The Sound of Silence

The Sound of Silence:
An Analysis of Selected Songs by Simon and Garfunkel
Diplomarbeit
zur Erlangung des akademischen Grades

eines Magisters der Philosophie
an der Karl-Franzens-Universität Graz
vorgelegt von
Georg LUKAS
am Institut für Anglistik
Begutachter: Ao. Univ.-Prof. Mag. Dr. phil. Hugo Keiper
Graz, 2016
Acknowledgements
There are many people who supported me throughout the process of writing this diploma
thesis.
First and foremost, I want to thank my professor Dr. Hugo Keiper for his patience and support
throughout my writing process. It was his passion for songwriters and song lyrics that inspired
me to write this thesis.
Obviously I am also very grateful to my parents, who were willing to listen to my occasional
complaints and encouraged me to continue my efforts in this thesis. My parents were also the
ones to introduce me to the music of Simon and Garfunkel in the first place.
Finally, I want to thank my sisters, Emma and Elisabeth, who have become quite the experts
on Simon and Garfunkel by now.
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Table of Contents
1. Introduction 5
2. Paul Simon 7
3. Simon and Garfunkel 9
4. Introduction: Song Analysis 12
5. “The Sound of Silence” 13

5.1. Historical Background 13
5.2. Impact 14
5.3. Music and Structure of “The Sound of Silence” 14
5.4. Analysis and Interpretation of “The Sound of Silence” 17
6. “Mrs. Robinson” 22
6.2. Impact 23
6.3. Music and Structure of “Mrs. Robinson” 23
6.4. Analysis and Interpretation of “Mrs. Robinson” 25
7. “The Boxer” 33
7.2. Impact 33
7.3. Music and Structure of “The Boxer” 34
7.4. Analysis and Interpretation of “The Boxer” 35
8. “Bridge Over Troubled Water” 43

8.2. Impact 43
8.3. Music and Structure of “Bridge Over Troubled Water” 44
8.4. Analysis and Interpretation of “Bridge Over Troubled Water” 46
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9. “You can call me Al” 53
9.2. Impact 53
9.3. Music and Structure of “You can call me Al” 54
9.4. Analysis and Interpretation of “You can call me Al” 57
10. Conclusion 65
11. References 67
12. Appendix 70
12.1. English Abstract 70
12.2. German Abstract 71
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1. Introduction
There are many artists throughout music history who have had an enormous impact on the
music of their time and subsequently on other artists. Some of these artists have gone on to be
landmarks in music history, while others do not quite get the attention and admiration they
would deserve. There is, however, no doubt about the fact that Simon and Garfunkel belong
to the former group of artists. Simon and Garfunkel are amongst the rare phenomena in pop
music that have helped to define and shape an era. The continuing fame and admiration of this
folk-rock duo speak for themselves. Even if people are unfamiliar with Simon and Garfunkel
as such, they most likely know their songs or have heard them at some point. The reason for
this lies in Simon and Garfunkel’s ability to create melodies and convey lyrics that have
resonated with many people and continue to do so to this day. Undoubtedly, the musical
genius of Paul Simon played a major role in the lasting success of Simon and Garfunkel. After
all, he was the songwriter of the duo and has continued to write songs after Simon and
Garfunkel. The main focus of this diploma thesis will be on the examination of the lyrics of a
number of representative songs by Simon and Garfunkel and Paul Simon.
In order to be able to analyse the songs I will first, examine who Simon himself was and
where he came from. This is done in order to achieve a deeper understand of the musical force
behind Simon and Garfunkel. The biographical section about Paul Simon is also provided, to
illustrate that Paul Simon still continues to be an influential singer and songwriter today. I will
shortly discuss his life, his importance within “Simon and Garfunkel”, his influence on
contemporary music and the impact he has had on the music scene in general.
Similarly, I will outline the history and impact of “Simon and Garfunkel” in the next. I will
discuss the beginning of the band and their rise to fame and finally the band’s breakup. There
will also be a short discussion of the impact Simon and Garfunkel have had on the music
scene during their time and their continuing influence on our present music, as well as their
presence in contemporary pop culture. Again, the purpose of this section is to provide
historical background in order to facilitate the analysis done in the main part of my thesis.
Historical contexts are often crucial to understanding the content that the artist is trying to
convey. This is particularly true of the singers and songwriters active in the folk genre of the
1960s and 70s, who would make political or social statements in their songs rather frequently.
5
The main part of my thesis will consist of the analysis and interpretation of the songs. I have
selected five representative songs by Simon and Garfunkel and Paul Simon: “The Sound of
Silence”, “Mrs. Robinson”, “The Boxer” and “Bridge over troubled Water”. These four songs
were created and performed by Simon and Garfunkel during their active career in the second
half of the 1960s. I have chosen these particular Simon and Garfunkel-songs is because they
provide rich lyrical content and therefore, many different ways of interpreting them.
Moreover, the songs represent the active years of Simon and Garfunkel and thus, reflect their
entire career. Furthermore, the songs mentioned above are among the most famous songs ever
created, which makes the content of the lyrics easily accessible for any reader. In addition, I
will also analyse and interpret the song “You can call me Al” by Paul Simon, which he
composed as a solo artist in the 1980s. As mentioned above, Paul Simon was the musical head
of Simon and Garfunkel and did most if not all of the composing. Therefore, it seems fitting
to examine a song by Paul Simon that was not composed or sung within the context of Simon
and Garfunkel.
I will devote one section of my thesis to each song. Besides the analysis and the interpretation
of the songs, I will always shortly outline the specific history, impact and the music and
structure of each song. The exact procedure of the analysis and the interpretation will be
outlined in the main part of my thesis.
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2. Paul Simon
Paul Simon was born in Newark, New Jersey in 19411. He grew up in a musical family, his
father being a bass player. His musical endeavours started when he met Art Garfunkel at the
age of 11 in school. Art Garfunkel would turn out be an integral part of Simon’s career from
an early stage onwards. Together they started singing and performing at school dances and
Simon started writing songs for the duo. In 1957 the duo, then known under the name Tom
and Jerry, landed their first hit “Hey, schoolgirl”, written by Simon, which reached No. 49 in
the charts. After graduation from High School he studied English at Queens College in New
York and earned a degree in English literature.
In the following years until 1964, he wrote several songs and sometimes worked together with
Art Garfunkel. This cooperation would later lead to the formation of Simon and Garfunkel.
The band Simon and Garfunkel will be discussed in further detail in the next section of this
thesis.
After the breakup of Simon and Garfunkel in 1970, at the height of their success, Paul Simon
and Art Garfunkel went on to pursue separate paths. Garfunkel tried to get a foothold in
acting, while Simon was focussing on his solo career. He released his album Paul Simon in
1972, which was quite successful in the USA and the UK. In this album the experimental
nature of Paul Simon can be seen quite clearly, especially in the song “Mother and Child
Reunion”. This particular song made Simon one of the first white men to be influenced by
reggae in his song-writing. Generally the first half of the 1970s proved to be a very productive
and successful period for Simon. After this great success with the album Paul Simon in 1972
he released There Goes Rhymin' Simon in 1973 and Still Crazy After All These Years in 1975.
These last two albums also proved to be immense successes, both commercially and critically,
containing some of Simon’s most popular songs, such as "Kodachrome", "Loves Me Like a
Rock" or "50 Ways to Leave Your Lover", the latter even reaching number 1 on the Billboard
Charts.
1
Biographical information taken from:
“Paul Simon” (n.d.). [Online]. Wikipedia. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Simon [17th May 2016].
“Simon and Garfunkel” (n.d.). [Online]. Wikipedia. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Simon_%26_Garfunkel [17th
May 2016].
“Biography” (n.d.). [Online]. The Paul Simon Official Site. http://www.paulsimon.com/about/ [17th May 2016].
7
In the second half of the 1970s and the first half of the 1980s there was a considerable decline
in Simon’s career and productivity. Even though he was involved in several projects, none of
them became major hits. Noteworthy in this context is the album Hearts and Bones, released
in 1983. The album was initially intended to be a collaborative effort between Paul Simon and
Art Garfunkel, which would have been the first real reunion of “Simon and Garfunkel” since
their breakup. However, the project failed when Garfunkel left early on. This lead Simon to
release Hearts and Bones as a solo album, and none of Garfunkel’s contributions were
included. The album itself was a commercial flop and is considered a low point of Simon’s
career.
In an attempt to overcome the stagnation of his career, Simon began to work on a new project
the mid-80s. This project later became the highly acclaimed album Graceland. In order to do
the recording he travelled to South Africa to draw inspiration from the culture. Graceland
turned out to be mixture of many different styles, which made Simon’s record label doubt that
it would a mainstream success. However, the album became Simon’s greatest success in over
a decade. Mark Vinet states in his book Evolution of Modern Popular Music: A History of
Blues, Jazz, Country, R&B, Rock and Rap:
A landmark […] was the 1988 award-winning album Graceland, by American musician Paul
Simon, which represented a widely successful collaboration between Simon and black South-
African musicians. Graceland played an important role in exposing ethno beat to audiences in
Europe and North America. (Vinet 2004: 163)
The impact of Graceland was immense. The most lasting and recognised song of this album
was probably the hit single “You can call me Al”, which was major success in the 1980s.
Simon’s next album was called The Rhythm of the Saints and proved to be a similarly
successful as Graceland. In this album Simon focussed more on the Brazilian tradition. Vinet
explains:
Four years later, Simon delivered The Rhythm of the Saints, which did for Brazilian music
what Graceland had done for South-African music and was another multi-platinum seller.
[…]. In working with instrumentalists outside the Euro-American mainstream, these artists
appear to have been inspired by an interest in fresh sounds as well as by a search for music
that seemed authentic and uncontaminated by the commercial music industry. (Vinet 2004:
163)
Simon’s willingness to bring in new elements from different genres and cultures is quite
evident in these two albums, which, as already mentioned, had an enormous impact on the
music scene to this day. Generally, it can be said that Simon was going through a rather
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experimental phase in the 1980s in which he included all the influences mentioned above in
his music. This goes to show Simon’s eagerness to broaden his musical horizons.
In the early 1990s Simon was heavily involved in writing a musical called The Capeman,
which opened in 1998. Before the opening of the musical he released the album Songs from
The Capeman. Both the musical and the album were commercial failures. Critical reviews
were not particularly good, especially regarding the musical. The musical and the album
proved to be one of the greatest flops in his career.
After the commercial and critical failure of his musical, Simon found himself in a crisis again
in the late 1990s. However, this time he managed to quickly regain his success with the
release of his album You’re the One in 2000. The album was considered a comeback for
Simon and was his first successful album since The Rhythm of Saints. Simon found himself
again on a successful path. His next album Surprise was another commercial success. Simon’s
success has lasted to this day. His latest album is called So Beautiful or So What, which was
yet another major success, both critically and commercially.
As can be seen, Paul Simon has been and still is very active, influential and successful in the
music business. Despite the fact the he is and will remain to be better known for his work
within Simon and Garfunkel, his solo career was certainly just as successful and influential as
his career within Simon and Garfunkel. He received 12 Grammy Awards and also received an
Oscar nomination for his song “Father and Daughter” in 2002. This goes to show that Paul
Simon is a highly active singer and songwriter even to this day. He has remained a prominent
and successful songwriter over several decades, which is something not many artists have
achieved in their lives
3. Simon and Garfunkel
The early beginning of Simon and Garfunkel can be traced back to the childhood friendship of
Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel. They began making music together at a very early stage2.
They wrote songs and performed under the name Tom and Jerry and they were even signed
on to a record label. The duo began writing their own songs in 1955, and made their first
2
Information taken from:
Simon and Garfunkel” (n.d.). [Online]. Wikipedia. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Simon_%26_Garfunkel [17th
May 2016].
“Biography“(n.d.). [Online]. The Official Simon Garfunkel Site.
http://www.simonandgarfunkel.com/biography/ [17th May 2016].
9
professional recording, "Hey, Schoolgirl," for “Big Records” in 1957. Their first major hit
was "Dancin' Wild," which sold over a 100.000 copies. The duo tried to keep on being as
successful, which, initially they could not manage to do.
In the year 1963 they started working on their debut album having already adopted the new
name Simon and Garfunkel. This album was called Wednesday Morning, 3 AM and was
recorded for Columbia Records and released in 1964. It contained several songs written by
Paul Simon. One of those songs was called “The Sounds of Silence”. This was the early
version of the later popular “The Sound of Silence”. The album itself did rather poorly on the
commercial level. One of the reasons for this might be the rise of The Beatles at that time,
which put Simon and Garfunkel in their shadow. Soon after the release of their debut album
Simon and Garfunkel split up to go their separate ways. While Simon was in England that
summer of 1965, an increased interest in „The Sounds of Silence" was noted by their
management. The song also began to receive radio airplay in Boston. As a reaction to that the
duo’s producer, Tom Wilson dubbed electric guitars, bass and drums onto the original
"Sounds of Silence" track, thus turning the original folksong into a folk rock song.
Neither Simon nor Garfunkel were happy with the changes Wilson had made but due to the
immense success they accepted it. They reunited to record more songs in the new style. They
released their second album called Sounds of Silence in 1966 now with the slightly changed
title “The Sound of Silence”. The new version of “The Sound of Silence” had reached number
1 in the billboard charts by New Year’s Day 1966. The album itself reached number 21 in the
album charts. Furthermore, Wednesday Morning, 3 AM was re-released and reached number
30. Since the duo did not have too much time to come up with new songs after they reunited,
Sounds of Silence was mostly a compilation of songs they had already made.
The next album was released in October 1966 and was called Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and
Thyme, which included mostly original songs written by Simon and the album was named one
of the 500 greatest albums by Rolling Stone Magazine. The name comes from the second line
of the album's first track, "Scarborough Fair/Canticle".
Another important stage with Simon and Garfunkel is the film The Graduate3. In the
year 1967 they were working intensely on the soundtrack for this film. This would prove to be
a major boost in the duo’s career and popularity. The movie was released in early 1968 and
the movie soundtrack album rose to number one of the charts almost immediately. Soon after
3
Nichols, Mike, Director (1967). The Graduate [Film]. AVCO Embassy Pictures.
10
that Simon and Garfunkel released their new album Bookends which also became a huge
success. The most famous song on that album is certainly “Mrs. Robinson”. However, the
version used in the film is slightly different from the one on the album, which most people are
probably familiar with. The soundtrack of the film also used “The Sound of Silence”.
Originally “The Sound of Silence” was only used to determine the pace of the scene. It was
supposed to be replaced by music that had been originally composed for the movie. However,
they decided to buy the rights for “The Sound of silence” and put it into the movie. Nowadays
it is commonplace to put music in movies that is already popular, which was quite
revolutionary at the time. This is certainly one of the many reasons for Simon and Garfunkel’s
long-lasting fame and on-going popularity.
They started working on their next album briefly after the release of Bookends. However, the
release was delayed several times for various reasons. Garfunkel began pursuing a career in
acting, which put quite a strain on the working schedule. Furthermore, the personal
relationship between Simon and Garfunkel started to fall apart. Thus the recording of their
final album called Bridge Over Troubled Water was not without tension. This can be seen in
the fact that the album only has 11 instead of 12 (as originally planned) because the duo just
could not agree on what to include. Since the work on this album was rather intense and time-
consuming they had to turn down an invitation to perform at Woodstock-Festival in 1969. The
album itself was released in 1970 and was hugely successful, including songs such as “Bridge
over troubled water”, “Cecilia” and “The Boxer”. This album marked the very height of the
popularity of Simon and Garfunkel. However, later in the year 1970 they decided to split-up
again. Garfunkel moved more towards films while Simon stayed in the music business. In the
next couple of years there were several shorts reunions of Simon and Garfunkel mostly for
charity. Important to mention here is their 2003 tour in the USA called Old Friends.
All in all, it can be said that their influence was enormous and wide-reaching. From the very
beginning of their fame, through the present time years after their break-up, Simon and
Garfunkel have had a considerable impact on the popular culture. This becomes quite
apparent in the numerous references made on TV in music etc. Their songs continue to be
played on radio stations and many of their songs have been covered over and over again. One
of the more recent examples is the TV-show “How I met your mother”4. In the 22nd episode of
the 4th series Marshall (one of the main characters) presents two over-lapping circles. One of
4
Lloyd, Stephen (2009). How I met your Mother (Right Place, Right Time): Season 4 episode 22. CBS
Broadcasting, Inc.
11
the circles represents the "people who are breaking his heart" while the other represents
"people who are shaking his confidence daily". The overlapping section is labelled “Cecilia”.
This is quite clearly a reference to the song “Cecilia” by Simon and Garfunkel, which is also
part of their album Bridge Over Troubled Water. References and parodies of any kind are
always a sign of the vitality and endurance of what is being referenced or parodied. It goes to
show that the music of Simon and Garfunkel is alive and wide-spread, even several decades
after its original release; otherwise such references would not be understood.
4. Introduction: Song Analysis
In this main part of my diploma thesis I will, interpret and analyse the following songs in the
introduction. Each analysis of each song will follow the same basic two-part structure. In the
first part I will provide historical background for the song including its origin and
development over the years to the present. This is done in order to achieve a better
understanding of the song in question and the various ways its lyrics can be interpreted in.
Another aspect of this “Historical Background”-segment of my thesis will include the impact
the song in question has had or still has on the contemporary culture and music. This is done
in order to show the influence “Simon and Garfunkel”, in particular Paul Simon as the main
writer and composer, have had in the music scene over the last decades. Furthermore, I will
discuss and interpret the relationship between the lyrics and the melody and examine the
overall structure and the rhyme scheme of the song. This is done because the melody
oftentimes contributes greatly to the meaning of the song and it helps facilitate the analysis.
Therefore, one has to consider the melody and the music to which the lyrics are set to in order
to fully understand the meaning behind them.
In the main part of my analysis I will discuss the songs’ potential meaning and the message of
the lyrics. In order to do this, I will provide the lyrics of the verses and choruses/refrains and
subject each one of them to a critical analysis. Different possible meanings and interpretations
are examined to find the most plausible explanations.
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5. “The Sound of Silence”
5.1. Historical Background
“The Sound of Silence” is the first song in my analysis. It is the first great hit by “Simon and
Garfunkel” and one of their most famous songs.
As with all of the Simon and Garfunkel songs the writing and composing of “The Sound of
Silence” was done by Paul Simon. The song “The Sound of Silence”, as already mentioned in
the previous section of my thesis, was originally part of the album Wednesday Morning, 3
AM, which initially was a commercial failure. However, their producer, Tom Wilson, noticed
that this particular song was receiving more airplay. Therefore, he decided to remix the song
and turn it into a folk-rock piece, unbeknownst to Simon and Garfunkel, who had split up at
the time. The remix became immensely successful, prompting Simon and Garfunkel to
reunite. “The Sound of Silence” became one of the duo’s most successful and famous songs
and became their definite break-through in the music scene. Therefore, it comes as no surprise
that the remix version of “The Sound of Silence” is the one that most people are most familiar
with.
“The Sound of Silence” did not only have a great influence on the career of Simon and
Garfunkel but on other areas as well. As a result their success they were asked to write songs
for the movie The Graduate. In this movie songs of the duo were used rather than a film
score. However, the most revolutionary part was the decision to include “The Sound of
Silence” in the movie. Before that only original music had been used for movies. As can be
seen in later movies, the strategy of including songs that are already immensely successful in
films has become a standard in film making.
The biography on Simon and Garfunkel’s official homepage states: “To say that the
soundtrack started a lasting trend would be an understatement”5. [The Official Simon and
Garfunkel Site: 11th April 2016]
5
“Biography” (n.d.). [Online]. The Official Simon and Garfunkel Site.
http://www.simonandgarfunkel.com/us/content/biography [11th April 2016].
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5.2. Impact
“The Sound of Silence” is arguably one of the most famous songs of all time and remains so
to this day. This is certainly due to the fact that it deals with issues that are still relevant today
and will certainly continue to be relevant in the future. The on-going popularity of the song
can be shown in numerous references, covers and parodies ever since its release. One of the
more recent examples is an episode of The Simpsons, season 5, episode 21 (Lady Bouvier’s
Lover)6, which includes a parody of “The Sound of Silence” at the end. The entire episode
pays homage to the film The Graduate. The inclusion of “The Sound of Silence” in The
Graduate redefined the way music is used in movie and contributed greatly to the continuing
popularity of the song. Due to the wide-spread use and impact of “The Sound of Silence”
most people have heard the song at some point, even if they are unfamiliar with the duo
Simon and Garfunkel.
5.3. Music and Structure of “The Sound of Silence”
There are many things to be said about the music and structure of this particular song.
Generally speaking, songs by Simon and Garfunkel always tend to have a strong emphasis on
the lyrics rather than on the melody. The melody is always in the background and kept simple
and accessible. However, the words “simple” and “accessible” should not be confused with
“cheap” and “clichéd”. Despite the fact that the melody is kept accessible, it can still be
complex and multi-layered. The main function of the melody in “The Sound of Silence”, or
indeed most Simon and Garfunkel songs for that matter, seems to be to support the lyrics and
convey the message of the song. This is also a common feature amongst other artist of that
time, especially in the folk-genre. Most of the singers and songwriters of that time were
essentially poets, who placed a much greater emphasis on the lyrics than on the melody. This
seems to be the case in “The Sound of Silence” as well. This becomes particularly obvious,
when we take a look at the original version of “The Sound of Silence” on the album
Wednesday Morning, 3 AM7, before it was commissioned for the remix by Tom Wilson. In
this early version of “The Sound of Silence” only Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel are singing
6
Mirkin, David (1994). The Simpson: Season 5 episode 21 (Lady Bouvier’s Lover) [TV- Series]. Fox Network.
7
Simon and Garfunkel (1964). Wednesday Morning, 3AM: “The Sound of Silence“. Columbia Studios, New
York.
14
and they are exclusively accompanied by guitar. The music is remains almost the same for all
the verse and so the changes throughout the entire song are minimal. Generally, the music is
kept much more in the background than in the remixed version, although it should be noted
that even in the remixed version the lyrics and the vocals of Simon and Garfunkel are at the
centre of attention. This is so despite the fact that the addition of drums, electric guitar etc.
make it more difficult to understand the words at times. In my analysis of the song’s meaning
I will proceed with the remixed version of the song in mind, since it is the one that most
people are familiar with. However, I do think it makes sense to briefly point out the major
differences between the two versions. This will help to reach a deeper understanding of the
meaning of the lyrics and the artist’s intentions. It seems the main intent was to convey as
much of the lyrics as possible to the audience, without the melody interfering too much with
the comprehensibility of the words. For this reason only an acoustic guitar was employed,
which allows the artist to accompany a song in an effective way while at same time avoiding
overpowering the singing or distracting from it. This effect is held up for the duration of the
original song, in fact the song ends as unspectacularly, in terms of melody, as it begins. This,
however, is not entirely true for the remixed, albeit famous, version of “The Sound of
Silence”, which was included in their second studio album, Sounds of Silence8. The remixed
version begins with the same acoustic guitar introduction as the original version, however,
increasingly throughout the song electric bass, guitar and drums are added and their volume
gets higher bit by bit. This process reaches its climax in verses 3 and 4 where the background
music becomes loudest and most prominent. In the last verse the added background music
retreats slowly until it fades out. The remixed song concludes with an electric guitar outro,
which is the same as the original song melody-wise. This adds a slightly different, more
dramatic spin to the song, especially when looking at the middle verse of the song. The song
still focusses on the two singers and the lyrics but the added music here appears to push itself
into the foreground at times, and thus slightly distracts from the content and the meaning of
the lyrics. This can be seen in the remixed version in the refrain of verse 4 (“and echoed in the
wells of Silence”) in which Simon and Garfunkel reduce the volume in their singing but the
background music more or less stays the same, thereby nearly overpowering the two singers.
This might not be of great significance in this instance, since it is the refrain, which the
listener should be familiar with by now. However, in general, at least some of the listeners’
focus is drawn away from the singing and the lyrics to the accompanying instruments. As to
whether or not the added background music helps to convey the intense and dramatic content
8
Simon and Garfunkel (1966). Sounds of Silence: “The Sound of Silence”. Columbia Studios, New York.
15
of the lyrics better or simply distracts from it, is a difficult question to answer and would
probably exceed the limits of this thesis.
As I have mentioned above, most singers and songwriters of that time were essentially poets,
which means that the lyrics of their songs can also to be treated as poems. When looking at
the general structure of the lyrics, we see that they can be divided into 5 verses with the first
three verses containing seven lines. The fourth verse contains only six lines and the fifth verse
contains eight. Concerning the rhyme scheme there is a general pattern to the verses. The first
six lines of the first three verses are rhyming couplets followed by a single non-rhyming line
to conclude the verse. This would result in a rhyme scheme for the first verse of AA, BB, CC
and D. This rhyme scheme applies to all but the last two verses. Since there are a different
number of lines in these particular verses, it follows naturally that there must be a different
rhyme scheme. Another interesting aspect of this particular song is the lack of a chorus.
Usually it is quite common for a song to have a chorus that marks the transition from one
verse to the next. However, in this case there is no such thing as a chorus; in fact there is
hardly any pause or musical interlude between the individual verses at all. The only repetitive
element in this song is the constant reference to the “silence” at the end of every verse. In this
case what we are looking at is indeed a refrain. Whitesell writes in his book The Music of Joni
Mitchell: “A refrain occurs when a portion of each verse always has the same lyrics. In
contrast to a chorus, a refrain is not musically self-contained; it begins or ends incompletely”.
(Whitesell 2008: 148). However, it should be noted that “The Sound of Silence”, as will be
shown, does not have a “perfect” refrain, meaning that in each verse the refrain slightly varies
and is therefore never identical with the one that came before. The only real constant is, as
mentioned above, the word “silence”. Whitesell writes:
It should be mentioned in passing that the difference between refrain and chorus is not always
cut-and-dried; both refer to passages of unchanging music and text providing a periodic sense
of return. As I use the terms, the distinction between the two is based on notions of structural
coherence; a clear –cut chorus will consist of a complete, closed musical section, markedly
distinct from the verse that is itself a complete section. But in practice, of course, songwriters
may wish to explore ambiguity or interdependence rather than clarity of formal division.
(Whitesell 2008: 151).
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5.4. Analysis and Interpretation: “The Sound of Silence”
The first thing the audience realises is the fact that there is obviously a first person speaker in
this song. This can be seen quite clearly by the frequent use of the words I and my throughout
the entire verse.
Verse 19: Rhyme Scheme:
1. Hello, darkness, my old friend A

