Can anyone help me interpret the song "The Sound of Silence" by Simon and Garfunkel?

Question

I cannot tell in it if they discribe silence in a negitive or possitive manner. I my mind, they do both. Any other thoughts on the song are welcome

Answer 1

They do both, actually.

They talk about it being a friend, a comfortable welcoming place, but also as an isolating place, where people keep to themselves and are not a community.

But the message is deeper than that - it comes in this -
The words of the prophets are written on the subway walls
And tenement halls"
And whispered in the sounds of silence

They are berating people for not listening, not paying attention to their world.

Answer 2

If you want the answer to this question, you should really know your history. This song was written in the aftermath of the assassination of President John F. Kennedy on November 22, 1963. Paul Simon felt it interpreted the emotions felt by Americans after losing such a great leader. He didn't complete the lyrics until Feburary 19, 1964 and the song was release 6 months later on the album Wednesday Morning, 3 AM.
Anyone who really knows history and listens to the song can tell its a mixture of emotions that explains how solemn their hearts were and that no one wanted to speak of the tragedy that just happened. Sort of like the same silence that spread on 9/11.
The "neon god" is JFK.
Please people, for the sake of the future - read, understand and try not to distroy history's teachings. For the sake of the future, learn from the past.

Answer 3

I don't think simon and Garfunkel are referring to silence in a positive way here. The silence isn't real, it isn't silent because there is nothing to be said. there is much to be said, it's just that no one is listening "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. "
subway walls and tenement walls, places where those in power do not look for answers, despite the fact that those are the places where life happens.

Answer 4

I always thought that the silence was keeping people from connecting, with themselves and with each other. You know, people talking without speaking and hearing without listening. And the silence grows like a cancer, if the "fools" let it, preventing reaching and teaching. And because they aren't connecting, they aren't seeing what is really going on in the world. But hey, that's just me. A great song which is as relevant now as it was 40 years ago.

Answer 5

Back in 1969 when I first heard this song, I read an article which claimed that it was about anomie. A woman had been murdered in a residential area of New York in an attack that lasted at least half an hour. It must have been witnessed by dozens of residents in nearby flats but nobody picked up their phone and called police. Anomie, according to the article I read, means you treat life as a TV show in which you're not participating.

Answer 6

Feeling Groovy by Simon and Garfunkel!

Answer 7

It's a song that could lend itself to more than one interpretation. My impression is that in the song, silence is seen as a form of conformity, a fear of expressing original ideas, and that's a bad thing. The narrator is the only one who doesn't agree with the crowd, and they don't hear anything he says because they're so intent on their mob mentality. They hear only what they want to hear and see only what they want to see and aren't open to any new ideas. This is common among certain political and religious groups who refuse to even listen to any dissenting opinions because they "know" that they're right and they don't want to be confused by anything as inconvenient as facts. This is definitely a bad thing.

Answer 8

That is one of the most incredibly beautiful songs that I have heard over and over since I was in highschool a few decades ago. The odd part of it is that I haven't heard it in such a long time that I don't feel able to interpret it for you, but, in my recollection as I sit here and answer you is that they speak highly of silence. You may be right in that they speak both good and bad of it, but I just can't recall, but I do so very much appreciate the wonderful recollections of my highschool days as I remember a dear friend of mine, whom I named my son after, who was so very introspective and in whose house I first heard that song. I hope you enjoy it as much as I have, even in my memories. God Bless you.

Answer 9

I think it is definitely positive, "hello darkness my old friend, Ive come to talk to you again" I feel it might sound negative because it has a tone of hopelessness at the same time.
What a truely amazing song,you will have us all thinking.

Answer 10

i dont know but it is a good song