This is a song about self-realization, specifically the narrator’s efforts to overcome a barrier on their path to fulfillment.
The lyrics are ambiguous to the point that the end goal and the wall itself could represent a number of things, although the use of words like “travesty”, “spirit”, “light”...
[Verse 1]
I'm woven in a fantasy
I can't believe the things I see
The path that I have chosen now
Has led me to a wall
And with each passing day
I feel a little more like something dear was lost
[Pre-Chorus]
It rises now before me
A dark and silent barrier between
[Chorus]
All I am
And all that I would ever want to be
It's just a travesty
Towering
Marking off the boundaries my spirit
Would erase
[Verse 2]
To pass beyond is what I seek
I fear that I may be too weak
And those are few who've seen it through
To glimpse the other side
The promised land is waiting
Like a maiden that is soon to be a bride
[Pre Chorus]
The moment is a masterpiece
The weight of indecision's in the air
[Chorus]
Standing there
The symbol and the sum of all that's me
It's just a travesty
Towering
Blocking out the light and blinding me
I want to see
[Bridge - Instrumental]
[Guitar Solo]
[Verse 3]
Gold and diamonds cast a spell
It's not for me, I know it well
The riches that I seek are waiting
On the other side
There's more than I can measure
In the treasures of the love that I can find
[Pre Chorus]
And though it's always been with me
I must tear down the wall and let it be
[Chorus]
All I am
And all that I was ever meant to be
In harmony
Shining true
And smiling back at all who wait to cross
There is no loss
Ohhh
The Wall was written by Steve Walsh & Kerry Livgren.
The Wall was produced by Kansas & Jeff Glixman.