Music is an important part of every film. Even before there were "talking pictures" the filmmakers used music as background noise to help tell the story. With or without words music can be so powerful that it increases the intensity of the film immensely. Can you imagine Fantasia without all of its classical scores? There are many theories about music in film today. While some believe it adds a lot to film others think that music should never be secondary to images. I believe that the two go hand in hand equally to bring the best of the audio and visual worlds together. Especially now that lyrics have come into play. The words of a song can bring so much more emotion to a scene than dialogue can in certain cases. I have found this amazingly true in The Graduate. Simon and Garfunkel take the concept of music in film to a new level by having the movie explained in their lyrics. To me, "Sound of Silence" becomes the subconscious Ben Braddock. The words of the song delve into his inner self to try to describe his thought and feelings. This paper will interpret the lyrics of "Sounds of Silence" in accordance with The Graduate. This is important because by explicating the lyrics the depth of the film becomes more dynamic.
The more time he spends with Elaine, the more he peels away his wall to her. He realizes that his life of silence does not have to live forever and maybe he is not dead inside after all. He becomes more naked, mentally and begins to see other people in their lives and how they too can live in silence. Ben realizes that Mrs. Robinson is one of those people. He sees her for what she really is, someone "talking without speaking," and "hearing without listening." This is why Ben told Elaine of the affair, not to mess everything up, but to fade the silence. Mrs. Robinson may have thought it would change up her life a bit to have an affair with Ben but it never mattered, not to her, just to Elaine. Elaine is real and she doesn't know the sound of silence, which is what attracts Ben to her.
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