Simon & Garfunkel: The Sound of Silence Meaning

Song Released: 1965

Covered By: Bananarama (2009), Disturbed (2015)

The Sound of Silence Lyrics

Hello darkness, my old friend,
I've come to talk with you again,
Because a vision softly creeping,
Left its seeds while I was sleeping,
And the vision that was planted in my brain
Still remains
Within the sound of silence.

In restless...

1. jojoged

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   Feb 8th 2018 !⃝

   This song is about the assignation and death of Kennedy.
2. anonymous

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   Jan 27th 2018 !⃝

   Feeling that no one is listening (to you) or anyone else.
3. Denece

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   Jan 24th 2018 !⃝

   Same message as "A Horse With No Name." Meditation is crucial for spiritual survival during an earth incarnation. The soul is pleading, yet lamenting. "...words, like silent raindrops fell and echoed in the wells of silence," as is "...and the story it told of a river that flowed made me sad to think it was dead." Silence! No Name! "Silence" is for those who have "ears to hear."

   This interpretation has been marked as poor. view anyway
4. anonymous

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   Jan 4th 2018 !⃝

   To me it appeared to be about dark times/depression that was isolating even when around thousands of people. Going through the motion but not able to communicate and people not really hearing the distress as they continue with their daily routine, like robots programmed, not able to think for themselves anymore. Isolated, alone, lonely and not able to emotionally or verbally connect with one another. Living a life without hope or purpose.
5. anonymous

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   Dec 18th 2017 !⃝

   Garfunkel once summed up the song's meaning as "the inability of people to communicate with each other, not particularly internationally but especially emotionally, so what you see around you are people unable to love each other." WIKI
   There is nothing wonderful about this song.
   Wrong date from the first song I commented today.. not 17 but 18
   - CONFIDENTIAL 12/18/17
6. anonymous

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   Dec 18th 2017 !⃝

   This song is prophetic. "People talking without speaking", that's what's happening now in this electronic age, we talk to each other without speaking. "People hearing without listening", we hear by reading...
   Wonderful song.
7. anonymous

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   Dec 8th 2017 !⃝

   I really couldn’t help but associate this with PTSD. Visions softly creeping .. left it’s seeds while I was sleeping... which is exactly what happens... visions, experiences coming back in dreams, that may have been dormant - but still remain! The loneliness and lack of ability to communicate resonate with PTSD and so very much does this song. Also the lack of recognition and support for this illness for so long is evident within the lyrics. Perhaps not it’s initial intention but definitely very fitting.
8. anonymous

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   Dec 4th 2017 !⃝

   I really don't have any opinion about what one thinks the meaning behind this song is. I only know that the acapella version that David Draiman does is absolutely wonderful.
9. anonymous

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   Dec 1st 2017 !⃝

   Disturbed's vision and voice cover did a awesome job with Simon and Garfunkel's original version of The Sound of Silence. As was the prophetized warning of our coming alienation from one another. By our lack of one on one or face to face communication with each other that was beginning to break down. David Draiman gave us a renewed cry. For the times now as a S.O.S Wake Up Call with a developed empathetic concerned anger. In order to see of what's left of our humanity's soul, and ACKNOWLEDGE within 'the sound of silence' our spiritual disconnect that became more alien to us to connect as human beings. Who have been conditioned far to long to worship,fight and struggle for the wrong reasons at times. Within this technological neon god we have created. That's in, and the material world of ours. which has and still is creating too much and far to many false material profits that have been splitting and alienating us further apart.
10. anonymous

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    Nov 27th 2017 !⃝

    I believe the song is about PTSD and nightmares. The silence represents the night and the quiet and the sound represents the things in someone's head that haunts them at night. Given the time it was written it could be about a soldier suffering from what we now call PTSD. No one daring to disturb it may have to do with the fact that we were unaware of the problem back when the song was written.

    This interpretation has been marked as poor. view anyway
11. anonymous

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    Oct 18th 2017 !⃝

    Written during the Vietnam war era. Country rent nearly in pieces. Maybe this was Simon and Garfunkel backdrop?

    This interpretation has been marked as poor. view anyway
12. anonymous

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    Oct 13th 2017 !⃝

    I believe in God giving visions, and I believe God is telling them that they are putting all of their hopes and dreams on things of this earth instead of things above. You can keep searching for things to make you happy but they don't, and until you make that decision to follow what your soul is really in need of you will still have that sound of silence . The great awakening will be when you have turned your life to the one who made you and find that peace that only God can give.
13. anonymous

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    Oct 1st 2017 !⃝

    Clearly this could be prophetic of the inability to communicate due to our new neon God the cell phone. No one talks and no one listens anymore. They sit in silence and stair into their screens. Spoken words with real meaning are not heard. Just text me.
14. anonymous

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    Aug 30th 2017 !⃝

    he is going to a dark spiritual place.. he is talking to God. Its about peoples abandonment of God. vision of heaven.. people talking without speaking is how spiritual communication takes place. Same as listening. People worshiping neon excitement over God.. His silent teardrops fell on hollow heads/ears
15. anonymous

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    Jul 20th 2017 !⃝

    I always thought that when it says, Hello darkness my old friend, he is talking to a black cup of coffee.

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