2. I've come to talk with you again (A)
3. Because a vision softly creeping B
4. Left its seeds while I was sleeping B
5. And the vision that was planted in my brain C
6. Still remains (C)
7. Within the sound of silence X
As we can, see the speaker addresses “the darkness” directly as an “old friend” in the first
line. So it appears that the speaker has a tendency to frequently seek refuge in the darkness
from the world around him. This indicated by the word “again” at the end of the second line.
This seems to entail a form of escapism in the mind of the speaker. He apparently runs from
the world and seems to find comfort in the dark with his own thoughts. In lines 3 and 4 the
speaker mentions the reason for his urge to talk to the darkness, as he is referring to a “vision”
in the third line. Apparently in this case the speaker has a special reason for wanting to talk to
his “old friend”. From the way it is described, the “vision” that is referred to in line 3 could be
a dream the speaker has had. This is apparently stated in line 4, pointing out that he was in
fact “sleeping”. However, they wording in line 4 suggests that the dream was only the starting
point of this vision and is now capturing his entire mind and is growing into something bigger
(“left its seed”). It is also apparent that the speaker seems to think that the “vision” he refers to
is not of his own making but “was planted in my brain”. This could refer to ideas and
concepts which are not the concepts and ideas of the speaker but someone else’s and now
captivate him entirely. This becomes clear when he states that the images of said “vision” are
still present in his mind, as can be seen in lines 5-7. In this first verse it is most likely that the
narrator is talking about a dream he has had, perhaps even a nightmare. It is suggested that an
outside influence induced this dream/nightmare. In order to process the events of the
dream/nightmare he seeks refuge in the darkness. It is of course also possible that the speaker
9
Lyrics taken from:
Amsco Publications (1990) Paul Simon Anthology. New York: Amsco Publications (217-221).
17
has had an actual vision of the present or future. However, reading the lyrics, especially in the
second verse, it seems plausible to conclude that it was in fact a dream/nightmare. Paul Simon
himself said about the beginning of the song that he liked to play and try out new things in a
dark environment, especially his bathroom10. Now being with his “old friend”, the speaker
apparently tries to uncover the meaning of his “visions” and what to do with them.
The second stanza starts setting the scene of the dream/vision the narrator had.
Verse 2:
8. In restless dreams I walked alone A

9. Narrow streets of cobblestone A
10. 'Neath the halo of a streetlamp B
11. I turned my collar to the cold and damp B
12. When my eyes were stabbed by the flash of a neon light C
13. That split the night C
14. And touched the sound of silence X
The overall theme of this second verse is the description of what the speaker has seen in his
visions/dreams. In the very first line the speaker states that he had “restless dreams”, which
sets the mood for the rest of the song. This confirms the suspicion that the “vision” mentioned
in the first verse was in fact also a dream. Generally, the entire verse conveys the feeling that
the speaker was not really comfortable in this dream. When it comes to the feelings the
speaker has in the scenery he seems, at best, uneasy. Many different factors contribute to this
atmosphere in this setting, which can be described as uncanny and ambiguous. For example in
line 9 there is a mention of “narrow streets”, which conveys a feeling of constriction to the
reader and it becomes clear that the speaker is not in a place he wants be in. Furthermore, the
location in which this dream takes place seems to be a rather cold and dark one as it says in
line 11 “ I turned my collar from the cold and damp”. This is another indicator of how
unpleasant a place this must be for the speaker. More and more, the reader gets the
impression that the dreamer is living through a rather desolate and bleak scenario. In addition
to that there is a mention of a flash of “neon light that split the night” in lines 12 and 13,
which seems to disrupt the night. Considering the unnatural origin of the neon light and the
previous tone of the verse it is safe to assume that the disruption caused by the neon light was
not a pleasant and welcome one. In fact the beam of light seems rather alien and hostile
towards the speaker, since he describes the experience as his eyes being “stabbed”. Initially,
the speaker is in a very dark and cold place in which a spark of light would be a welcome
10
“The Sound of Silence” (n.d.). [Online]. Wikipedia. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Sound_of_Silence [12th
April 2016].
18
change. However, when the light finally does come, it is essentially as unpleasant and
uncomfortable as the solitude in those dark narrow streets. The speaker might be out in the
streets looking for something but what he finds instead is not really what he had hoped for.
All in all, it can be said that the dream described by the dreamer in this verse is a rather
unpleasant, in some ways, even disturbing one. As a reader one gets the impression that the
dreamer does not really want to be there and would rather leave but for some reason cannot do
so.
15. And in the naked light I saw A

16. Ten thousand people, maybe more (A)
17. People talking without speaking B
18. People hearing without listening B
19. People writing songs that voices never shared C
20. No one dared C
21. Disturb the sound of silence X
In this verse the dreamer goes into more detail about the dream he had. It is shown that he is
in fact not alone but there are “ten thousand people, maybe more”, as is revealed in line 16.
This is contrary to what we have seen so far. Up until this point the speaker has always
appeared to be by himself, with no other person present. It seems that the “flash of a neon
light” that was mentioned in the last verse, made it possible for the dreamer to see the others.
The dreamer goes on to describe the people in this setting. What becomes clear is that the
people in this dream seem to take little to no notice of each other, or of the speaker for that
matter. They seem to ignore each other or rather not dare to acknowledge each other, as is
suggested in lines 20 and 21. It seems as though the people in this dream apparently lack the
ability to communicate successfully or, as mentioned above, no one really dares to
communicate successfully with each other. When we read through the lyrics it seems very
likely that the people mentioned in this verse are afraid of something or someone. It is
unknown what it is that frightens the masses, so much so that they apparently remain
completely non-interactive. However, it turns out that they are not entirely non-interactive.
They do “talk” and “hear” and “write songs” but any possible meanings behind these
conversations are unvoiced. Instead of talking to each other or listening to each other they
decided not to engage in any serious conversation, thus keeping it superficial and trivial.
19
It is very likely that Simon is here criticizing society and its members for not listening to each
other or not speaking out against certain social or political ills. This was a common thing to
do amongst singers and songwriters at that time and, depending on the genre, it still is today.
Therefore, it is reasonable to assume that there is a social and political dimension to this song.
Interestingly, the situation of the people described in this dream is very much reminiscent, in
way, of the situation German-speaking countries were in during the Biedermeier. In this era
people retreated into their private lives and did not dare to discuss openly any matters of
importance or substance out of fear of prosecution.

