle原理 of nkalinkali:
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nkali的原则上的。
10:03
How they are told, who tells告诉 them,
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这些故事是怎样被讲述的、由谁来讲述、
10:05
when they're told, how many许多 stories故事 are told,
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何时被讲述、有多少故事被讲述,
10:08
are really dependent依赖的 on power功率.
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这一切都取决于权力。
10:12
Power功率 is the ability能力 not just to tell the story故事 of another另一个 person,
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所谓的权力,不单单是讲述一个关于别人的故事的能力,
10:15
but to make it the definitive明确 story故事 of that person.
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而是将那个故事转变为关于那个人的决定性故事。
10:19
The Palestinian巴勒斯坦的 poet诗人 MouridMourid Barghouti巴尔古提 writes
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巴勒斯坦诗人Mourid Barghouti曾经写到:
10:21
that if you want to dispossess剥夺 a people,
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如果你想剥夺一群人的权利,
10:24
the simplest简单 way to do it is to tell their story故事
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最简单的办法就是讲述一个关于他们的故事,
10:27
and to start开始 with, "secondly其次."
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并且从“第二点”开始讲起。
10:30
Start开始 the story故事 with the arrows箭头 of the Native本地人 Americans美国人,
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从印第安土著人的弓箭讲起,
10:34
and not with the arrival到达 of the British英国的,
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而不是英国人的侵占,
10:37
and you have an entirely完全 different不同 story故事.
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整个故事将变得完全不同。
10:40
Start开始 the story故事 with
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讲述一个故事,
10:42
the failure失败 of the African非洲人 state,
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从非洲国家的失败谈起,
10:44
and not with the colonial殖民 creation创建 of the African非洲人 state,
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而不是殖民者瓜分创建这些非洲国家的过程,
10:48
and you have an entirely完全 different不同 story故事.
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整个故事将变得完全不同。
10:52
I recently最近 spoke at a university大学 where
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我最近刚刚在一个大学做了一篇讲座,
10:54
a student学生 told me that it was
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一个学生对我说:
10:56
such这样 a shame耻辱
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非常可悲,
10:58
that Nigerian尼日利亚 men男人 were physical物理 abusers滥用者
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尼日利亚的男人都和我书中的父亲角色一样,
11:01
like the father父亲 character字符 in my novel小说.
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都是施暴者。
11:04
I told him that I had just read a novel小说
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我告诉他我最近刚刚读了一本小说,
11:06
called American美国 Psycho心理 --
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叫做《 美国精神狂魔》,
11:08
(Laughter笑声)
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(笑声)
11:10
-- and that it was such这样 a shame耻辱
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对此我也感到很惋惜,
11:12
that young年轻 Americans美国人 were serial串行 murderers杀人犯.
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美国青年都是连环杀手。
11:15
(Laughter笑声)
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(笑声)
11:19
(Applause掌声)
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(掌声)
11:25
Now, obviously明显 I said this in a fit适合 of mild温和 irritation刺激.
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当然了,那是我一时的气话。
11:28
(Laughter笑声)
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(笑声)
11:30
But it would never have occurred发生 to me to think
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我绝不会认为
11:32
that just because I had read a novel小说
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仅仅因为我对了一本
11:34
in which哪一个 a character字符 was a serial串行 killer凶手
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以连环杀手为主角的小说,
11:36
that he was somehow不知何故 representative代表
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他便可以代表
11:38
of all Americans美国人.
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所有的美国人。
11:40
This is not because I am a better person than that student学生,
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这并不是因为我比那位学生出色,
11:43
but because of America's美国 cultural文化 and economic经济 power功率,
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而是因为,美国的文化以及经济雄厚实力
11:46
I had many许多 stories故事 of America美国.
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使得我有机会掌握了关于美国的多重故事。
11:48
I had read Tyler泰勒 and Updike厄普代克 and Steinbeck斯坦贝克 and GaitskillGaitskill.
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我读过泰勒、厄普代克、斯坦贝克以及盖茨克尔。
11:52
I did not have a single story故事 of America美国.
