A Color of His Own

Author: Leo Lionni
Plot Summary: All animals have colors of their own except for the chameleon, which changes colors based on its environment. The chameleon sees a green leaf and says, “If I remain on a leaf I shall be green forever, and so I too will have a color of my own.” However, when the leaf turns orange, the chameleon turns orange, and when the leaf turns red so does the chameleon. When spring comes, the chameleon meets another chameleon and asks if he will ever have a color of his own. The other chameleon says no, but says that the two should stay together so they can be alike.
Posted In: Aesthetics, Metaphysics

Discussion Questions

• What would it be like to change colors? Would you feel different each time you turned a new color?
• What things come in different colors? Say if the following things come in different colors and then, if they do, say what colors they come in.
  Dogs.
  Ice cream.
  The sky.
  Flowers.
  Grass.
  Water.
  Fire.
  People.
  Footballs.
  Winter.
  Sadness.
  Roller blades.
  Laughter.
  Fall.
• What things in the classroom are:
  blue
  green
  red
  purple
  yellow
• Do colors change?
• Are there things that have no color? Example? (Light)
• Are there things that have many colors? Example?
• If something is red, can it also be blue? Can it be pink? Maroon?
• Is the color green made up of blue and yellow? If so, is all green is blue and yellow? Or is it something in itself?
• Do all green things look alike?
• Do all things that are blue feel the same way (Ex: the sky and a blue blanket)
• Is color real?