22. "Fools," said I, "You do not know A
23. Silence like a cancer grows A
24. Hear my words that I might teach you B
25. Take my arms that I might reach you" B
26. But my words like silent raindrops fell C
27. And echoed in the wells of silence X
This particular verse is interesting in many ways. First of all, the structure and the rhyme
scheme differ slightly from the other verses. This verse only contains six lines whereas the
first three all contain seven. Concerning the rhyme scheme we have two rhyming couplets
followed by two non-rhyming lines. Furthermore, it is the only stanza to contain direct speech
within the dream. Here the dreamer is addressing the people in his dream directly. He warns
them about the “danger” of silence and urges them to listen to him and follow him. It is stated
quite clearly that “silence” nurtures “silence”. Therefore, the more people remain silent the
more people will become silent, which is a vicious cycle that needs to be broken. The dreamer
tries to “break” the silence and makes an effort to get the people to interact with him. The
dreamer presents himself as a sort of prophet or teacher trying to lead people out of their
silence into a different age. This can certainly be interpreted as a reference to the political and
social changes that took place in the 1960s. In that particular period of time people started to
be much more vocal about their opinions and beliefs. This also has to be seen in the context of
the on-going Vietnam War, which at the time started to lose more and more support in the
general population. Writing these lyrics, Simon most likely wanted to encouraged his
generation to take more initiative and not accept things as they are. However, in the song, the
words of the dreamer remain unheard and without effect. In the end, silence wins.
20
Verse 5: Rhyme Scheme
28. And the people bowed and prayed A
29. To the neon god they made A
30. And the sign flashed out its warning B
31. In the words that it was forming B
32. And the sign said, "The words of the prophets X
33. Are written on the subway walls C
34. And tenement halls C
35. And whispered in the sounds of silence Y
As with the fourth verse, this one varies a little from the first three verses. Here we have eight
lines and in terms of structure we have a different rhyme scheme. At first there are two
rhyming couplets (lines 28-31) that are followed by one non-rhyming line (line 32). Then we
have another rhyming couplet (lines 33 and 34) and as with the first three verses, one single
non-rhyming line at the end of the verse. However, looking at the verse phonetically, it
follows the pattern and rhyme scheme of the first three verses. Lines 32 and 33 just become
one line which in turn rhymes with line 34.
In this verse the dreamer describes the effects and the causes of the silence at the same time.
He describes how the people are “bowing” and “praying” to “the neon god they made”. Here
the people are following their “god”, be it politics or social institutions without thinking and
reflecting on why they are doing so, which in turn creates more silence. It is also made
abundantly clear that the situation the people are in is entirely of their own making. The
implication is that people could achieve quite a lot if they could get themselves to speak up
and do something about their situation. Nothing can be achieved with people being silent and
adhering to power structures. However, in the next lines it becomes evident that there will
always be individuals who will provoke the public opinion and force people to think and
reflect on their lives. This is apparent in lines 30 through 34. Here, people are made aware of
the fact that new ideas are out there only waiting to be found. Usually these ideas start out as
underground movements, which is why they are “written on the subway walls and tenement
halls”. The very last line indicates that, regardless of how overwhelming the silence is, there
will always be voices for change and new ideas no matter how quite they are. It is the fact that
an idea, once it is unleashed and spreads amongst the masses, cannot be eradicated anyone, no
matter how powerful they might be. This is indicated in the very last line with the words “And
whispered in the sounds of silence”.
21
6. “Mrs. Robinson”
The second song I will be analysing is “Mrs Robinson” 11, which was famously introduced to
the masses by the movie The Graduate and is Simon and Garfunkel’s most famous song,
second only to “The Sound of Silence”12. The history of the song began when director Mike
Nichols approached Simon and Garfunkel to write songs for his movie The Graduate. Simon
and Garfunkel had just had a great success with their album Sounds of Silence and had also
been on tour quite successfully. Therefore, it made sense to Nichols to include these popular
musicians. Simon eventually came up with songs for the movie; however, they did not
resonate with Nichols. In the end Simon presented an early version of the song “Mrs.
Robinson”, which Nichols liked instantly. The song went through several changes until the
final version of the song was released on the album Bookends in 1968. Both the album and the
single “Mrs. Robinson” became huge successes for Simon and Garfunkel. Much of the
success of the album can be attributed to the success of the movie. Thus the new album and
the movie further boosted the career and fame of Simon and Garfunkel, reaching a high point
in the late 1960s.
The lyrics of the song, as we will see, actually have very little to do with the “Mrs. Robinson”
portrayed in the movie. It appears that the song was chosen primarily because of the identical
name in the title. The song itself went on to become one of the most popular songs by Simon
and Garfunkel, being referenced and used many times in the media. Furthermore, many
covers have been done by various artists. One of the more famous covers of “Mrs. Robinson”
is certainly Frank Sinatra’s version. He recorded it in a different musical style and with
slightly different lyrics on his album My Way in 196913. The impact the song has had becomes
quite apparent, when looking at the numerous covers and references in pop culture.
11
Simon and Garfunkel (1968): Bookends. “Mrs. Robinson”. Columbia Studio A&B, Manhattan.
12
“Mrs. Robinson” (n.d.). [Online]. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mrs._Robinson [14th April 2016]
13
Sinatra, Frank (1969): My Way. “Mrs. Robinson”. EastWest Studios; Hollywood, Los Angeles.
22
6.2. Impact
As already mentioned, “Mrs. Robinson” had quite a considerable influence when it comes to
how music is used in movies. Since “Mrs. Robinson” was not originally composed for the
movie The Graduate (Simon had already been working on the song) it greatly propelled the
idea to use non-original music, which has become quite the standard in modern film industry.
Simon and Garfunkel thereby experienced the advantages of being part of a very popular
movie, and in return the movie was boosted by two very popular musicians, thus creating a
very advantageous symbiosis for both sides.
6.3. Music and Structure of “Mrs Robinson”
As with “The Sound of Silence” I will begin my analysis by looking at the relationship
between the lyrics and the melody and music of the song. I will further look at the structure of
the individual verses. In the end I will take a closer look at the lyrics and their meanings and
their possible relationship to the character “Mrs. Robinson” from the movie “The Graduate”.
Similarly to “The Sound of Silence”, the music in “Mrs. Robinson” is kept mostly in the
background of the song, in order to give the singers and the lyrics as much place as possible.
This is of course much more extreme with “The Sound of Silence” than with “Mrs.
Robinson”. In general it can be said that the song starts out rather secretive and mysterious
way with an acoustic guitar, which is a similar style used in “The Sound of Silence”. The
music continues to be in the background until the chorus sets in. It should be noted that in
“Mrs. Robinson” we have an actual “chorus” as described by Whitesell [2008: 151]. The
music and the tone of the song change considerably between verses and chorus and contribute
greatly to the character of the song. The music accompanying the verses is much more in the
background and leaves much more room to fully comprehend the lyrics of the song. As
described, the song has a rather secretive and mysterious quality to it. This corresponds quite
nicely to the lyrics in the song, as we will see in my further analysis. The chorus, on the other
hand, can be characterised as rather optimistic, happy and to some extent even enthusiastic,
unless, of course, the chorus is seen as sarcastic considering the rest of the lyrics. All of the
qualities mentioned above make the chorus a very catchy, upbeat part of the song, which will
almost instantaneously stay in one’s mind. Due to this the entire song becomes a rather happy
song, despite the rather unpleasant content of the lyrics. All of this adds a certain layer of
23
irony to the entire song, which introduces an element of light-heartedness to the more or less
serious message of the song. The technique of conveying a serious and/or unpleasant message
by giving them a humorous, somewhat silly packaging is frequently employed by artists,
especially in film and music. In doing so the artist can make the message of the song even
more powerful and memorable for the audience and can thereby create a much bigger impact.
Of course, this can only be achieved if the audience does pay attention to what is being said in
the lyrics. All in all, it can be said that the music in this song manages to enhance the effects
the lyrics have on the audience, which appears to be the main goal of Simon and Garfunkel.
Generally speaking, Simon and Garfunkel seem to have a very balanced approach to lyrics
and melody in their songs, especially in “Mrs. Robinson”. The music is not completely
pushed to the background but at the same time it is never pushed to the foreground either. The
song starts and ends with the same acoustic guitar solo. The same is true when looking at the
individual transitions between the individual verses and chorus parts. Like in “The Sound of
Silence” there are hardly any extensive interludes that separate them. There are very small
portions of interlude played by acoustic guitar that follow the chorus before starting the next
verse. However, there is no none following the verses. What we have here is a direct,
immediate transition from the verse to the chorus.
Examining the structure of the song, we find that there are three verses and the chorus, which
is repeated four times. The song begins with an acoustic guitar intro and leads directly into the
verse melody. The only vocals heard in this part is Simon and Garfunkel singing “Dee” and
Doo” as the verse begins. This could technically be seen as a verse, making it the first verse
out of four however, since there are no actual lyrics in this part I will not count it as a verse.
Generally, the chorus has five lines (when counting the “hey, hey, hey” section), the verses
have four lines, with the exception of the last verse, which contains 5 lines. Looking at the
rhyme scheme of the song we can see that we have a rather unusual pattern, which varies
throughout the song. The chorus mostly adheres to the rhyme scheme of AXABB. The very
last chorus is an exception to this rule, since it also involves changes to the lyrics. Here we
have a rhyme scheme of AXYBB. The verses are less strict when it comes to the rhyme
scheme. Each of the three verses has a different rhyme scheme, as I will show below.
24
6.4. Analysis and Interpretation: “Mrs. Robinson”
As I have already established above there are essentially 3 verses in this song and a chorus
which changes throughout the song. I will deal with each chorus and verse individually and
provide the appropriate lyrics to “Mrs. Robinson”14.
Intro…
Verse 0:
Dee, dee, dee…
Chorus 1: Rhyme scheme
1. And here's to you, Mrs. Robinson, A

2. Jesus loves you more than you will know wo wo wo X
3. God bless you, please Mrs. Robinson. A
4. Heaven holds a place for those who pray , hey hey hey B
5. Hey, hey, hey B
As can be seen the song begins with a short acoustic guitar intro and immediately changes
into the melody of the verse. The two singers only start out singing filler words like “dee” and
“doo” instead of actual lyrics. This is an interesting aspect of this song, since it is much more
common to start a song with a verse and then transition to the chorus. The lack of lyrics seem
to reflect the lack of backstory to the character “Mrs. Robinson” in this song, which not to be
confused with the character “Mrs. Robinson” in The Graduate. This creates an atmosphere of
ambiguity around the character, whom we will be introduced to in the chorus. It seems to
have been a deliberate choice by Simon and Garfunkel to not properly introduce the main
character of this song and leave the audience in the dark about her origin. The question of
Mrs. Robinson’s origin and why she is in the situation that she is in seems to be of no
importance at this point, but as we will see, in the following verses this particular question
becomes much more intriguing and essential.
After the introduction and the first “verse” without any proper lyrics, the song moves directly
into the chorus. As mentioned earlier, this is the first song by “Simon and Garfunkel” in my
thesis that has an actual, proper chorus. This can be seen due to the fact that in this section the
14
Lyrics taken from:
“Mrs. Robinson” (n.d.). [Online]. The Official Simon and Garfunkel Site:
http://www.simonandgarfunkel.com/track/mrs-robinson-5/ (12th April 2016).
25
music changes dramatically and is repeated throughout the song, although it does change
slightly at the end. The main feature one noticse in this part of the song is that main character
of this song is being introduced to audience; Mrs. Robinson. The very first line of the chorus
gives the impression that this “Mrs. Robinson” is being cheered for some kind of
accomplishment, which can be seen by the usage of the phrase “And here’s to you”, as the
very first words of the song. At this point it is not clear of what nature this accomplishment is
or if, in actual fact, the speaker of this song is even suggesting an accomplishment. Reading
on in the next lines, several religious motives are invoked. In the second line it is suggested
that Mrs. Robinson is loved by Jesus Christ, a picture that is often invoked when talking to a
“sinner” in the religious sense. It is the idea that no matter what “sins” have been committed
all of them can be forgiven through the love of Jesus Christ. This sets an interesting tone for
the rest of the song because it suggests that “Mrs. Robinson”, has committed some kind of
transgression or “sin” that she must atone for. Judging from the first line it seems that this
process of atoning has shown some success and this appears to be the reason as to why she is
being cheered. However, she could also only be at the beginning stages of her atonement,
which she may or may not already have embraced. In this sense it could be seen as an
encouragement to change her ways and “repent”. The religious aspect of the chorus is further
reinforced in the third and fourth line. Here a divine power is invoked to help Mrs. Robinson
solve her issues. The fourth line in particular seems to encourage Mrs Robinson to solve her
problems with the help of prayer. Apparently, the speaker is quite concerned about the well-
being of Mrs Robinson’s soul, by suggesting that she should pray in order to be able to enter
heaven. Looking at the chorus in this way, it is almost impossible not to think of one of the
many variants of Christian counselling, which are especially common throughout the United
States. Incidentally, the rise of Christion counselling began around the same time as Simon
and Garfunkel started working on “Mrs. Robinson” in the late 1960s15. This may be a
reference made by Simon and Garfunkel to the rise of such practices and their controversial
nature. This tone of Christion Counselling or some sort of “Support Group” with a religious
background will be present throughout much of the song.
Looking at how this relates to The Graduate16 and the “real” Mrs. Robinson who is portrayed
in the movie, we can find only very few parallels here. The fact that “Mrs. Robinson”, a
married woman, is having an affair with someone who, despite being in his early 20s, is
15
“Christian Counselling” (n.d.). [Online]. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christian_counseling [13th
April 2016].
16
26
essentially still a boy was certainly outrageous to many people at the time, especially
conservative Christians. In their eyes behaviour like this would certainly qualify for a sin one
must repent from or atone for. In this sense it would probably have been quite reasonable for
many Christians to send this Mrs. Robinson to some form of Christian counselling, as
described in the chorus so far. In a way it could be argued that Simon and Garfunkel
anticipated the reactions some part of the audience might have to the scandalous nature of the
film.
Verse 1: Rhyme scheme
6. We'd like to know a little bit about your for our files A
7. We'd like to help you learn to help yourself. X
8. Look around you all you see are sympathetic eyes, A
9. Stroll around the grounds until you feel at home. Y
Chorus 2:
10. And here's to you, Mrs. Robinson, A