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因此,我对美国的了解并不是来自单一的故事。
11:55
When I learned学到了, some years年份 ago, that writers作家 were expected预期
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当我多年前听说作家们
11:58
to have had really unhappy不快乐 childhoods童年
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必须有极其不幸的童年
12:02
to be successful成功,
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才能取得成功的时候,
12:04
I began开始 to think about how I could invent发明
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我开始思考如何捏造一些
12:06
horrible可怕 things my parents父母 had doneDONE to me.
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我父母对我做过的恶行。
12:08
(Laughter笑声)
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(笑声)
12:10
But the truth真相 is that I had a very happy快乐 childhood童年,
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但是事实,我的童年非常愉快,
12:14
full充分 of laughter笑声 and love, in a very close-knit紧密结合 family家庭.
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充满了欢笑和关爱,也有着一个非常亲密的家庭。
12:17
But I also had grandfathers祖父 who died死亡 in refugee难民 camps营地.
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但我也有在难民营中死去的祖父。
12:21
My cousin表姐 PollePolle died死亡 because he could not get adequate充足 healthcare卫生保健.
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我的表兄Polle因为无法得到充足的医疗而去世。
12:25
One of my closest最近的 friends朋友, OkolomaOkoloma, died死亡 in a plane平面 crash紧急
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我最亲近的朋友之一Okoloma死于一场飞机失事
12:28
because our fire trucks卡车 did not have water.
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因为我们的消防车中没有水。
12:31
I grew成长 up under repressive压制性 military军事 governments政府
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我在不重视教育、充满压迫性的
12:34
that devalued贬值 education教育,
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军权政府下长大,
12:36
so that sometimes有时 my parents父母 were not paid支付 their salaries工资.
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以致于我的父母有时根本拿不到他们的工资。
12:39
And so, as a child儿童, I saw jam果酱 disappear消失 from the breakfast早餐 table,
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因此,年少的我目睹果酱从早餐桌上消失,
12:43
then margarine人造黄油 disappeared消失,
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随后黄油也消失了,
12:45
then bread面包 became成为 too expensive昂贵,
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面包变得无比昂贵,
12:48
then milk牛奶 became成为 rationed配给.
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牛奶需要限量供应。
12:51
And most of all, a kind of normalized标准化 political政治 fear恐惧
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最重要的是,政治恐惧
12:54
invaded入侵 our lives生活.
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成了我们生活中习以为常的一部分。
12:58
All of these stories故事 make me who I am.
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所有这些故事都塑造了我。
13:00
But to insist咬定 on only these negative stories故事
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但如果我仅仅关注这些悲观的故事,
13:04
is to flatten弄平 my experience经验
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那么我就简化了我的生命历程,
13:07
and to overlook俯瞰 the many许多 other stories故事
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并且忽视了许多其他
13:09
that formed形成 me.
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同样塑造了我的故事。
13:11
The single story故事 creates创建 stereotypes定型,
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单一的故事衍生单一的传统典型。
13:14
and the problem问题 with stereotypes定型
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而这些以偏概全的想法所存在的问题
13:17
is not that they are untrue不确实,
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并不是在于它们不真实,
13:19
but that they are incomplete残缺.
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而是在于它们不完整。
13:21
They make one story故事 become成为 the only story故事.
282
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它们将一个故事转变成了唯一的故事。
13:25
Of course课程, Africa非洲 is a continent大陆 full充分 of catastrophes灾难:
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当然了,非洲大陆充满了灾难。
13:27
There are immense巨大 ones那些, such这样 as the horrific可怕的 rapes强奸 in Congo刚果
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有的灾难,比如刚果猖獗的强奸,是无比巨大的;
13:31
and depressing压抑 ones那些, such这样 as the fact事实 that
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而有的现实,比如尼日利亚5千人申请一个工作职位,
13:33
5,000 people apply应用 for one job工作 vacancy空缺 in Nigeria尼日利亚.
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则更让人无比的压抑。
13:38
But there are other stories故事 that are not about catastrophe灾难,
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但与此同时,非洲大陆也有许多和灾难不相关的故事。
13:41
and it is very important重要, it is just as important重要, to talk about them.
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谈论这些故事也是相当重要的,也是同等重要的。
13:45
I've always felt that it is impossible不可能
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我一直都觉得要想充分理解
13:47
to engage从事 properly正确 with a place地点 or a person
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一个地区、一个民族,
13:50
without engaging with all of the stories故事 of that place地点 and that person.
