OWNED BY PARROT01

Shortly after he published my first novel, I went to a TV station in Lagos to do an interview,

在他发布了我的第一部小说的不久后，我前往拉各斯的一家电视台接受访问，

and a woman who worked there as a messenger came up to me and said, “I really liked your novel.

期间一位在那里做通信员的女士走向我，并且说道：“我真的非常喜欢你的小说。

I didn’t like the ending. Now, you must write a sequel, and this is what will happen …”

但我不喜欢那个结尾。你必须写一个续集，并且要这么写…”

And she went on to tell me what to write in the sequel. I was not only charmed, I was very moved.

她滔滔不绝地告诉我在续集中要写些什么。她的言语不仅仅让我充满欢喜，也让我充满了感动。

Here was a woman, part of the ordinary masses of Nigerians, who were not supposed to be readers.

她只是一个平凡的女士，尼日利亚普罗大众中的一员，一个本不应该读书的分子。

She had not only read the book, but she had taken ownership of it and felt justified in telling me what to write in the sequel.

但她不仅仅是读了那本书，而且充满参与创作的欲望，并且觉得有足够的权力来告诉我在续集中要写些什么。

Now, what if my roommate knew about my friend Funmi Iyanda, a fearless woman who hosts a TV show in Lagos,

我的朋友Fumi Onda是个无畏的女人，她在拉各斯主持一档电视节目，

and is determined to tell the stories that we prefer to forget?

旨在揭露那些被掩埋的故事，如果的室友听说过她，一切会变得不同吗？

What if my roommate knew about the heart procedure that was performed in the Lagos hospital last week?

如果我的室友听说过上周在拉各斯医院进行的心脏手术，一切会变得不同吗？

What if my roommate knew about contemporary Nigerian music, talented people singing in English and Pidgin, and Igbo and Yoruba and Ijo,

如果我的室友听说过尼日利亚的当代音乐呢？极富才能的人们用英语、皮钦语、伊博语、约鲁巴语和伊乔语演唱，

mixing influences from Jay-Z to Fela to Bob Marley to their grandfathers.

将杰斯、费拉、鲍勃·马利以及他们祖父们的音乐混杂在一起。

What if my roommate knew about the female lawyer who recently went to court in Nigeria to challenge a ridiculous law

最近有一名女律师在尼日利亚的法庭上挑战一条极其不可思议的法案–

that required women to get their husband’s consent before renewing their passports?

妇女必须经过她们老公的许可才可以更新她们的护照，如果我的室友听说过她，结果会怎样呢？

What if my roommate knew about Nollywood, full of innovative people making films despite great technical odds,

如果我的室友听说过“尼莱坞”以及那些冲破技术上的缺陷、不断地创作影视作品的创新者呢？

films so popular that they really are the best example of Nigerians consuming what they produce?

他们制作的电影在本地极其流行，是尼日利亚人自给自足的最佳例子。

What if my roommate knew about my wonderfully ambitious hair braider, who has just started her own business selling hair extensions?

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，如果我的室友听说过她，结果会怎样呢？

Or about the millions of other Nigerians who start businesses and sometimes fail, but continue to nurse ambition?

或者是其他数以百万的尼日利亚人，创办自己的产业，虽然难免失利，但却不曾放弃雄心，如果我的室友听说过他们，又会怎样呢？

演讲简介：

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。