12. God bless you, please, Mrs. Robinson. A
13. Heaven holds a place for those who pray, hey hey hey B
14. Hey, hey, hey B
In this first proper verse of the song we have a speaker addressing the above mentioned Mrs.
Robinson. The interesting thing here is that the speaker seems to be a spokesman for a larger
number of people. This is indicated by the use of the personal pronoun we in the lines 6 and 7.
The first line of this verse has a very close resemblance to an interview a patient might have
in a hospital before being admitted. In fact the use of the word we also indicates some kind of
medical or counselling institution, since the staff e.g. doctors, nurses, therapists etc. often like
to speak of themselves and their institution in plural we. A scenario like this is also heavily
supported by the use of the word “files” at the end of line 6. Here it becomes clearer that Mrs.
Robinson is apparently in some sort of a rehabilitation centre or institution. Furthermore, the
staff saying that they are trying to help her “help herself” in line 7 cements the idea that Mrs.
Robinson is attending a kind of rehabilitation project. These projects very often have the aim
to restore some lost ability or encourage patients to stop exercising detrimental behaviour e.g.
drug abuse. At this point it becomes apparent that Mrs. Robinson very probably has one of
those issues. When looking at the content so far, it is reasonable to assume that she has some
27
sort of a drug addiction that needs to be treated in this institution. It is further suggested that
the treatment, at least in part, consist of group therapy, which in turn consist of talking about
your own experiences and listening to other people’s experience. We can see this in line 8
when the speaker mentions “sympathetic eyes” apparently looking at Mrs. Robinson. This is a
strong indicator that what we are looking at here, is a group therapy consisting of people who
share the same or similar experiences as Mrs. Robinson. Of course the “sympathetic eyes”
could also refer to the staff being empathetic towards Mrs. Robinson. However, judging from
the chorus and the information we have gathered so far from the verse, it is fair to assume that
the “sympathetic eyes” are those of Mrs. Robinson’s co-patients in group therapy. No matter
which of the two options applies, the general aim in this verse seems to be to put Mrs.
Robinson at ease and make her feel welcome and comfortable. Line 9 in this verse illustrates
this quite nicely by suggesting to Mrs. Robinson to take a look around the institute’s premises
in order to feel “at home”. Apparently, she is mostly to explore the outside areas of the
institute, as indicated by the word “grounds” in line 9. It seems that the doctors or therapists
think that Mrs. Robinson needs to spend more time outside rather than inside, in order to “feel
at home”. This could be due to the fact the she might come across some fates of individual
patients that she might find discouraging.
Combined with the chorus, the first verse seems to indicate that Mrs. Robinson is attending
some sort of rehabilitation, which has a religious connection; in this case very probably
Christianity. At least looking at the first verse and the first and second chorus it is fair to
assume that the therapy Mrs. Robinson is attending includes, at least partly, Christian
counselling. The allusion to group therapy and the Christian angle in all of it further suggest
that it is the kind of Christian counselling found in programs such as Alcoholics Anonymous.
This is one of the main differences to the character in this song and the “real” Mrs Robinson.
In the movie this element of drugs, alcohol and subsequent therapy is entirely absent.
28
15. Hide it in a hiding place where no one ever goes. A

16. Put it in your pantry with your cupcakes. X
17. It's a little secret just the Robinsons' affair. Y
18. Most of all you've got to hide it from the kids. Z
Chorus 3:
19. Coo coo ca-choo, Mrs. Robinson, A

21. God bless you, please, Mrs. Robinson. A
22. Heaven holds a place for those who pray, hey hey hey B
23. Hey, hey, hey B
Looking at this new verse the tone has changed considerably. In the previous verse we had an
environment that seemed to be willing to help Mrs. Robinson stop whatever detrimental
behaviour she was engaging in. However, right from the beginning of this verse the
impression persists that someone entirely different is now talking to Mrs. Robinson. In the
previous verse the main goal seemed to be to conquer the problems she was facing, while in
this verse the main goal is not to conquer her issue but rather to hide them well. In line 15 the
speaker suggests that Mrs. Robinson hide “it” somewhere “no one ever goes”. This is entirely
contrary to the message that we heard before. Essentially Mrs. Robinson is told to give in to
her problems, which more and more looks like a problem with addiction. The most important
message of this entire verse seems to be to hide your problem at all cost. As long as the
problem remains hidden it is not an issue that one must deal with. This verse even suggest a
possible hiding place for “it” in line 16; hiding “it” in the “pantry with the cupcakes”.
Additionally, Mrs. Robinson’s problem is downplayed to a certain degree, as can be seen in
line 17. Her issue is described as a “little secret”. Here we can see how Mrs. Robinson’s
problem is essentially portrayed as a non-issue, something that is not even worth paying
attention to. Furthermore, line 17 goes on by saying that it is “just the Robinson’s affair”. This
indicates that the issue is seen as a private matter of sorts and any intervening from the outside
is not appreciated. In addition, line 17 seems to be rather defensive in nature when it comes to
the problems she is facing, as it pretends as if there was no big problem to begin with.
However, the very next line, line 18, demonstrates that her issues are far more serious than the
verse would lead the audience to believe. If this problem has to be hidden from the children,
as is said in this line, then it seems to be bigger and more severe than previously thought. The
general atmosphere of the this verse can be described as a state of ignoring the problem or the
29
dangers of the problem and instead of dealing with it, the most preferable strategy seems to be
to hide it. Comparing the first verse and second verse, we notice that the speaker(s) in the
first verse seem(s) to be a rather benign force from the outside trying to rectify Mrs.
Robinson’s life. However, the second verse seems to have a much darker tone than the
previous one. It could very easily be interpreted as an interior monologue happening inside
Mrs. Robinson’s mind. It is quite common for people who struggle with addiction to be very
preoccupied with hiding their illness even, or especially, from their own family. They also
tend to downplay the seriousness of the situation and retreat to their private lives. Any attempt
to help them is often seen as a personal attack or an invasion of their privacy. All of this can
be said of the verse above. In this way the first verse can be seen as the outside world trying to
help Mrs. Robinson, while the second verse can be seen as her own internal struggle and, as it
seems, failure to conquer her illness.
The chorus which follows this verse features an interesting change of lyrics in line 19. Instead
of saying “And here’s to you Mrs. Robinson”, it says “Coo coo ca-choo, Mrs. Robinson”.
This appears to be a reference to the Beatles song “I am the Walrus”, which uses the same
lyrics17. The rest of the chorus remains the same. In this instance the chorus is another point of
contrast between to what has been said in verse 2. It is again the outside force trying to
encourage Mrs. Robinson to tackle her problems.
Again, when comparing it to the “real” Mrs. Robinson we do not really find much that they
have in common. However, there are more parallels to be found here than in the previous
verse. Much like in the song, Mrs. Robinson has to hide something; in her case an affair with
a man who is considerably younger than her. It is both, Mrs. Robinson’s and her lover’s
interest to keep this affair a secret. The song itself even includes the word “affair”, as in
something that needs to be kept quiet and private. Another parallel is the need to “hide it from
the kids”, as described in line 18. This would apply to Mrs. Robinson’s need to conceal her
affair from her daughter Elaine.
17
The Beatles (1967): Magical Mystery Tour: “I am the Walrus”. Emi and Olympic Studios, London.
30
24. Sitting on a sofa on a Sunday afternoon. A
25. Going to the candidates’ debate. X
26. Laugh about it, shout about it Y
27. When you've got to choose B
28. Every way you look at this you lose. B
Chorus 4:
29. Where have you gone, Joe DiMaggio? A
30. A nation turns its lonely eyes to you, wo wo wo X
31. What's that you say, Mrs. Robinson? Y
32. ‘Joltin Joe’ has left and gone away, hey hey hey B
33. Hey hey hey. B
Examining this last verse of the song, it is apparent that we have yet another change of tone in
the song. All direct references to Mrs. Robinson have disappeared and are replaced with what
seems to be rather mundane pastime activities the family encounters, at least when looking at
lines 24-26. This particular verse seems to describe some of the things that are done while
Mrs. Robinson is still struggling with her problems. In general it can be said that verse 3 is not
so much concerned with Mrs. Robinson anymore but seems to have a rather political message
to it. This becomes apparent in line 25, which mentions a “candidates’ debate”. It is most
likely that this refers to political candidates that are looking to be elected for a position.
Further, it is suggested that people are not pleased with the “candidates” and their “debate”.
Line 26 states that they either “laugh about it” or “shout about it”. This indicates a certain
frustration with the political system, which can certainly be seen as a reference to the
frustrations that exist in the real world with politics and politicians. Here it seems Simon and
Garfunkel have included some criticism of the political system in the late 1960s. However,
politics and politicians are an ever-ongoing issue of controversy in all eras and all countries.
In this sense Simon and Garfunkel have pointed out a timeless problem with the political
system that will very probably also plague future generations. Reading on Simon and
Garfunkel seem to not only deal with the frustrations that come with politics, but also the
apparent inability of people to change anything about it. Lines 27 and 28 illustrate how
helpless people are in this situation. It essentially states that no matter which choice is made,
ultimately it will be to your disadvantage and there is really nothing anyone can do about it. It
seems Simon and Garfunkel are trying to criticise they current political system and its
implications, as well as the general attitude people have when it comes to politics. A great
number of people view politics in fatalistic terms and for this reason do not get involved in it
anymore. However, this is exactly this attitude that cements the status quo even further, which
31
in turn makes people retreat even more. This vicious cycle and all of its implications are being
criticised in this passage. When viewed in the context of the previous verses, it can be argued
that Mrs. Robinson has given up on ever recovering from her addiction and has embraced the
idea that there is no hope for her to ever be well again, no matter what she does. This seems to
be an indication for depression, which is not uncommon for people who suffer from addiction
or similar illnesses. Mrs. Robinson’s hopelessness in this passage can be seen as a political
metaphor for the people who seem to have lost hope and trust in politics and have simply
become indifferent.
Looking at the chorus we see some major changes. In fact we have an entirely new chorus at
hand in terms of lyrics. The political message that we have seen in verse 3 continues and is
reinforced in this chorus 4. Line 29 asks the question: “Where have you gone, Joe
DiMaggio?” Joe DiMaggio was a very successful American baseball player who Paul Simon
greatly admired. It seems that DiMaggio was a hero to Paul Simon who represented
something the Simon thought lost in America, especially in politics. Wikipedia states: “[…]
shortly after DiMaggio's death, Simon discussed this meeting [with Joe DiMaggio] and
explained that the line was meant as a sincere tribute to DiMaggio's unpretentious heroic
stature, in a time when popular culture magnifies and distorts how we perceive our heroes.”
[Wikipedia: “Mrs. Robinson” 29th May 2016]18. This further contributes to the political tone
of this last part of the song. Simon apparently criticises the loss of values and virtues in
politics and politicians. In line 30 a general sense of desire is stated for a change in the
political systems. “A nation” is essentially yearning for a man, a hero, like Joe DiMaggio who
can change or rather revolutionise the current system. It is essentially desire for a messiah-like
man who can, in short, make everything alright again. This is of course followed by the
realisation that such a man very probably does not exist. In lines 31 and 32 the speaker
appears to have a short interaction with Mrs. Robinson, who informs that “Joltin Joe has left
and gone away” (“Joltin Joe” being a nickname of Joe DiMaggio). These last two lines state
that the hero they were looking/ yearning for has left and is very likely to remain gone.
Therefore, the song ends on a rather sombre note and contains, to some extent, even a small
portion of nostalgia. The speaker realises that the time of his hero is over and implicitly
wishes to go back to this, supposed, golden era. More generally it seems that Joe DiMaggio
stands for the heroes and great men, who have left and never will come back, thereby ending
an era.
18
“Mrs. Robinson” (n.d.). [Online]. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mrs._Robinson [7th June 2016]
32
7. “The Boxer”
“The Boxer” was a major hit by Simon and Garfunkel and is one of their most famous songs.
It was originally released in 1970 on their album Bridge over troubled Water19. The recording
of the song fell into a period of increased issues in the friendship of Paul Simon and Art
Garfunkel, which caused a lot of problems during the recording process20. Not the least of
which was their different expectations as to what the album should contain. It was also a
period in which the duo started to receive more unfavourable critiques than it had before. In
this sense, “The Boxer” is also in a way semi-autobiographical. The website Songfacts.com
writes:
In his 1984 Playboy interview, Simon revealed that he wrote this song when critics were
writing harsh things about his music - he was the boxer. Said Simon: "I think the song was
about me: everybody's beating me up, and I'm telling you now I'm going to go away if you
don't stop. By that time we had encountered our first criticism. For the first few years, it was
just pure praise. It took two or three years for people to realize that we weren't strange
creatures that emerged from England but just two guys from Queens who used to sing
rock'n'roll. And maybe we weren't real folkies at all! Maybe we weren't even hippies!"
[Songfacts.com: 14th April 2016]21
All of this added to the difficulties that Simon and Garfunkel were encountering in the process
of recording this album. In the end, despite their personal differences, the album and “The
Boxer” went on to become a huge success and “Simon and Garfunkel” found themselves at
the height of their fame. However, the duo split up very soon after the release in the year
1970.
7.2. Impact
As with the other Simon and Garfunkel songs I have dealt with so far, “The Boxer” has also
had great influence on the music scene. This is in part because it performed very well in the
charts, but it has also to do with the fact that Bridge over troubled Water and by extension
“The Boxer” were the last big recordings by Simon and Garfunkel and are therefore, valued
19
“Bridge Over Troubled Water” (n.d.). [Online]. The Official Simon and Garfunkel Site:
http://www.simonandgarfunkel.com/music/bridge-over-troubled-water-40th-anniversary-edition/ [14th April
2016]
20
“Simon and Garfunkel” (n.d.). [Online]. Wikipedia. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Simon_%26_Garfunkel
[14th April. 2016].
21
“The Boxer” (n.d.). [Online]. Songfacts.com. http://www.songfacts.com/detail.php?id=2751 [14th April 2016]
33
even more. This can be seen in the numerous covers that have been done over the years by
various artists. Another indicator for the songs impact and importance is the ranking of
Rollingstone.com, where it is ranked 106th greatest song of all time.22
7.3. Music and Structure of “The Boxer”
All of the songs I have looked at so far have always had an acoustic guitar introduction to
them. “The Boxer” is no different in this respect. A short solo acoustic guitar intro is given
and then the first verse begins. These subtle and at times cautious intros to their songs seem to
be a popular formula for Simon and Garfunkel song. As with most Simon and Garfunkel
songs the music is, at first, kept more in the background, particularly during the verses.
However, gradually we experience an increase in instrumentation and volume. This can best
be heard in the choruses of the song, in which the volume and the number of instruments
played increases more and more, especially towards the end of the song. As I have just
mentioned “The Boxer” has in fact an actual chorus. However, unlike the chorus in “Mrs.
Robinson”, the chorus in “The Boxer” does not consist of any actual lyrics but rather a
sequence of the filler words “lie-la-lie”, as we will see later on. The increase of instruments
and their volume matches with the increase in dramatic content of the lyrics. The further we
move on with the lyrics of “The Boxer”, the more dramatic the content gets and this is shown
in the instrumentation as well. During the verses the music turns down a little bit to allow for
better comprehension of the lyrics. Since the chorus only consists of filler words, it allows for
music that is more in the foreground than in the verses. The song ends again with an acoustic
guitar outro, much like the outros on “The Sound of Silence” and “Mrs. Robinson”. “The
Boxer” ends in the same fashion as it began; with a rather subtle and quiet outro.
The structure of the song is very free. There is hardly any rhyme scheme to speak of. The only
rhyming elements, if at all, are at the end of the verses but this is not true for every verse. In
fact most of the verses do not have any rhyme scheme whatsoever. Therefore, I will not
include the rhyme scheme alongside the lyrics, as I have done so far. Generally, the song can
be seen as a mostly un-rhyming ballad with varying numbers of lines, as can be seen by the
lyrics provided below. The number of lines varies between six to ten lines. The first chorus
occurs after the first two verses. The second chorus occurs right after verse 3. After verses 4
22
Rollingstone.com (n.d.). [Online]. http://www.rollingstone.com/music/lists/the-500-greatest-songs-of-all-time-
20110407/simon-and-garfunkel-the-boxer-20110526 [14th April 2016]
34
and 5 the last and longest chorus is sung. Originally the chorus was meant to consist of actual
words; however, Simon could not come up with any decent lyrics for his chorus.
Songfacts.com states:
In a 1990 interview with SongTalk magazine, Simon said: "I thought that 'lie la lie was a
failure of songwriting. I didn't have any words! Then people said it was 'lie' but I didn't really
mean that. That it was a lie. But, it's not a failure of songwriting, because people like that and
they put enough meaning into it, and the rest of the song has enough power and emotion, I
guess, to make it go, so it's all right. But for me, every time I sing that part, I'm a little
embarrassed." Simon added that the essentially wordless chorus gave the song more of an
international appeal, as it was universal. [Songfacts.com: 14th April 2016]23
An interesting aspect about the lyrics in this song is that, originally, an additional verse was
planned for the song. This verse was not included in the official recording24. I have included
this verse in my analysis of the lyrics and labelled it “Verse 3.1” for completion’s sake. The
same method of analysis and interpretation will be applied to this verse as to the others.
However, it should be mentioned that this section of my thesis, dealing with “The Boxer”,
was written with the well-known version of the song in mind, meaning without “Verse 3.1”.
Even though this verse was ultimately not included in the official song it is, I think, still
worthwhile to take a brief look at this particular verse, in order to get a more complete inside
to the artist’s original intention.
7.4. Analysis and Interpretation: “The Boxer”
Verse 125:
1. I am just a poor boy