291
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就必须充分理解和那个地区、那个民族相关的所有故事。
13:54
The consequence后果 of the single story故事
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而单一故事的结果就是:
13:57
is this: It robs抢劫 people of dignity尊严.
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它夺走了人们的尊严。
14:00
It makes品牌 our recognition承认 of our equal等于 humanity人性 difficult.
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它使得我们难以意识到人与人之间的平等。
14:04
It emphasizes强调 how we are different不同
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它强调我们之间的不同,
14:07
rather than how we are similar类似.
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而不是我们之间的相同。
14:09
So what if before my Mexican墨西哥人 trip
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如果在我的墨西哥之行开始前,
14:11
I had followed其次 the immigration移民 debate辩论 from both sides双方,
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我去同时聆听移民辩论美墨两边的论点,
14:15
the U.S. and the Mexican墨西哥人?
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结果会是怎样呢?
14:17
What if my mother母亲 had told us that Fide's善意的 family家庭 was poor较差的
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如果我的母亲告诉我们Fide一家虽然穷,但是很努力,
14:21
and hardworking用功?
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结果会是怎样呢?
14:23
What if we had an African非洲人 television电视 network网络
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如果我们有一个非洲电视台在全世界播报关于非洲的不同故事,
14:25
that broadcast广播 diverse多种 African非洲人 stories故事 all over the world世界?
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结果会是怎样呢?
14:29
What the Nigerian尼日利亚 writer作家 ChinuaChinua Achebe阿契贝 calls电话
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播报尼日利亚作家奇努阿·阿契贝所谓的
14:31
"a balance平衡 of stories故事."
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“平衡的故事”。
14:34
What if my roommate室友 knew知道 about my Nigerian尼日利亚 publisher出版者,
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我杰出的尼日利亚出版商Mukta Bakaray
14:37
Mukta穆克塔 BakarayBakaray,
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是个让人难以置信的男人,
14:39
a remarkable卓越 man who left his job工作 in a bank银行
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他离弃了原本在银行的工作,去追逐自己的理想,成立了个出版社,
14:41
to follow跟随 his dream梦想 and start开始 a publishing出版 house?
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如果我的室友听说过他,结果又会是怎样呢?
14:44
Now, the conventional常规 wisdom智慧 was that Nigerians尼日利亚人 don't read literature文学.
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世俗告诉Mukta Bakaray:尼日利亚人是不读文学作品的。
14:48
He disagreed不同意. He felt
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他不这样认为。
14:50
that people who could read, would read,
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他觉得尼日利亚人会读书、想读书,
14:52
if you made制作 literature文学 affordable实惠 and available可得到 to them.
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但前提是这些书价格不能太昂贵,并且要普及到人民大众。
14:56
Shortly不久 after he published发表 my first novel小说
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在他发布了我的第一部小说的不久后,
14:59
I went to a TV电视 station in Lagos拉各斯 to do an interview访问,
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我前往拉各斯的一家电视台接受访问。
15:02
and a woman女人 who worked工作 there as a messenger信使 came来了 up to me and said,
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期间一位在那里做通信员的女士走向我,并且说道:
15:05
"I really liked喜欢 your novel小说. I didn't like the ending结尾.
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“我真的非常喜欢你的小说。但我不喜欢那个结尾。
15:08
Now you must必须 write a sequel续集, and this is what will happen发生 ..."
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你必须写一个续集,并且要这么写...”
15:11
(Laughter笑声)
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(笑声)
15:14
And she went on to tell me what to write in the sequel续集.
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她滔滔不绝地告诉我在续集中要写些什么。
15:17
I was not only charmed迷住了, I was very moved移动.
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她的言语不仅仅让我充满欢喜,也让我充满了感动。
15:20
Here was a woman女人, part部分 of the ordinary普通 masses群众 of Nigerians尼日利亚人,
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她只是一个平凡的女士,尼日利亚普罗大众中的一员,
15:23
who were not supposed应该 to be readers读者.
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一个本不应该读书的分子。
15:26
She had not only read the book, but she had taken采取 ownership所有权 of it
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但她不仅仅是读了那本书,而且充满参与创作的欲望,
15:28
and felt justified有理 in telling告诉 me
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并且觉得有足够的权力
15:31
what to write in the sequel续集.
