Savages (Pocahontas song)

The song seemingly condemns the mixing of races, which some critiques have said is a social construct. The colonist side is critical of those who do not believe in the Christian God. The Native Americans also demonize the white colonists, describing them as "demon" and "paleface", and "wonder[ing] if they even bleed".^[3] It is "heavily emphasized that the difference between the two peoples are the real cause of the war".^[4]

The Washington Post wrote "The most heavy-handed of the seven songs composed by Alan Menken with lyrics by Stephen Schwartz, "Savages" lacks the vivacity and wit that Menken's late partner, Howard Ashman, brought to previous Disney musicals".^[5] Hidefdigest said "From "Just Around the Riverbend" to "Savages," 'Pocahontas' has one of the Disney's most unforgettable soundtracks". It however praised the audio and visual quality: "Each of the memorable songs is belted at lofty volumes that seem to surround the listener. The best example of this is the "Savages" musical number. The sub-woofer pounds out the drum beats while both camps sing about their hate for each other. Their voices echo throughout the soundfield. The low-end sonics are deep and rumbling. It's probably the best sounding sequence of the whole film."^[6] Americana E-Journal said "This song "Savages" does not lack political incorrectness; moreover, it is nothing but the shocking anger and grievance felt against the other" and notes the song serves as a substitute to actually depicting the bloody war.^[7]

The "Pocahontas Paradox: A Cautionary Tale for Educators" describes the song as "especially unsettling" and "brutal", arguing "While the song presumably meant to unearth and thus neutralize from a perspective 350 years after the fact a pervasive racism of the earlier era, the song nonetheless embodies a complexity of attitudes and beliefs that remain, at their core, offensive to American Indian people and needless to say detrimental to Indian children".^[8] University of Texas anthropologist Pauline Turner Strong wrote "for many Native Americans 'savage' is the 'S' word, as potent and degrading as the word 'rigger.' [sic] I cannot imagine the latter epithet repeated so often, and set to music in a G-rated film and its soundtrack. It is even more shocking to write it in a review. Is 'savage' more acceptable because it is used reciprocally? But then does this not downplay the role the colonial ideology of savagism played in the extermination and dispossession of indigenous people."^[9]