"The Sound of Silence" Analysis

Simon and Garfunkel’s “The Sound of Silence” is a brilliantly written song which has profound meaning behind its beautiful lyrics. One interpretation is that the song’s meaning revolves around ignorance to art in the media. “I turned my collar to the cold and damp; When my eyes were stabbed by the flash of a neon light that split the night; And touched the sound of silence”. The “neon light” referred to represents the flashiness of the media and its ability to brainwash society. “And in the naked light I saw; Ten thousand people, maybe more; People talking without speaking; People hearing without listening; People writing songs that voices never share”. These lines clearly illustrate society’s blatant cluelessness to the world around it. “People talking without speaking” refers to the lack of depth and meaning behind people’s words—how the important aspects of life are ignored while the trivial, brainless parts are kept the main focus. “People hearing without listening” refers more specifically to the music industry, and how appreciation for true art and talent is disappearing; people are merely hearing the music, rather than listening and indulging in its meaning. “’Fools’, said I, ‘You do not know; Silence, like a cancer, grows; Hear my words that I might teach you; Take my arms that I might reach you’; But my words, like silent raindrops, fell; And echoed in the wells of silence’”. The speaker recognizes the poison of the media as the rest of the world remains ignorant. He tries to enlighten them, but no one seems to listen. “And the people bowed and prayed; To the neon god they made”. The “neon god”, again, is the flashy advertisement in the media, which seems to brainwash society to the point of unquestioning worship. “And the sign flashed out its warning; In the words that it was forming; And the signs said, the words of the prophets are written on the subway walls; And tenement halls; And whispered in the sounds of silence”. In these final lines, the speaker is saying how the truth of what lies ahead (the words of the prophets) can be found in places where people are always coming and going (subway walls and tenement halls). People always pass by these signs but never see what is right in front of them. Thus, they choose to remain ignorant. In the end, the “sound of silence” is the sound of the world, namely the media; silence is the ignorance people choose to live by, and will ultimately continue to live by, no matter what whispers attempt to disturb the peace.


Check out Simon and Garfunkel lyrics and discussion here.
Find and listen to songs here.