Answers to Talking Points: TRUE COLORS - CINDY LAUPER / PHIL COLLINS
Ad 1. The singer (= first person narrator) and his friend ("you").
Ad 2. He has got sad eyes, never laughs any more, is discouraged, there is "darkness inside him, he has lost sight of it all, has taken all he can bear and feels small.
Ad 3. The meaning is not clear. Maybe he has lost sight of a reason for living, of an aim in life, of the most important things in life, of really good friends. Darkness means sadness, negative emotions, depressions etc.
Ad 4. He shows that he understands him/her, offers him/her his help ("call me up").
Ad 5. A metaphor is the use of words to indicate something different from the literal meaning. Examples are "darkness", "colors" and "rainbow".
Ad 6. "Colors" could refer to makeup and the colors of the clothes, but also to character traits in general. A rainbow is made up of all the different colors that exist: violet, blue, green, yellow, orange and red. A person's character consists of different facettes.
Ad 7. "True" means natural, not artificial, not just for show. The friend seems to hide himself behind fake colors, he wants to make believe that he is someone else. In the long run such a disguise makes you ill.
Ad 8. Yes, I think so. If someone urges you to change yourself, it implies that he/she does not accept and love you just the way you are. If somebody accepts all your weak points, it means that you don't have to disguise yourself in front of him/her, that you can be yourself.
Ad 9. "Don't Give up" (Peter Gabriel), "Everybody Hurts" (REM)