Colors Of The Wind Lyrics - Judy Kuhn

"Colors of the Wind" from Disney's Pocahontas is an achingly beautiful ballad against colonialism, luxuriating in ruin through the beauty and wisdom of nature. This powerful, evocative lyric serves to stand against the Eurocentric ideological ticker tape of ownership and domain by calling for understanding and respect for earth and all life. It turns into an appeal to empathize, become environment-conscious, and be unified with all the creatures living on this very planet.

The song begins immediately with the entry of the singer's facing prejudices, even with what the listener might be thinking in terms of other cultures, in particular that of the Native Americans. The words, "You think I'm an ignorant savage," don't waste time going directly at the dehumanizing stereotypes that colonialists have always placed on the indigenous. An introduction to a story that will set up some other stories, looking to dismantle these illusions and put a call to the listener to view the world with more respect and a fuller view.

It is actually a song of admiration toward nature, but it also depicts an indigenous worldview given to people who lived in harmony with nature, which is taken advantage of by the colonizers. Lines like "But I know every rock and tree and creature / Has a life, has a spirit, has a name" raise the idea of inherent value and sacredness in every aspect of nature, hence prompting the question: Is the Earth a resource to be owned and used? "Colors of the Wind" more strongly supports interrelatedness through lyrical metaphor: underpinning the relations of man with nature, it is through images of the wolf crying to the blue corn moon, the rainstorm and river being related as siblings, and the shared existence within a "circle, in a hoop that never ends" that perfects the idea of how all things are tied together in the environment in a very delicate balance.

In actuality, the most notable part of the song is the climax when she finally asks, "How high will a sycamore grow?" Obviously, this is a metaphor for the kind of sight and appreciation the world has to develop; obviously too, how high a sycamore grows is indicative of how high she has the potential to raise her vision. It directly challenges the listener to take deeper interest in the understanding of another culture and environment rather than in a superficial way by making simple judgments and hence shallower ones.