Summary Of A Single Story By Thomas King

A Single Story is a Bent Story: Debunking the Glorification of Christopher Columbus Understanding the history of indigenous people in North America is crucial to avoid the falsely attributed, close-minded single story that casts Christopher Columbus as a historical hero. Thomas King is an indigenous writer and author of A Coyote Columbus Story, a short story that criticizes the glorification of Christopher Columbus and his discovery of North America through a humorous children’s narrative. With his allegorical approach that features a nave coyote, King challenges the single story of the discovery of North America and warns readers of the dangers imbedded in holding this type of perspective. Coyote is a gullible character who represents the people who celebrate Christopher Columbus and his
Contrary to what Coyote has learned, the land that Christopher Columbus “discovered” was already inhabited by Native Americans who were stripped of their culture upon his arrival. King uses a frame narrative to convey the true story of Christopher Columbus and indigenous people, in which the narrator attempts to warn Coyote, and the reader, of the dangers that this narrow perspective holds. Using a frame narrative with child-like characters makes the heavy topic easier for children to digest and signifies the importance of being responsible for the stories they believe. To educate Coyote of the history she has neglected to understand, the narrator recounts the story of Old Coyote. This trickster character that causes disruption in the story is nave like Coyote and “doesn’t watch what she is making up in her head” (King). For Coyote, holding this apathetic attitude led her to believe a single story without considering the harm it could