2. Though my story’s seldom told
3. I have squandered my resistance
4. For a pocketful of mumbles
5. Such are promises
6. All lies and jest
7. Still, a man hears what he wants to hear
8. And disregards the rest
In the very first verse we see a character talking in first person about his backstory. He
introduces himself as a “poor boy” whose “story’s seldom told” in lines 1 and 2. Indeed the
stories of this particular demographic are sometimes lost to the world. More often than not the
23
“The Boxer” (n.d.). [Online]. Songfacts.com. http://www.songfacts.com/detail.php?id=2751 [14th April 2016]
24
Simon and Garfunkel (1970): Bridge over troubled Water. “The Boxer” Columbia Records
25
Lyrics taken from:
“The Boxer” (n.d.). [Online]. The Official Simon and Garfunkel Site.
http://www.simonandgarfunkel.com/track/the-boxer-7/ [12th April 2016]
35
poorer portions of society are ignored or neglected. Generally, this verse describes the
struggles that come with being in a position like this boy. In lines 3 and 4 the boy states that
he has “squandered” his “resistance for a pocketful of mumbles” This seems to indicate that
he has given in to society’s pressure and norms, but has received very little in return for
“squandering his resistance”. He feels betrayed or fooled by society because he had
committed himself to play by society’s rules and do what was asked of him, only to find that
all the promises made to him were either empty or downright lies. This feeling of being
betrayed or cheated on can be seen quite clearly in lines 5 and 6. He directly says that the
promises made to him were “all lies and jest”. The boy in this song seems to be an allegory
for everyone who ever faced severe struggle in society and therefore, became disillusioned as
a result of that. This feeling of disillusion is very common and it can appear in every society
and every age group. In this particular scenario, Simon seems to refer to the younger portion
of the population, as can be seen by the use of the word “boy” in the first line. A sense of
frustration and disappointment is fairly common with young people. This is especially true for
those who have completed their education but are now being kept waiting despite being
promised a job, security, societal standing etc. Keeping all of those various promises for
everyone is a difficult, if not impossible task. Again Simon seems to criticise society in
general and politics implicitly for not keeping their promises or only seemingly keeping their
promises, as is suggested by the “mumbles” in line 4. This critique applies very much to our
own time, with youth unemployment being particularly high since the recession began. These
factors create, what is sometimes called, a “lost generation”; people who cannot find their
place in society and therefore, are more and more disillusioned and frustrated. In the last two
lines of this verse (lines 7 and 8) Simon also seems to criticise the people who are in those
dire positions. It is stated that a man just “hears what he wants to hear and disregards the
rest”. Here, Simon points out that even though people know that the promises made to them
are empty, they still continue to believe in them and do as they are told. However, the bigger
issue appears to be that they not only believe what they are told but, they actively ignore
information and opinions that speak against these problems. This creates a downward spiral
and deepens the problems instead of people rising up to challenge them.
36
Verse 2:
9. When I left my home and my family