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来告诉我在续集中要写些什么。
15:33
Now, what if my roommate室友 knew知道 about my friend朋友 Fumi福米 Onda昂达,
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我的朋友Fumi Onda是个无畏的女人,
15:37
a fearless不怕 woman女人 who hosts主机 a TV电视 show显示 in Lagos拉各斯,
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她在拉各斯主持一档电视节目,旨在揭露那些被掩埋的故事,
15:40
and is determined决心 to tell the stories故事 that we prefer比较喜欢 to forget忘记?
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如果的室友听说过她,一切会变得不同吗?
15:43
What if my roommate室友 knew知道 about the heart procedure程序
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如果我的室友听说过上周在拉各斯医院进行的心脏手术,
15:47
that was performed执行 in the Lagos拉各斯 hospital醫院 last week?
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一切会变得不同吗?
15:50
What if my roommate室友 knew知道 about contemporary现代的 Nigerian尼日利亚 music音乐,
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如果我的室友听说过尼日利亚的当代音乐呢?
15:54
talented天才 people singing唱歌 in English英语 and Pidgin洋泾浜,
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极富才能的人们用英语、皮钦语、
15:57
and Igbo伊博 and Yoruba约鲁巴 and Ijo黄麻,
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伊博语、约鲁巴语和伊乔语演唱,
15:59
mixing混合 influences影响 from Jay-ZJay-Z的 to Fela费拉
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将杰斯、费拉、鲍勃·马利以及
16:03
to Bob短发 Marley马利 to their grandfathers祖父.
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他们祖父们的音乐混杂在一起。
16:06
What if my roommate室友 knew知道 about the female lawyer律师
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最近有一名女律师
16:08
who recently最近 went to court法庭 in Nigeria尼日利亚
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在尼日利亚的法庭上挑战一条极其不可思议的法案──
16:10
to challenge挑战 a ridiculous荒谬 law
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妇女必须经过她们老公的许可
16:12
that required需要 women妇女 to get their husband's丈夫 consent同意
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才可以更新她们的护照,
16:15
before renewing更新 their passports护照?
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如果我的室友听说过她,结果会怎样呢?
16:18
What if my roommate室友 knew知道 about Nollywood诺莱坞,
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如果我的室友听说过“尼莱坞”以及那些
16:21
full充分 of innovative创新 people making制造 films影片 despite尽管 great technical技术 odds可能性,
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冲破技术上的缺陷,不断地创作影视作品的创新者呢?
16:25
films影片 so popular流行
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他们制作的电影在本地极其流行,
16:27
that they really are the best最好 example
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是尼日利亚人自给自足的
16:29
of Nigerians尼日利亚人 consuming消费 what they produce生产?
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最佳例子。
16:32
What if my roommate室友 knew知道 about my wonderfully奇妙 ambitious有雄心 hair头发 braider编织机,
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给我辫辫子的朋友最近刚刚成了自己的事业,开始售卖她的接发片,
16:35
who has just started开始 her own拥有 business商业 selling销售 hair头发 extensions扩展?
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4000
如果我的室友听说过她,结果会怎样呢?
16:39
Or about the millions百万 of other Nigerians尼日利亚人
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或者是其他数以百万的尼日利亚人,创办自己的产业,
16:41
who start开始 businesses企业 and sometimes有时 fail失败,
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虽然难免失利,但却不曾放弃雄心,
16:43
but continue继续 to nurse护士 ambition志向?
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如果我的室友听说过他们,又会怎样呢?
16:47
Every一切 time I am home I am confronted面对 with
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我每次回家的时候,都会面临
16:49
the usual通常 sources来源 of irritation刺激 for most Nigerians尼日利亚人:
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那些令众多尼日利亚人头疼的事情:
16:52
our failed失败 infrastructure基础设施, our failed失败 government政府,
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失败的基础设施,失败的政府。
16:55
but also by the incredible难以置信 resilience弹性 of people who
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但与此同时,我也看到了人们面对这个政府
16:58
thrive兴旺 despite尽管 the government政府,
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所展现出的坚韧不拔,
17:01
rather than because of it.
