“The Box Man”
“The Box Man” is a story about Barbara Lazear Ascher’s encounter with a homeless man. After helping him retrieve a box from an unguarded building, she witnessed him building his “home” in someone’s doorway. His state of seclusion reminded her of two other woman. The first woman was a regular of the coffee shop. She came by every day, but one could tell she had no fond memories from her vacant expression. She was a ghost in a sense, forgotten by everyone. The second woman lived across the street and watch TV all night long. The only company this lady had were her cats. The Box Man, however, was different. As he opened up his newspaper in his makeshift home, there was no sign of depression or yearning for companionship.
Ascher compared the Box Man to the other women in order to point out that sometimes, loneliness is chosen. A prime example was when the Box Man rejected the mayor’s help and walked away from those who tried to interact with him. It was also evident that the Box Man was completely satisfied and comfortable with his lifestyle. Instead of living a life …show more content…
During her TED talk, Adichie gave a variety of examples of this happening throughout her life. As a child, she would read American and British books since African literature was uncommon. Because of this, she believed that it was completely normal for stories to have foreigners who she could not identify with. When she was in college, Adichie’s roommate thought she did not know how to use the stove and listened to tribal music because she was African. Single stories are actually quite prevalent in today’s society. Many of our own opinions are developed from the opinions of others people. Because of this, many stereotypes exist in the world and we continue to grow more distant from the
“The Box Man” is a story about Barbara Lazear Ascher’s encounter with a homeless man. After helping him retrieve a box from an unguarded building, she witnessed him building his “home” in someone’s doorway. His state of seclusion reminded her of two other woman. The first woman was a regular of the coffee shop. She came by every day, but one could tell she had no fond memories from her vacant expression. She was a ghost in a sense, forgotten by everyone. The second woman lived across the street and watch TV all night long. The only company this lady had were her cats. The Box Man, however, was different. As he opened up his newspaper in his makeshift home, there was no sign of depression or yearning for companionship.
Ascher compared the Box Man to the other women in order to point out that sometimes, loneliness is chosen. A prime example was when the Box Man rejected the mayor’s help and walked away from those who tried to interact with him. It was also evident that the Box Man was completely satisfied and comfortable with his lifestyle. Instead of living a life …show more content…
During her TED talk, Adichie gave a variety of examples of this happening throughout her life. As a child, she would read American and British books since African literature was uncommon. Because of this, she believed that it was completely normal for stories to have foreigners who she could not identify with. When she was in college, Adichie’s roommate thought she did not know how to use the stove and listened to tribal music because she was African. Single stories are actually quite prevalent in today’s society. Many of our own opinions are developed from the opinions of others people. Because of this, many stereotypes exist in the world and we continue to grow more distant from the