Question

Read the excerpt from "The Danger of a Single Story” by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie.

The American writer Alice Walker wrote this about her Southern relatives who had moved to the North. She introduced them to a book about the Southern life that they had left behind. "They sat around, reading the book themselves, listening to me read the book, and a kind of paradise was regained.”

I would like to end with this thought: That when we reject the single story, when we realize that there is never a single story about any place, we regain a kind of paradise.

How does Adichie’s use of metaphor most likely affect those listening to her speech?

It encourages her listeners to seek out the silver lining in the situations they live in.
It inspires listeners to broaden their literary selections.
It reveals to her listeners ways to use books to escape difficulties in life.
It compels listeners to try to understand themselves.

Answer 1

It compels listeners to try to understand themselves.

Explanation: The "paradise regained" metaphor suggests restoring richness and wholeness by rejecting a single story—encouraging listeners to seek fuller, more nuanced understandings of themselves and others rather than offering a simple “silver lining,” an escape, or merely changing reading choices.