10. I was no more than a boy
11. In the company of strangers
12. In the quiet of a railway station
13. Running scared
14. Laying low, seeking out the poorer quarters
15. Where the ragged people go
16. Looking for the places only they would know
Chorus: Lie-la-lie . . .
The second verse gives greater insight to the boy’s backstory. It is stated that the boy left his
home and family at a rather young age. This ties rather nicely into the story of his struggles
and the poverty he is facing, which we learned about in verse 1. Young people who leave their
homes at an early stage are often in danger of falling into poverty and more often than not,
face extreme challenges and struggles. Reading on it can be argued that moving out might not
entirely have been the boy’s own decision. Judging from the situations that he finds himself
in, it is reasonable to assume that the boy might have been disowned by his family, due to
some internal struggle. Under normal circumstances, parents would probably want their child
to be safe and not get into the situations that are described further on in the verse. It appears
more and more that we are dealing with someone who does not have a roof over his head, at
least not constantly. Homeless youth is often in the most dire straits, facing many challenges
and problems. The next lines (11-13) further reinforce this picture by stating that the boy was
in the “company of strangers” in “a railway station”. His fear in this situation is also explicitly
stated in line 13. This is another feature of homeless youth; being amongst strangers and not
knowing where to go and subsequently experiencing great fear in this situation. In general,
railway stations are known for often being sought out by those who do not have a home
anymore. They live there, often spending what little money they have on drugs and alcohol
and thus, falling down this spiral more and more. Line 14 describes the boy’s attempt to not
attract any attention and get by without being noticed, which is indicated by the words “laying
low”. This is another feature of homeless youth, especially those that are newly homeless.
They are trying to hide and be inconspicuous, not only because they might be ashamed of
their situation, but also because life on the streets can be quite rough and dangerous. Quite
often they are also forced to live in “the poorer quarters” in which “the ragged people” are
often to be found, as described in line 14. Simon, in some sense, describes a ghetto of poor
people as it can be found in many cities. The boy is looking for the places in, which “the
37
ragged people” live. Presumably, this is because he wants to find a place where he can spend
the night safely and since the “ragged people” have been on the streets for a while, it is
probably fair to assume that they have found some safe hiding spots. Simon was apparently
also inspired to write these lyrics by the bible, as he himself stated: “[…] I think I was reading
the Bible around that time. That's where I think phrases such as 'workman's wages' came
from, and 'seeking out the poorer quarters'. That was biblical. I think the song was about me:
everybody's beating me up, and I'm telling you now I'm going to go away if you don't stop.”26
[Simon and Garfunkel Homepage: 14th April 2016]
Following this verse we hear the chorus for the first time, which only consist of the words
“lie-la lie”. These were only filler words used by Simon and they were meant to be replaced
by actual lyrics, as I have already mentioned above. Simon himself stated that therefore, there
is no real meaning intended behind the lyrics “lie-la-lie”27. However, the use of the word “lie”
can be interpreted as a reference to the “lies” we have encountered in the first verse of this
song. It can be seen as an emphasis and reinforcement of the idea that the protagonist of this
song has been lied to and therefore, his life has taken a turn for the worse. Another possibility
to make sense of the chorus is to view it as a representation of the emptiness in the
protagonist’s life. There is no real content to his life anymore, since his environment and
society have failed him. Therefore, it only makes sense for the chorus, which is essentially the
main part of the song, to be empty. It can be seen as an allegory for the boy who finds that
during the most important phase in his development his life has become empty and without
meaning, much like the chorus of the song.
Verse 3:
17. Asking only workman’s wages
18. I come looking for a job
19. But I get no offers
20. Just a come-on from the whores on Seventh Avenue
21. I do declare there were times when I was so lonesome
22. I took some comfort there
Verse 3 gives the audience another, deeper look into the life of this boy. It describes the
struggles he faces to find himself and his place in society. He seems to genuinely try to be a
26
“Song Quotes” (n.d.). [Online]. Simon and Garfunkel homepage. http://freespace.virgin.net/r.kent/quotes.html
[14th April 2016]
27
“The Boxer” (n.d.). [Online]. Songfacts.com: http://www.songfacts.com/detail.php?id=2751 [14th April 2016]
38
productive member of society, as can be seen in line 2 where he is trying the get a job.
However, ultimately he fails to achieve this goal because no one seems to be willing to give
him a chance to prove himself. Judging from the information we have gathered so far, it is
also clear that he is truly making an effort to integrate himself and is willing to take on low
jobs, as is indicated in line 1 “asking only workman’s wages”. The “workman’s wages” are,
as already stated above, another reference to the bible. Here the idea is conveyed that this boy
comes to a new place with the best intentions and is willing to contribute to this society but is
ultimately rejected. The inspiration that Simon took from the bible becomes particularly
apparent in these passages, in which the character is infused with some aspects similar to
those found in Jesus Christ, especially rejection by the masses. After being rejected and not
given a chance to find his place in society, the only “affection” or “affirmation” he seems to
get is from “the whores on seventh avenue” in line 20. This marks another low-point for our
main character. He even states that he “took comfort there”, which very like indicates that he
paid to have sexual intercourse with those prostitutes. After all the things he has been through
in this song, it was probably the only way for him to make himself feel less alone and
experience some affection, even if it is only paid for. Here we can see this boy being at, quite
possibly, one of the lowest points in his entire life. He failed to succeed in his new
environment and is now trying to survive, both mentally and physically, in whichever way he
can.
(Verse 3.1):
23. Now the years are rolling by me
24. They are rocking easily
25. I am older than I once was
26. And younger than I’ll be
27. But that’s not unusual
28. No, it isn’t strange
29. After changes upon changes
30. We are more or less the same
31. After changes we are
32. More or less the same
Verse 3.1 is interesting for many reasons. Firstly, this verse is not to be found in the official
recording but it may only be performed by Paul Simon on occasion. It also interesting because
it seems to interrupt the flow of the story we have heard so far. Up until now the focus was on
the boy telling us about the struggles he is facing in his new environment. This verse seems to
be a more of a reflection done by the boy about his own life. In fact, the verse makes it seem
39
as if the entire story as described in verse 1-3 is already in the past and now he is
remembering and contemplating his experiences. He talks about his slow and steady loss of
youth and his on-going progress in ageing. It is implied that the protagonist is gradually
growing older and older. However, he seems to be quite at ease with this, as we can see in
lines 27 and 28, in which this process is described as “not unusual” and “not strange”. It is
interesting that negative wording was chosen by Simon in lines 27 and 28 (“not unusual” etc.)
instead of positive wording like e.g. “normal” or “natural”. It appears as if he has to assure
himself that his own ageing process is in fact “not unusual” or “not strange”. In this sense it
almost seems to have taken him by surprise, although he surely was aware that he was going
to age at some point. Apparently he feels that life has passed him by and now he can do
nothing but reflect on where the time has gone. However, even with all that time passed there
is still seems to be a sense of frustration within him. This can be seen in lines 29 and 30, in
which he states that he has been through several changes but in the end still remains the same.
Again, there is this element of hopelessness, since all the changes in the world could not
change or improve who he was. In one way or another it is implied that we are always going
to stay the same. The idea that Simon presents here is a rather depressing and fatalistic one,
since it essentially denies a person’s ability to improve and learn from their experience. This
is further emphasised by the repetition of this message in lines 31 and 32. Repeating this
message at the end of this verse also shows that the speaker (the young boy) has already
accepted this idea and is now in a state of depression or frustration. This becomes especially
apparent when reading this verse in the context of what has been said in the previous verses.
Verse 4:
33. Then I’m laying out my winter clothes
34. And wishing I was gone
35. Going home
36. Where the New York City winters aren’t bleeding me
37. Leading me
38. Going home
Verse 4 is, in contrast to the verse before, again part of the official song. In this verse we see
the further implications of the experiences the boy has had so far. He seems to be prepared to
give up all of his dreams and aspirations about his life and is left wishing he “was gone”. The
image of “winter” is invoked two times in this verse; once in line 33 and once in line 36. This
gives the audience an understanding of how the protagonist is feeling at this moment. It is a
dark and bleak time for the boy and one that has certainly pushed him to his limits. Further, it
40
is revealed that the place he was staying in was in fact New York City (line 36). New York is
often seen as an exciting place full of opportunities and chances, especially for young people.
However, in our case these great expectations were not fulfilled and now our protagonist has
no other option left than to leave. In fact the city has mostly torn him down and ruined his
self-esteem. Originally, he was eager to prove himself and find himself but he was greeted by
a hostile environment unwilling to be supportive whatsoever. He explicitly states that the New
York winters were “bleeding him”, that is to say his experiences in this city have caused him
much pain, both physically and mentally. Generally, the entire verse has a very dark tone to it.
Looking lines 34 and 35, he talks about wising he was “gone” and “going home”. While this
might in actual fact mean that he is determined to leave the city and go back to whatever
home he has elsewhere, it sounds much more like a death wish, especially due to the wording
used. It seems that the protagonist is contemplating suicide in order to “go home”. The
disappointments, the experiences he has made and all the unfulfilled promises and dreams are,
it seems, too much for him. This is further emphasised by the fact that the phrase “going
home” appears twice in this verse (lines 35 and 38), which is similar to the repetition in the
unofficial verse 3.1. Our protagonist has a really strong desire to leave this place, namely New
York. His desire to leave this city represents his desire to leave the world in general and
escape the chaos and the pain he has experienced there.
Simon criticises that many dreams and hopes, predominantly of young people, are oftentimes
killed by the system and the circumstances that these young people are in. Society frequently
fails to be supportive when it comes to their aspirations and does very little to help them grow
and find their place in society.
Verse 5:
39. In the clearing stands a boxer
40. And a fighter by his trade
41. And he carries the remainders
42. Of every glove that laid him down
43. And cut him till he cried out
44. In his anger and his shame
45. “I am leaving, I am leaving”
46. But the fighter still remains
In this verse a dramatic shift occurs, both in content and in narrative style. Previously, we had
a first person narrator essentially telling his story to the audience. Now we have the
description of a boxer in third person. The boxer described here is in very bad shape and quite
41
tarnished by his fights. It is stated that his wounds are still visible and cause him pain (lines 41
and 42). This is a parallel to the boy in the previous verses. Both the boy and the boxer had to
fight many fights in their lives, the boxer physically, the boy socially and mentally. Many
wounds have been inflicted on both of them and they are still visible. Much like with the boy,
people tried to bring down the boxer by any means possible in order to make him leave for
good. This is explicitly stated in in line 43 -45. These lines are about the boxer giving up and
leaving, which can be seen quite clearly by the exclamation in line 45 (“I am leaving, I am
leaving”). The boxer is “angry” and “ashamed” (line 44) because of his defeat and his
eventual retreat. This is a feeling probably everyone has had in life at some point. Admitting
defeat and retreating as a result of this is never an easy thing to do. In the end the boxer is
prepared to give up and accept his fate, much like the boy in the previous verses. The major
difference between the boxer and the boy is that the boxer does not seem to have any suicidal
tendencies. As I have stated above, “The Boxer” is semi-autobiographical and this is
particularly true of this last verse. Paul Simon, as already mentioned, has stated that the “The
Boxer” was about him, especially the character of the boxer in the last verse. Critics
increasingly wrote negative review about the music and the style of “Simon and Garfunkel” at
the time. This was Paul Simon’s way of expressing how he felt in this situation in which he
was virtually attacked from all sides. Like the characters in this song he was ready to give up
and give in to the pressures he was experiencing. However, he managed to withstand all the
outside hostility and stay in the business (unlike Simon and Garfunkel). This is also true for
the two characters in the song. Even though they have been attacked and knocked down, they
still “remain” as is stated in the very last line: “But the fighter still remains.”
42
8. “Bridge Over Troubled Water”
8.1. Historical Background and Impact
The historical background of “Bridge Over Troubled Water” is more or less the same as the
one found in “The Boxer”. This is due to the fact that, like “The Boxer”, “Bridge Over
Troubled Water” is part of the album Bridge Over Troubled Water, which was released in
1970. The song went on to become one of the most important and well-recognised songs by
Simon and Garfunkel. The creative origins of the song are not quite clear, not even to Simon
himself. Songfacts.com states28:
Paul Simon wrote this about providing comfort to a person in need. It started as a modest
gospel hymn but became more dramatic as he put it together. Speaking in the documentary
The Making of Bridge Over Troubled Water, Simon said, "I have no idea where it came from.
It came all of the sudden. It was one of the most shocking moments in my songwriting career.
I remember thinking, 'This is considerably better than I usually write." [Songfacts.com: 19th
May 2016]
This indicates that the composing of this particular song seems to have been a rush of creative
power, rather than a planned endeavour. The content of this song is particularly interesting
and in some ways ironic, when put into contrast with the crumbling relationship he had with
Art Garfunkel at this time, both professionally and personally.
8.2. Impact
The Impact of “Bridge Over Troubled Water” was considerable. It can be justifiably
compared to the influence that “The Sound of Silence” had. The album Bridge Over Troubled
Water became the most successful album of their career. It stayed at number 1 for ten weeks,
won Album of the year and has achieved eight times platinum status. The song “Bridge Over
Troubled Water” has won five Grammys29. The impact of the song and the album at the time
was certainly very great. However, the influence of the song and the album did not cease after
its initial success. “Bridge Over Troubled Water” has become one of the most frequently
covered songs in music history and it remains well-recognised to this day. Songfacts.com
states:
28
“Bridge Over Troubled Water” (n.d.). [Online]. Songfacts.com: http://www.songfacts.com/detail.php?id=247
[19th May 2016]
29
“Bridge Over Troubled Water” (n.d.). [Online]. The Official Simon and Garfunkel Site:
http://www.simonandgarfunkel.com/music/bridge-over-troubled-water-40th-anniversary-edition/ [19th May
2016]
43
In 2010, the Songwriters [sic] Hall of Fame honored this song with its Towering Song Award.
At the ceremony, Art Garfunkel said: "Well, here we are, years later, I'm still singing it from
town to town, and it's completely alive and fresh to me. There is nothing dated, or any feeling
of the past - I love doing it. Thank the Lord the feeling - the goose bumps - constantly checks
in every time I do it." [Songfacts.com: 21st May 2016]30
8.3. Music and structure of “Bridge Over Troubled Water”
The music and melody used in “Bridge Over Troubled Water” differ considerably from the
songs I have examined so far. While the previous songs are predominantly accompanied by
acoustic guitar, this song, in contrast to all the others so far, heavily features the piano. This
can already be seen in the intro of the song. The piano begins in a very strong, almost cheerful
and celebratory fashion and fades down as we move towards the first verse of the song.
During the verse the piano is kept down so it does not overwhelm the singer. Generally the
music is, much like in the previous songs, a means to carry a message, rather than the focus of
the song. At this point it has become quite apparent that this is one of the more consistent
characteristic of songs by Simon and Garfunkel. However, the accompanying music plays a
more dominant role in this particular song and the music also conveys a greater sense of
drama than usual. When looking at the degree of dominance and drama of the melody versus
the singing, it can be argued that “Bridge Over Troubled Water” falls in between our first two
songs, “The Sound of Silence” and “Mrs. Robinson”, and “The Boxer”. The music itself has a
very distinct gospel-appeal, which can be heard particularly well when the piano accompanies
the singer. Simon himself composed the song with his guitar. Only later the piano parts were
added, in order to achieve a distinct gospel sound. Songfacts.com states:
Simon wrote this song on guitar, and it took about two days to come up with the piano part,
which was played by Larry Knechtel, who later joined the soft-rock group Bread. Simon,
Garfunkel, Knechtel and the album's producer Roy Halee worked together to transform it into
a piano piece. Knechtel, who was best known as a bass player, had a background in Gospel
music and was able to come up with the Gospel piano sound they were looking for.
[Songfacts.com: 21st May 2016]
The content of the lyrics and the images used in the song further contribute to the gospel-
appeal of “Bridge Over Troubled Water”. This goes to show that Simon was quite clearly
30
“Bridge Over Troubled Water” (n.d.). [Online]. Songfacts.com. http://www.songfacts.com/detail.php?id=247
[21st May 2016].
44
very much influenced by this genre at the time. Simon even specifically intended for the song
to become a “gospel hymn”.
An interesting aspect of this song is the chorus/refrain of the song (“Like a Bridge Over
Troubled Water…” etc.). In this particular case one could argue in favour of the song having a
refrain or a chorus or a mixture of both. Looking at the structure of the lyrics and melody I
would argue that we have a hybrid. I arrive at this conclusion because elements of both
refrains and choruses can be found. The repetitive elements in this song seem to be a part of
the verse, as the ideas presented in the verse are connected or linked with the refrain/chorus
and lead directly into it. This would indicate a refrain. It should, however, be noted that the
repetitive elements in this song are in some ways quite separate from the verse. This can be
seen, or rather heard, in the fact that the music and the pacing of the lyrics changes in the
refrain/chorus, but not enough to be considered a full, pure chorus, but still there is a change
that separates it from the verse to a certain degree. Furthermore, it can be argued that the
refrain/chorus is quite distinct from the verse, especially in its structure. On the other hand,
all these changes can easily and reasonably be viewed as a more dramatic continuation of the
musical and lyrical motives and ideas found in the verses. Therefore, it seems justified to view
the repetitive elements in this song as a hybrid between refrain and chorus. In some ways the
refrain-aspect seems to outweigh the chorus-aspect. I will, therefore, refer to these repetitive
elements as the “refrain” from now on, even though it does have strong similarities to a
chorus. Consequently, in my analysis the refrain will be shown as a part of the verse.
Examining the general structure of the song, we can identify three different verses. Much like
in our previous song “The Boxer”, there is no real rhyme scheme to be found. The only
instance in which there is a rhyme (lyrics provided in the analysis section), is lines 2 and 4 of
the first verse. However, in general it seems that Simon and Garfunkel had no real intention of
making the lines rhyme in “Bridge Over Troubled Water”. The fact that these particular lines
rhyme just seems to be more or less coincidental, when looking at it in the context of the
entire song, Apparently, Simon wanted to use the exact words and content found in the lyrics,
without having to make concessions to a rhyme scheme of any sort. Due to this fact I will not
provide a rhyme scheme for this song because it would reveal no real pattern that could be
considered for my analysis. The song was intended to be a “gospel-hymn” by Simon and it
can also be seen as an un-rhyming ballad, much like “The Boxer”. The verses themselves
follow a rather rigid structural pattern. Each verse consists of eleven lines which are un-
rhyming in almost all instances. The last four lines of each verse are dedicated to the refrain.
45
This remains the same throughout the song, except in the very last verse. Instead of saying “I
will lay me down”, it says “I will ease your mind”.
Another intriguing facet of this song is the fact that it is almost entirely sung as a solo piece
by Art Garfunkel31. This is quite remarkable since Paul Simon usually takes on the lead
singing role in Simon and Garfunkel, while Art Garfunkel usually sings accompanying
harmonies. Art Garfunkel’s distinct voice and his use of falsetto contribute greatly to the
song’s unique character and it influences the way the lyrics are heard and understood.
Garfunkel sings “Bridge Over Troubled Water” in a tender, almost cautious and very light
fashion. Thus, the meaning of the lyrics is emphasised quite dramatically, especially since
Garfunkel’s singing conveys the impression of someone actually talking to and supporting a
friend.
8.4. Analysis and Interpretation: “Bridge Over Troubled Water”

One of the first things that will strike anyone reading through the verses of “Bridge Over
Troubled Water” is the fact that the lyrics appear to be very simple and straightforward in
their meaning, especially when comparing them to songs like “The Boxer” or “The Sound of
Silence”. The apparent simplicity of the lyrics is indeed quite remarkable since the songs I
have examined so far were rather deep and multi-layered in their lyrical content and their
meanings. Initially, even Simon himself was not quite happy with the lyrics, especially the
beginning. Songfacts.com states: “At first, Simon thought the opening lyrics were too simple:
[…]. He later realized that it was this simplicity that helped give the song a universal appeal.”
[Songfacts.com: 21st May 2016].
Verse 132:
1. When you're weary

2. Feeling small
3. When tears are in your eyes
4. I will dry them all
5. I'm on your side
6. Oh, when times get rough
31
Simon and Garfunkel (1970). Bridge over troubled Water. “Bridge Over Troubled Water”. New York:
Columbia Records.
32
Lyrics taken from:
Amsco Publications (1990). Paul Simon Anthology: Fifty Selected Titles. New York: Amsco Publications; (p.
38-42).
46
7. And friends just can't be found
8. Like a Bridge Over Troubled Water
9. I will lay me down
It becomes instantly apparent that there is a first person speaker addressing someone. This can
be seen quite clearly in lines 4 and 5, in which the speaker uses the first person pronoun I. The
verse can subsequently be separated into two parts. The first part, consisting of lines 1, 2 and
3, addresses the emotional state of the speaker’s counterpart. The person being addressed by
the speaker seems to be struggling with depression-like symptoms or states of severe sadness.
Being “weary” and “feeling small” are two very typical features of a depression. Apparently,
the addressee is going through a rather difficult and rough part of their lives. The addressee in
this section seems to have a very low self-esteem and self-value, as indicated in line 2. There
seems to be a feeling of inherent inadequacy within the addressee to the point of the addressee
having to cry. However, it appears that the speaker is not necessarily in this state of
depression or sadness at the current moment, as is indicated by the word “when” in lines 1
and 3. On the one hand, one could argue that the use of the word “when" implies that the
addressee has ups and downs in their emotional state. This pattern of mood swings and ups
and downs also fits quite nicely with the picture of someone who is struggling with
depression. Depression is very often associated with mood-swings and ups and downs that
can occur and disappear seemingly at random, with no discernible pattern. On the other hand,
the passage could easily be read as a list of things that might happen to his friend at some
point in the future. Therefore, it is not something the person is dealing with or has already
dealt with. Especially reading on, the impression occurs that the speaker offers his help and
support pre-emptively, in case the emotional state, as described in lines 1-3, manifests.
Viewed in this light, this particular passage says not so much about the addressee but it says
rather a lot about the speaker’s deep commitment to this friendship and his willingness to
support his friend if need be.
The second part of the verse focusses on the speaker and the action he will take in case of his
friend needing him. In line 4 he talks about how he would “dry” the tears referred to in line 3.
He assures his friend that he will be on their side “when times get rough” (line 6). It seems the
speaker is genuinely worried about his friend and assures them that he will be there for them.
There appears to be a very special bond and friendship between the speaker and the addressee,
considering the fact that the speaker is willing to support and help his friend in such a
committed fashion. This point is even emphasised in lines 6 and 7 (“When times get rough”
47
and “And friends just can’t be found”). The speaker makes it very clear to the addressee that
he will stay with them and not abandon them in their hour of need. In a struggle or state of
severe problems, where most people and “friends” would abandon you (line 7), he will stay
with his friend and help him with whatever they are going through. The speaker goes on to
use a figure of speech in the refrain to describe the degree of their friendship. In lines 8 and 10
he refers to himself being “Like a Bridge Over Troubled Water” for his friend. Looking at the
song title “Bridge Over Troubled Water” alone, one could be led to believe that the figure of
speech used here is a metaphor. However, in the refrain the word “like” is used, which makes
this particular figure of speech a simile. This represents the speaker’s willingness to protect
and support his friend throughout the difficulties of life.
Verse 2:
12. When you're down and out

