Simon & Garfunkel – “The Sound of Silence”

Let’s assume we’ve all seen The Graduate. Remember those last twenty seconds, set to this song? Ben just “saved” Elaine, a girl whom he is convinced is the love of his life, and they’re sitting on that bus together driving off to who knows where (we just know where it’s not). They’re excited, she’s free from a loveless marriage, and they’re ready to grow old together.

But then, Paul Simon’s words echo out: …and the vision that was planted in my brain / still remains within the sound of silence. As quickly as the moment had come it had gone. Their glee fades from their faces and we see the bus from the rear. Fade to black, credits. We realize then that true love is not what we’ve just witnessed—it was youth: behaving on impulse, emotion, and desperately attempting to establish something known and tangible in a lifetime of terrifying uncertainty. Most of us can relate to that.

Simon & Garfunkel
The Sound of Silence641 plays

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