After some extensive research on the song written by Joni Mitchell, I have found out that she got inspiration to write the song when she was in Hawaii and she was looking out from her hotel window and saw a beautiful mountai scenery but as she looked downwards, she saw the ugly hotel parking lot. This explains the phrase in the song 'they paved paradise and put up a parking lot'. The phrase 'they took all the trees and put 'em in a tree museum' is referring to the Foster Botanical Garden in downtown Honolulu, which is a living museum of tropical plants, some rare and endangered. This song most probably focuses on the topic of development and how we as human beings are affecting the natural environment and surroundings. In the last verse of the song, the lyrics of the song changes from political to personal when the singer writes ' a big yellow taxi took away my old man'. The old man hear could actually refer to the singer's father being kidnapped or even taken away by the authorities.

On a more personal note, I believe that songs like these may cause the public to be more aware of the problems that the world is facing. Current affairs like the Tibetan protests or the war in Kenya may be impemented in songs and other various mediums so that the world may be more aware about the difficulties being faced in various places in the world.