Micah Hein
MSU
Perceiving and Re-Imaging
Prompt: Once you have perceived your topic in a new way write about 500 words: a) discussing
briefly your understanding of the cognitive tool of perceiving (approximately 1 sentence), b)
your original observation, c) your re-imagination, and finally d) how this new understanding
impacts your topic.
Original: “The Circle of Life” Sequence from Disney’s The Lion King
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HwSKkKrUzUk
Re-imagined: The Journey Home, a poem
a) To me, the cognitive tool of perceiving is the ability to take in all the stimuli of an
environment and respond to it honestly: taking what appealed to our sensory network and
analyzing how it was understood, categorized, correlated, and appreciated.
b) The first scene of the movie The Lion King is legendary in film and theater. “The Circle of
Life” effectively sets the tone for a story that teaches us the value of family and our part of the
big world we live in. My initial observation of this scene is colorful and warm. The animals and
scenery grow in variety and number as we move through the number, juxtaposed with beautiful
backgrounds of the African savannah with its golden grass and crystal blue skies. As the female
singer begins, the noise of the animals interestingly is still heard, growing and growing as we
move closer to Pride Rock. However, before the expected huge finish, the song dips into the
most intimate moment with the arrival of Rafiki. His travels, as well as those of all the animals,
foreshadow the magnitude of such an event. As Rafiki steps forward to the ledge, the singer
returns in a full belt with a full symphony and roars out a final chorus. The animals explode with
energy but then bow sincerely and ceremoniously, as if this ritual has been done before. We feel
their respect for one another and their placement in this African circle of life.
c) For my re-imagination, I created a poem that possesses a similar energy and theme to this film
sequence. I recalled the senses that were stimulated, what felt important to me, and what I
appreciated most about this sequence and attempted to condense the 4-minute sequence into a
succinct poem. As I created this poem, I wondered why I felt such a pull to these animals in this
moment. From my historical and cultural background, I don’t exactly understand Rafiki’s ritual
with Simba, or the whole sequence for that matter. Why, as a culture, have we become so
attached to this opening number in children’s film? My solution to this inquiry is the power of
home in the literal and metaphorical sense. Home involves our role in the community, our love
of our family members, and our respect for the elderly (just to name a few) – this sequence
includes and illuminates all of these elements.
d) A new understanding that I have learned from this experience is open-mindedness to stimuli. I
would argue that one of the reasons that I find the Circle of Life sequence so popular is because I
was introduced to it when I was a child. From a cognitive standpoint, I could not filter what was
important, make a bias about the music, or relate it with my own experiences because I was still
in the realm of concrete thought at that age. I simply believed in the animals on the screen as if I
was standing on Pride Rock next to them. I understood their journeys, their environments, and