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而不是被它给击垮。
17:03
I teach writing写作 workshops研讨会 in Lagos拉各斯 every一切 summer夏季,
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每年夏天我都在拉各斯开办写作班。♪
17:06
and it is amazing惊人 to me how many许多 people apply应用,
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都会被申请的人数震惊到,
17:09
how many许多 people are eager急于 to write,
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有这么多的人想要学习写作,
17:12
to tell stories故事.
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想要讲述他们的故事。
17:14
My Nigerian尼日利亚 publisher出版者 and I have just started开始 a non-profit非盈利
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我的尼日利亚出版商和我刚刚成立了个非营利性的组织
17:17
called FarafinaFarafina Trust相信,
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叫做Farafina信托。
17:19
and we have big dreams of building建造 libraries图书馆
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我们充满了伟大的梦想:我们想建造图书馆,
17:22
and refurbishing整修 libraries图书馆 that already已经 exist存在
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并且重新装修已有的图书馆,
17:24
and providing提供 books图书 for state schools学校
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对于那些图书馆内空空如也的政府学校
17:27
that don't have anything in their libraries图书馆,
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我们会捐赠图书,
17:29
and also of organizing组织 lots and lots of workshops研讨会,
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我们也会组织大量的阅读班、写作班
17:31
in reading and writing写作,
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来帮助那些
17:33
for all the people who are eager急于 to tell our many许多 stories故事.
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渴望讲述我们身上故事的人们。
17:36
Stories故事 matter.
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故事很重要。
17:38
Many许多 stories故事 matter.
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多重性的故事很重要。
17:40
Stories故事 have been used to dispossess剥夺 and to malign诽谤,
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故事一直被用来剥夺、用来中伤。
17:44
but stories故事 can also be used to empower授权 and to humanize赋予人性.
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但故事也可以赋予力量与人性化。
17:48
Stories故事 can break打破 the dignity尊严 of a people,
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故事可以击毁一个民族的尊严,
17:51
but stories故事 can also repair修理 that broken破碎 dignity尊严.
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但也可以修补那被击毁的尊严。
17:56
The American美国 writer作家 Alice爱丽丝 Walker助步车 wrote this
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美国作家Alice Walker曾写过
17:58
about her Southern南部的 relatives亲戚们
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她那些搬迁至北方的
18:00
who had moved移动 to the North.
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南方亲戚们。
18:02
She introduced介绍 them to a book about
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她为他们推荐了一本书,
18:04
the Southern南部的 life that they had left behind背后:
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一本关于他们已挥别的南方生活的书。
18:07
"They satSAT around, reading the book themselves他们自己,
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“他们团团坐在一起,读着这本书,
18:11
listening to me read the book, and a kind of paradise天堂 was regained失而复得."
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或是听我给他们读这本书,一种天堂因此而被重拾。”
18:17
I would like to end结束 with this thought:
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我想以此来结束我的演讲:
18:20
That when we reject拒绝 the single story故事,
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当我们拒绝单一的故事,
18:23
when we realize实现 that there is never a single story故事
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当我们认识到任何地方
18:26
about any place地点,
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都没有单一的故事时,
18:28
we regain恢复 a kind of paradise天堂.
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我们将重拾一份天堂。
18:30
Thank you.
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谢谢。
18:32
(Applause掌声)
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(掌声)
Translated by Zachary Lin Zhao
Reviewed by Ting Gao

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ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie - Novelist
Inspired by Nigerian history and tragedies all but forgotten by recent generations of westerners, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s novels and stories are jewels in the crown of diasporan literature.

Why you should listen

In Nigeria, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's novel Half of a Yellow Sun has helped inspire new, cross-generational communication about the Biafran war. In this and in her other works, she seeks to instill dignity into the finest details of each character, whether poor, middle class or rich, exposing along the way the deep scars of colonialism in the African landscape.

Adichie's newest book, The Thing Around Your Neck, is a brilliant collection of stories about Nigerians struggling to cope with a corrupted context in their home country, and about the Nigerian immigrant experience.

Adichie builds on the literary tradition of Igbo literary giant Chinua Achebe—and when she found out that Achebe liked Half of a Yellow Sun, she says she cried for a whole day. What he said about her rings true: “We do not usually associate wisdom with beginners, but here is a new writer endowed with the gift of ancient storytellers.”

(Photo: Wani Olatunde) 

More profile about the speaker
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie | Speaker | TED.com