13. When you're on the street
14. When evening falls so hard
15. I will comfort you
16. I'll take your part
17. Oh, when darkness comes
18. And pain is all around
19. Like a bridge over troubled water
21. Like a bridge over troubled water
Verse 2 is structured in a very similar fashion as the first one. There are two separate ideas in
the verse. The first three lines again address the speaker’s friend. The speaker lists several
things that his friend could possibly go through in the future. The situations that are described
in this verse seem much darker and more threatening than in the previous one. The addressee
is described as “down and out” and “on the street”. A picture of homelessness is drawn in this
verse. This would be quite a serious and dangerous situation to be in, since the streets are not
a very safe space, especially for someone who has gone through emotional trauma, depression
or sadness.
In the second half of the verse the speaker once again assures his friend that he will be there
for him, which can be seen from line 15 onward. He intends to “comfort” his friend and “take
his part”. Since “Bridge Over Troubled Water” was intended to be a gospel-hymn, it is
reasonable to assume that the song itself and this verse in particular contains allusions to the
Bible and Christian imagery, more specifically. As I have shown in the analysis of the
48
previous songs, it is not at all uncommon for Paul Simon to draw inspiration from the Bible
and its stories. This particular verse seems to contain allusions to Jesus Christ in his role as
“the comforter”. Jesus Christ is often seen as someone who is there to comfort those who are
in need. In the case described in this verse, comfort seems to be needed quite urgently by the
addressee. The speaker in some sense assumes a Christ-like role for his friend by standing by
him and comforting him in this dark hour. This allusion to Christian imagery is even
strengthened by line 16 (“I’ll take your part”). Here, the speaker suggests that he is willing to
take the burden his friend is carrying and take it on himself. His friendship must therefore be
exceptionally deep and strong in order for him to be willing to take this burden off of his
friend. It is fairly easy to see the possible connection between the message of the speaker and
the message of Jesus Christ. Much like the speaker in this song, Christ is willing to take on
the burden, in this case the burden of humanity. Another aspect here is the “darkness” and the
“pain” referred to in line 17 and 18, respectively. Essentially, the speaker offers to help his
friend out of the “darkness” and “pain” that they are experiencing. Again, this can be seen as
an allusion to Christ who is often seen as “the light” combating darkness and taking away
pain and suffering. In this case the speaker proclaims to protect his friend from “darkness”
and “pain”.
Taking the context of the second verse into account, it could be argued that these allusions to
Christ already exist in the first verse, although the argumentation for this assumption is not as
strong and valid as in the second verse. Since allusions to Christ can be established in the
second verse, it could be argued that the statements made by the speaker in the first verse
contain Christian elements, at least in part. It is quite apparent that Paul Simon was not only
influenced by the musical genre or style of gospels but in some respect also by their content.
The refrain in this verse remains the same as in the first verse. However, despite the fact that
the refrain remains unchanged, it can now be seen through the lens of the Christian faith and
thus be re-interpreted. In this sense the speaker functoins as a stand-in for Christ who protects
people from the “troubled waters” and thus the evils of the world.
Verse 3:
23. Sail on silver girl,
24. Sail on by
25. Your time has come to shine
26. All your dreams are on their way
27. See how they shine
28. Oh, if you need a friend
49
29. I'm sailing right behind
31. I will ease your mind
33. I will ease your mind
The last verse of “Bridge Over Troubled Water” is interesting for various reasons. Initially,
the plan was for the song to have only two verses. It was later, during the production phase
that Simon was urged to come up with an additional verse. Songfacts.com states33:
Simon wrote this song with just two verses, considering the song "a little hymn." Garfunkel
and producer Roy Halee heard it as more epic, and convinced him to write a third verse, which
Paul did in the studio (the "Sail on, Silvergirl [sic] part"). This was very unusual for Simon, as
he usually took a long time writing his lyrics. Simon's "little hymn" got a grand production,
and after hearing it, Paul thought it was too long, too slow and too orchestral to be a hit.
[Songfacts.com: 21st May 2016]
Due to this fact the third verse seems to be slightly removed from the previous two with
regard to the content. There seems to be a break with the previous topic of the song.
Therefore, it seems that the third verse is not entirely consistent with the previous two when
looking at the content. The first two verses began with a list of situations that the addressee is
in, or might get into and then the speaker revealed what he would do if these situations came
to pass. This separation of the verse into two parts that we have seen so far is now no longer
present. Instead the speaker addresses a “silver girl” in line 23. From the context it is not quite
clear who this “silver girl” is. It might be tempting to assume that the “silver girl” is the
person talked about in the previous verses; however, this conclusion would be too hasty. It is
not at all clear whether there is a direct connection between addressee in the first two verses
and the “silver girl” in the third. This is due to the fact that the third verse breaks with the
patterns that have been discerned so far. Probably, the most notable change in this verse can
be found in the music itself. Up until this point Art Garfunkel performs this song as a solo.
However, as soon as they reach this verse, Paul Simon starts to sing accompanying
harmonies, which creates an entirely different, more dramatic atmosphere than in the verse 1
and 2. This certainly influences the way these lyrics are perceived.
The speaker goes on to urge the girl to “sail on by” in line 24. This is another break from the
patterns in the first two verses. Here we have no longer promises of the speaker to stand by
33
“Bridge Over Troubled Water” (n.d.). [Online]. Songfacts.com. http://www.songfacts.com/detail.php?id=247
[21st May 2016].
50
the addressee in times of trouble and sadness. Instead there are words of encouragement. Line
24 suggests that the “silver girl” is on a path that the speaker finds to be advantageous for her.
Thus he encourages her to keep on doing what she has so far. In fact the speaker seems to
believe that the best times just lie ahead of her, as can be seen in line 25 (“Your time has
come to shine”). The speaker feeling the need to encourage the “silvergirl” in her actions also
tells us quite a bit about her and her attitude. It suggests that she is not quite sure about the
path she is on. She might even have considerable self-doubt and a lack of self-esteem,
therefore, she does not believe in herself and the path she has chosen. The speaker counteracts
this by essentially telling her to endure because, as he thinks, the benefits will outweigh the
cost considerably. This is indicated quite clearly in line 26 and 27 (“All your dreams are on
their way” and “See how they shine oh”). He is convinced that her dreams will come true, if
she keeps true to her path and does not give up because she has some doubts, either about the
path or herself.
One thing that has remained the same as in the previous verses is the implied notion of
friendship, and the idea that the speaker will stand by the addressee of this song, in this case
the “silver girl”. Looking at lines 28 and 29, this becomes very much apparent. However, in
this context it is no longer helping a friend in an unfortunate circumstance but encouragement
for a path that is considered good and worthwhile by the speaker.
At this point, the allusions to Christian imagery that can be found in the first two verses have
almost completely vanished. While the content in the first two verses, particularly the second
one, allows for drawing explicit comparisons to Christian imagery, this verse does not. As we
have seen, there is still a theme of friendship in this verse, but this cannot be linked to the
figure of Jesus Christ in any convincing fashion. This is probably due to the fact that this
verse was added later on and is, as already discussed, not entirely consistent with the first and
second verse.
Another interesting aspect of this particular verse is the frequent use of the image of “sailing”.
Sailing is oftentimes associated with uncertainty and the chance of getting lost and being
blown off to a different destination. After all, sailing is very much dependent on the wind, and
the wind is not always reliable. This is the situation that the “silver girl” seems to be in. The
“sailing” in this sense can be seen as metaphor for life in general. Life does not always go
according to plan and neither does sailing. Sailing, like life itself, sometimes requires
endurance, compromise and improvisation. The general message of this verse seems to be not
51
to get discouraged by minor things and abandon your goals, but to keep moving towards them
no matter the obstacles.
Simon himself stated that the “silver girl” is a reference to his then girlfriend, who had
discovered that she began getting grey hair: “Funny, I'm reminded of the last verse. It was
about Peggy, whom I was living with at the time: ‘Sail on, silver girl ... / Your time has come
to shine’ was half a joke, because she was upset one day when she had found two or three
gray hairs on her head.” [Simon and Garfunkel homepage: 22nd May 2016]34 Of course this
puts a bit of a comedic spin on the entire song as we have discussed so far. However, even
though the lyrics in this verse were probably not meant to be taken completely seriously, one
can still make sense of them within the context of the song. It seems that Simon wanted to
encourage his girlfriend not to be frustrated by a view grey hairs. The lines suggest that she is
now entering the most exciting and adventurous time of her life and that she is on the right
way, even if it does not feel like it. This fits quite well with my analysis of the word “sailing”
in this context. Apparently, Simon’s girlfriend felt like she was sailing in unchartered territory
and was not sure what to expect next. Simon would stand by her as a friend and companion in
these difficult times, or what is perceived as such.
One last aspect of this song is the fact that the refrain has changed now. So far the refrain
contained the line “I will lay me down”. However, in this verse it is changed to “I will ease
your mind”. This change is probably due to the change in tone of the overall verse. Since the
speaker does not talk about physical and emotional hardships but about decisions and worries,
it seems fitting to change the lyrics in this respect. In fact, “I will ease your mind” makes
much more sense in this verse than “I will lay me down” would. This is simply because the
situation the “silver girl” is in certainly requires someone who “eases her mind” and gives her
encouragement and reassurance about where her life is headed.
34
“Song Quotes” (n.d.). [Online]. Simon and Garfunkel homepage. http://freespace.virgin.net/r.kent/quotes.html
[22nd May 2016]
52
9. “You can call me Al”
“You can call me Al” is a hit single by Paul Simon35. It was released on the album Graceland
in 1986. Simon had been working quite successfully as a solo artist ever since the end of
Simon and Garfunkel. However, in the years before the release of Graceland Simon had
become less active because his work had become less successful with both critics and
audiences in the late 1970s and early 1980s. During this time he grew increasingly frustrated
and was looking for a new style and some inspiration to create a new album. It was during this
time when found new inspiration in traditional African tunes. For this purpose, he even
travelled to South Africa to record his new album. The result was the highly successful album
Graceland, which helped Simon to boost his career once again. The album would go on to
become one of the most successful ones in his career. Graceland received numerous different
awards, such as a Grammy for Album of the year in 1986 and a Grammy for Record of the
year in 1987.36 The success of Graceland was certainly owed in part to the hit single “You
can call me Al”, which became one of the most successful songs in Simon’s career. Just as the
rest of the album, “You can call me Al” was recorded in South Africa. Songfacts.com states:37
Simon started recorded this song in South Africa, where he worked with local musicians and
experimented with their sounds. He recorded with many different musicians while he was
there, and he loved the work of the guys from a local group called Stimela, whose guitarist
Ray Phiri came up with the riff for this song during one of their jam sessions. These
recordings were edited together in New York by Simon's producer Roy Halee - a monumental
task in the age of analog recording, since in South Africa, they rolled a lot of tape that Halee
had to sort out with a series of splices. [Songfacts.com: 26th May 2016]
9.2. Impact
Apart from the fact that “You can call me Al” boosted Simon’s career again, it had quite an
immense impact on the music scene. I already briefly touched upon the significance the album
had for African music in my introduction. Mark Vinet elaborated on the significance of
35
“You can call me Al” (n.d.). [Online]. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/You_Can_Call_Me_Al [25th
May 2016].
36
“Biography” (n.d.). [Online]. The Paul Simon Official Site. http://www.paulsimon.com/about/ [25th May
2016].
37
“You can call me Al” (n.d.). [Online]. Songfacts.com. http://www.songfacts.com/detail.php?id=1068 [26th
May 2016].
53
Graceland, which introduced traditional African tunes to the Western World (Vinet 2004:
163).
However, the effects of Graceland and “You can call me Al” where not simply restricted to
music, it also had quite some political consequences for Simon. South Africa, at this time, was
shunned by the rest of the world because of its Apartheid-policy. However, despite of South
Africa’s policies Simon went there and recorded his album. This resulted in quite some
controversy over Simon and the record itself. Songfacts.com states38:
The lyrics contain some intricate wordplay that Simon wrote very carefully around the track,
and the character in the song symbolic of his South Africa experience. At the time, South
Africa was divided by Apartheid, a policy that separated blacks and whites, and a cultural
boycott was in place […]. Simon defied this boycott and went anyway, taking a lot of heat for
his actions - even though his intentions were good, many black leaders in South Africa felt
that any violation of the boycott hindered their cause. Because of the boycott, music from the
area was secluded, and when Simon released Graceland, he brought the music of the country
to the world. [Songfacts.com: 29th May 2016]
9.3. Music and Structure of “You can call me Al”

