A Powdered Pocahontas: Pocahontas II and Postcolonialism

Pocahontas II: Journey to a New World is an untimely straight to DVD sequel of Disney’s Pocahontas. And, in all honesty it’s a wreck. It stays true to what actually happened to Pocahontas in real life (kind of) by sending her to London with John Rolf after news of John Smith’s death. However, in real life she did not willingly go and willingly give in to being “civilized” like the Disney movie portrays. In real life, she died three years after arriving in England. But, anyhow, this movie did terrible in the box office, and is riddled with opportunities for Postcolonial Criticism.

For example, she is shown off to the King, but only after a huge makeover in which a character named Mrs. Jenkins sings a song entitled “Wait ‘till he sees you!” During this makeover, Mrs. Jenkins actually puts white powder on her face (changing her skin color to a lighter shade) and sings “He’ll [John Rolf] be so pleased you came down from the trees!” Implying that Pocahontas is a savage, as she and the people of England see her and is finally coming down from “the trees” to be civilized. Before her makeover, she is portrayed as incompetent and uncultured, as she attempts to wear a girdle as a hat etc. There’s a lot wrong with that song, but this part is pretty straightforward.

Yes, that is Pocahontas!

In the cartoon, Pocahontas comes to the England, and is promptly informed that she will be attending a ball during which she will be shown off to the King of England to show hi
m that the people of the New World “can be civilized.” She’s lied to and she thinks she is doing everything for peace between her people and John Rolf’s, but she is only being colonized and forced into a culture she really does not want. She

 After her makeover, both Mrs. Jenkins and John Rolf treat Pocahontas as a different person. She appears to be more “European” and hence, she is better, more civilized. This is a prime example of Eurocentrism, because it is clear that whoever wrote this movie, wanted England’s cultural practices to seem like the ultimate “culture standard to which other cultures are negatively contrasted” (Tyson 401). The King would not even see her until she was powdered up and strapped into a fancy ballgown, hence the Eurocentric way seems to win out.

All the English characters show blunt colonizer ideology too, as they all seem to think that their way is better, especially since they are “civilizing” this “savage Indian.” They just assume their way is better, especially John Rolf and Mrs. Jenkins who give her the makeover in the first place, and always treat her as if she were an ignorant child. Not to mention the way her body guard is portrayed, a Native American Character who does nothing but grunt, and follow Pocahontas around while wearing buffalo hide clothing. Obviously, he is meant to be seen as less than civilized. However, Pocahontas even gives in to these ideas of the colonizers by exhibiting mimicry in her willingness to be changed to a lighter skinned, strangely dressed Native American source of amusement (for much of the movie, she does eventually stand up. Not for herself though but for a bear who has been held captive.) She allows this to happen, and for the first part of the ball, (before saving the bear) she acts and talks just like John Rolf; truly becoming a colonial subject in England and making Mrs. Jenkins shed tears of joy. Furthermore, when John Rolff meets sees her for the first time in her new clothes, she explains to him that what is on her face is “called powder” and he exclaims how beautiful she is. For the first time in the movie, Pocahontas is told she looks beautiful by a man she loves, and in order for that to happen, her face has to be powdered lighter. Again, the colonizers and their ways are obviously portrayed as superior here.

Overall, the film is riddled with colonizer ideology, mimicry on Pocahontas’ part, and Eurocentrism through the way Pocahontas is portrayed and treated, and how she reacts