#Literature Is Global Because It's Specific

L-R: Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, Trevor Noah, & Chris Jackson; Photo credit: Beowulf Sheehan

“‘People are surprised they connect with my characters,’ said [Chimamanda Ngozi] Adichie. ‘And

men are surprised they liked a book written by a woman.’ That surprise illuminates the privilege of thinking only one type of story is allowed to be ‘universal.’ After all, white authors aren’t asked to change the names of their characters to appeal to African and Asian markets. The assumption is that the specificities of nonwhite, non-Western life cannot be universal, and that anyone else has to change themselves to be heard. But, for both Adichie and [Trevor Noah, diluting themselves is not an option.”

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie (by Jaya Saxena)
@2017 PEN America Voices Festival, New York