Looking at the musical elements of “You can call me Al” we can quite clearly see
considerable changes in the musical landscape since the end of Simon and Garfunkel in 1970.
This is certainly not surprising since about 16 years lie between the latest Simon and
Garfunkel song I have examined (“Bridge Over Troubled Water” in 1970) and “You can all
me Al” (1986)39. The songs I have examined so far have always had a distinct Simon and
Garfunkel style to them and have always, at least to some degree, stayed true to their folk rock
roots. As we will see, Simon was very eager to find his own style and distinguish himself in
the years after Simon and Garfunkel.
In this particular song we find, as mentioned above, many elements of traditional African
music. The entire song has very distinct 1980s appeal to it, combining the African elements in
the song with the electric elements in pop and rock, which were fairly common during the
80s. Therefore, the song stands wholly apart from all the songs I have examined so far.
Looking at the music itself there is an intro, which features synthesizer elements, bass and
38
May 2016].
39
Simon, Paul (1986). Graceland: “You can call me Al”. New York: Warner Bros.
54
drums. One could argue that the intro itself has almost resembles disco sound. This simply
appears to be the consequence of the style and musical zeitgeist of that time.
Generally, the song can be divided into the verses and the chorus. In this case we have a real
chorus because it is a separate musical entity that is not part of the verse. This is true with
regards to the content as well as with regard to the structure and music of the chorus. “You
can call me Al” can further be divided into 3 verses. The first verse has 15 lines, while the
other two have 14 lines each. The chorus follows immediately after each verse. After the first
verse and the first chorus the second verse follows almost immediately. Once the second verse
and the second chorus are sung there is a penny whistle solo. After the solo ends there is an
interlude played by wind instruments. Then the final verse and chorus is sung. It is followed
by the melody of the verse sung entirely in” na, na, na…” which half way through changes
into instrumental interlude again. Especially during this passage we can hear the various
African influences Simon has built into this song. There are hardly any changes in the chorus,
neither in content nor in structure. However, as the song fades out parts of the chorus are
repeated.
One of the main features of this song is the lack of a rhyming pattern. The only discernible
rhyme in this song is in the chorus. It can be found in lines 17 and 20 in the chorus (the words
“Al” and “Pal” respectively). Once again it seems that the words used in the song were
considered more important than a rhyme scheme and it was hence, not implemented.
Therefore, I will, much like in the previous songs, not include a rhyme scheme for this song.
The music itself is rather upbeat and cheerful, which, as we will see in the analysis, stands in
stark contrast to the content of the lyrics. Generally speaking “You can call me Al” is much
more overt regarding music. In the songs examined so far the music mostly played a
background role in order to emphasise the lyrics. This is not the case in “You can call me Al”.
The music is the first thing that captures and captivates the audience when listening to the
song. In some ways the lyrics of the song almost retreat into the background. Due to the
song’s upbeat nature the focus is almost necessarily drawn to the music, which distracts the
audience from the content of the lyrics to some degree. One of the things that certainly
contribute to the happy disposition of the song is the extensive use of wind instruments,
especially towards the end of the song. This can be seen most clearly in the way the trumpets
are used. Another factor is the cheery penny whistle interlude, which adds another light-
55
hearted element to the song. The entire song gives the audience an impression of a party,
which, as we will see, does not align with the song’s lyrics.
However, it can be argued that the contrast between the music and the lyrical content actually
emphasises the message that is conveyed in the lyrics. The fact that the musical nature of the
song does not fit with the lyrics can actually add gravitas to the message of the lyrics, once
attention is drawn to them. This technique is used more or less frequently in music, film,
theatre and many other media.
The discrepancies between lyrical content and the music can arguably best be seen in the
official music video for the song40. In addition to the differences in music and lyrics, we have
the medium of video, which reinforces this contrast. The reason, I mention the music video at
this point is because it probably represents Simon’s intention for the song most accurately.
Furthermore, it is one of the first proper music videos by Paul Simon, since the trend to have
highly-produced music videos only started in the early 1980s. Therefore, it seems valid to
take a brief look at this video. At the beginning of the music video Paul Simon and the actor
Chevy Chase enter a pink room with instruments. The sit down, shake hands and Chase starts
lip-synching to Simon’s vocals, leaving Simon only to sing harmonies in the chorus and
occasionally play instruments (such as the penny whistle solo). The idea to include Chase in
the music video in itself is a comedic statement, since he is mostly known for his comedic
roles. This furthers the discrepancy between tragedy and comedy in the song. The comedic
effect of the video is also partly owed to the considerable difference in heights between Chase
and Simon, which adds somewhat of a slapstick comedy element to the video. This quite
nicely illustrates the contrast between the seriousness of the lyrics and the cheery, almost
goofy appeal of the music and melody in this song. It seems Simon wanted to portray a man
who is in the middle of a crisis of some sort or is dealing with depression. In order for this
man to survive he has to force himself to be happy and cheerful. This appears to be a means
of self-protection and self-preservation for this character. Otherwise he would probably go
down in this crisis. This realisation can lead to quite a shock for the audience, since it alters
the mood of the song completely, especially if one has only listened to the music so far.
40
“Paul Simon - You Can Call Me Al” (n.d.). [Online]. YouTube- PaulSimonVEVO.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uq-gYOrU8bA [29th May 2016].
56
9.4. Analysis and Interpretation of “You can call me Al”
Looking at the lyrics41 of “You can call me Al”, we find that the song’s lyrics have a ballad-
like structure. This is in many ways similar to what we find in “The Boxer”. Furthermore, we
find that the themes touched upon in this song are related to those of “The Boxer” as well.
Simon seems to have been in a similar mood or mind-set during the writing process of “You
can call me Al”. In the case of “The Boxer”, Simon was struggling with the impending end of
Simon and Garfunkel and the fact that critics were getting harsher and harsher about his work.
By comparison, in the years that lead up to Graceland he found himself in a rather similar
situation where he was trying to find success again, both commercially and critically.
Verse 1:
1. A man walks down the street
2. He says, “Why am I soft in the middle now?
3. Why am I soft in the middle?
4. The rest of my life is so hard
5. I need a photo-opportunity
6. I want a shot at redemption
7. Don't want to end up a cartoon
8. In a cartoon graveyard”
9. Bonedigger, bonedigger,
10. Dogs in the moonlight
11. Far away, my well-lit door
12. Mr. Beerbelly, Beerbelly
13. Get these mutts away from me
14. You know, I don't find this stuff
15. amusing anymore
The first verse begins with a statement made by the speaker about a man who “walks down
the street” and apparently starts talking to himself. We can quite clearly see the third person
perspective of this song in the first line. The speaker is telling the audience about a man.
Interestingly, approximately half of the verse (lines 2-8) consists of direct speech by the man
talked about by the speaker. However, when we look at the entire verse, the direct speech
seems to outlast the quotation marks between lines 2 and 8. This is indicated by the use of the
personal pronouns I and my after line 8. It is not really clear as to why the quotation marks are
set the way they are set.
41
Lyrics taken from:
“You can call me Al” (n.d.). [Online]. The Paul Simon Official Site. http://www.paulsimon.com/track/you-can-
call-me-al-6/ [19th May 2016].
57
The man in this song walks down a street and talks to himself about his life and who he is. He
starts out by asking himself the same question twice “Why am I soft in the middle?” (lines 2
and 3). This seems to indicate that the man thinks of himself as weak on the inside, which
probably refers to a lack of self-confidence or will power. It seems that this man was trying to
reach something in his life but ultimately failed to succeed, which might indicate a lack of
persistence when pursuing a goal. Now he is tormenting himself with questions as to why he
has this weakness of character and where it comes from. He seems to be in a rather depressed
mood and does not seem to see much value in what he has achieved so far, if indeed he has
achieved anything yet. In many ways it seems that he never reached any of the goals he set
out to reach and is, therefore, in a state of depression. It is, however, also quite possible that
he did reach his goals, or at least some of them, but has somehow lost his achievements or
views them as worthless now. Judging from the situation this man is in and the self-
questioning in this verse, it appears that we are dealing with a middle-aged man who is in
midlife-crisis of sorts. This idea is further strengthened by line 4 (“The rest of my life is so
hard”). The man seems to have a very distinct fear of what is to become of him and where his
life is headed. Worries and fears like this are commonly found in people facing midlife-crises.
There is also an element of self-pity in this specific line. Apparently, he thinks that his life is
unfairly harsh and difficult, especially when looking to the future. The verse shifts a little bit
from this self-torment in line 5, in which the man yearns for another chance in his life. He
essentially states that the he needs that one glorious opportunity to turn his life around. A
clear indication can be found in line 6 in which he asks for “a shot at redemption”. This is also
a very common feature of midlife-crisis. People who experience it often wish for another
chance to give their life meaning and purpose and a means to redeem themselves for all the
things that went wrong in their lives so far. Another interesting aspect here is the man’s fear
of ending up like a “cartoon”. This seems to indicate that he is afraid of getting stuck in his
life the way it is and not being able to escape. Essentially, it can be argued that he is
concerned about becoming a walking, talking stereotype and hence “one of those guys”. This
is another common aspect of midlife-crisis; the fear of treading the same paths over and over
again without having made any significant impact on the world before dying (hence the
mentioning of the “cartoon graveyard” in line 8).
The next part of the verse is very interesting because we are entering the “unofficial” direct
speech of this verse, since there are no quotation marks anymore. Here he talks about
“Bonediggers” and “dogs in the moonlight”. The “Bonediggers” are probably connected to
the “cartoon graveyard” mentioned in line 8. This could be reference to those who seek to
58
exploit people who are in a situation like the man in this song. These “Bonediggers” try to
turn a profit from the misfortune of others or gain some other advantage. It is also clear that
the things those people do is not entirely legal, as they have to do in the “moonlight” (line 10)
and cannot be seen doing it in well-lit places (line 11). The man expresses his frustrations in
line 13, where he states that he wants the “mutts” gone, referring to the dogs in line 10. He
seems to try and fight off these “dogs” or “Bonediggers” who want to exploit him in his
weakest hour. Lines 14 and 15 further indicate his deep dissatisfaction with the situation he is
in. Particularly noteworthy is the fact that he calls out to a “Mr. Beerbelly” in line 12.
Apparently he expects this “Mr. Beerbelly” to aid him in his wish to get the “mutts” away
from him. He could be talking about an actual beer belly and maybe even his own. However,
given the context of this verse it seems reasonable to view this “Mr. Beerbelly” as a symbol
for his own life. A beer belly is sometimes associated with people, who in some way or
another have let themselves go, regardless of how unjustified a view like this may be. The
beer belly in this context is apparently supposed to signal to the “Bonediggers” that trying to
exploit him is futile, since there is nothing to gain from him.
Chorus 1:
16. If you'll be my bodyguard
17. I can be your long lost pal
18. I can call you Betty
19. And Betty, when you call me
20. You can call me Al
The chorus of “You can call me Al” seems to be an attempt to bond with someone, or least
form an alliance of some sort. Line 16 states quite clearly that the man in this song is in need
of “bodyguard”, someone who will help him in this difficult time. In return he offers to be
friend or a “pal” to whomever he is speaking to. This segment of the song clearly
demonstrates the man’s attempt to deal with his situation by finding someone to lean on. As
we learn in the next line (18) this person he is referring to is apparently named Betty and we
also learn the man’s name for the first time; Al (line 20). It stands to reason to assume that Al
is the person talking in verse one, since there is no real indication that it might be someone
else. Al seems to be very eager to quickly become friends with Betty, by suggesting that the
use their nicknames. The fact that Betty and Al are not their real names is implied by the line
“I can call you” and “You can call me” in lines 18 and 20 respectively. However, it is not only
Al that we learn about in this chorus, there are also a number of things implied about Betty.
Betty seems to be in a similar situation as Al and is therefore, the target of Al’s pursuits. She
59
seems to have lost a friend, as is suggested in line 17 and is probably experiencing a crisis
similar to that of Al. In return for her guardiancy as a “body guard” in his life struggles, Al
offers to fill in for the person Betty has lost. The origin of “Betty” and “Al” is in itself a
rather interesting story. Songfacts.com writes:
So where did "Al" and "Betty" in this song come from? That stems from a 1970 party that
Simon hosted with his wife, Peggy Harper. Simon's friend, the composer Stanley Silverman,
brought along another composer named Pierre Boulez, and when he made his exit, Boulez
called Simon "Al" and his wife "Betty." Boulez was French, and he wasn't being rude - it was
just his interpretation of what he heard - Paul=Al Peggy=Betty. [Songfacts.com: 29th May
2016]42
It seems Simon included an inside-joke into his song, something that we have already seen in
“Bridge Over Troubled Water” (“Sail on, Silver Girl”). Background knowledge like this
certainly adds some comedy to the chorus. This seems to be one of the great themes in this
song; comedy and light-heartedness in the music mixed with rather serious and at times
depressing lyrics.
Verse 2:
22. He says, “Why am I short of attention?
23. Got a short little span of attention
24. And woe, my nights are so long!
25. Where's my wife and family?
26. What if I die here?
27. Who'll be my role-model?
28. Now that my role-model is
29. Gone, gone”
30. He ducked back down the alley
31. With some roly-poly, little bat-faced girl
32. All along, along
33. There were incidents and accidents
34. There were hints and allegations
In many aspects verse 2 is very similar to verse 1. The first thing one notices is that this verse
starts with the exact same line as verse 1(“A man walks down the street”). In fact all three
verses start with the same line. Like in the first verse we have direct speech by Al, asking
himself questions about his life and his shortcomings. This verse is a little bit shorter than the
first one (14 instead of 15 lines) and the direct speech occupies more lines (8 as opposed to 7).
Verse 2 is essentially a sequel to the themes we have already encountered in the first verse. It
42
May 2016].
60
is in some ways darker than the previous one, since Al does not talk about ways to get out of
his state or reaching “redemption” anymore. He starts out contemplating his “short span of
attention”, which he apparently views as a character flaw. This indicates that he is incapable
of focussing on something, which might have contributed to the situation he is in now. He
could not focus on the things that he views as important in his life (family, career etc.) and has
lost those things as a result. These failures also seem to keep him from sleeping at night, as is
implied in line 24. This is quite common for people who are in Al’s situation. He is worried
about where his life is heading but is not able to counteract this development because of his
rather limited attention span. It is, however, quite possible that there is nothing wrong with his
attention span at all. Instead this might just be a result of his midlife-crisis which puts him in a
very self-critical and self-conscious mood.
In the next lines (25-27) he asks himself three questions. The first question he asks is about
the whereabouts of his wife and family. This could either be an indication that he once had a
wife and family and lost them due to the problems he is experiencing in his life. However, it
also possible that “a wife and family” was one of the life goals he never reached and,
therefore, he finds himself in this crisis. The next question (line 26) deals with his mortality.
The question of death is one that certainly everyone has deal with at some point in their lives.
Al appears to be worried to die at this point, without having reached his goals or making a
difference in the world or his life. This touches upon the question of what we leave behind
once we die and whether we have made any difference in our own lives or the lives of others.
Al is apparently struggling with the fear of his life having been pointless.
Al furthermore, deals with the people he once looked up to (lines 27-29). He asks himself
who he shall look up to since his role-model has gone. This implies that Al’s previous role-
model left, died or more likely, as we read on, disappointed him in some way. The rest of the
verse strengthens the idea that Al was severely disappointed by his former role-model. The
misbehaviour of Al’s role-model is discussed here. Apparently he had an affair with a girl and
had to hide it in a dark alley (line 30-31). He used to be someone for Al to look up to,
someone with morals and principles, but due to his behaviour Al has apparently lost all faith
in him. This entire passage seems to be a reference to celebrities and other people who are in
the public eye, who do not take the responsibility that comes with their fame seriously and
therefore, fail as a role-model. It is further implied that Al might have already suspected the
dubious behaviour of his former role-model (lines 32-34). However, it seems that he chose to
ignore all the “hints and allegations” until they could not be refuted any longer. It is indeed
61
common for people to cling to a role-model and defend them as long as they can. Al seems to
have created an image of his role model in his mind that gave him comfort. Seeing his role-
model fail his expectations must have resulted in quite a struggle for him and probably
contributed to his current mental state.
Chorus 2:
35. If you'll be my bodyguard
36. I can be your long lost pal
37. I can call you Betty
38. And Betty, when you call me
39. You can call me Al
40. Call me Al
The chorus following the second verse is essentially the same as the first chorus. The only real
difference is repetition of the phrase “Call me Al” in line 40.
Verse 3:
42. It's a street in a strange world
43. Maybe it's the Third World
44. Maybe it's his first time around
45. He doesn't speak the language
46. He holds no currency
47. He is a foreign man
48. He is surrounded by the sound, sound
49. Cattle in the marketplace
50. Scatterlings and orphanages
51. He looks around, around
52. He sees angels in the architecture
53. Spinning in infinity
54. He says, “Amen!” and “Hallelujah!”
The third and last verse has a very different tone to it then the first two verses. In fact there are
quite considerable changes in the structure and the themes of the song. There is e.g. no direct
speech until the very last line of this verse. The only thing similarity here is the beginning of
the verse in line 41 (“A man walks down the street”). Connections can be drawn between the
character Al and this verse. However, it seems most likely that Simon built the experiences he
has made while working on Graceland in South Africa, into this verse. In this sense the last
verse of this song seems to be quite autobiographical and is therefore, to be seen as more or
less completely separate from the previous verses. Due to the autobiographical elements in
this verse one might be inclined to argue that the verse 1 and 2 also contain autobiographical
aspects. However, it is difficult to make a direct connection here.
62
The first half of the verse Simon deals with his feelings of being estranged and isolated in this
new place. The strangeness of this world is attributed to the fact that it is the third world (line
43) but in line 44 it is suggested that the strangeness actually comes from him, since he is a
foreigner in this world. This opens up the question, whether there is such a thing as a “strange
world” or if there are just strangers who have never been to this world before. His feeling of
isolation becomes particularly clear between lines 45 and 50. He describes all the things that
isolate him or that seem strange to him in this section of the verse. He does not “speak the
language” and “holds no currency”, which are two essential things in order to get by in a new
place. The fact that he is foreign is particularly emphasised in this verse and even explicitly
stated in line 47. Lines 48-50 describe the different sounds he is exposed to in this new world.
This appears to be a crucial part of this song, since Simon was looking for new sounds to
inspire him. Therefore, it is reasonable to directly relate this passage to Simon and his quest to
find inspiration in South Africa. As an audience member one gets the impression that the
sounds he is experiencing are so plentiful and new that he is almost overwhelmed by them.
The next three lines (51-53) deal with the visible aspect of his journey. Line 51 suggests that
he is very much impressed with the things he sees in this “strange world”. Apparently, he is
particularly inspired by the architecture of this place as suggested in line 52 (“He sees angels
in the architecture”). This portion of the verse indicates that the visible aspect of his journey
was just as important to Simon as the audible aspect. Since Simon was looking for inspiration
in South Africa, it is very likely that he was not only influenced by the new sounds he heard
but also by the new and foreign visible input of this country. All of those new experiences
seem to have contributed to the creation of Graceland and subsequently “You can call me
Al”. In the end of the verse he calls out “Amen!” and “Hallelujah!” indicating some sort of
relief. This can be attributed to Simon finally finding his musical inspiration again in this new
world. It could also be interpreted as some kind of spiritual experience he could have had
during his stay, which inspired him. This is indicated by the use of the words “angels”,
“Amen” and “Hallelujah”. Since it is not uncommon for Simon to include religious elements
in his song this seems quite possible. In any case, due to the last verse we have a
reconciliatory ending to this song. Simon seems to have overcome his previous struggles,
which could also be related to the character Al in the first two verses. This is quite an
interesting development in this song. In the first two verses the song essentially deals with
self-doubt and depressing, negative thoughts the character Al has towards himself. The third
verse switches towards a more autobiographic view on Simon’s estrangement and his struggle
to adapt in a foreign world, which ultimately helps resolve his career issues. Only in the very
63
last line Simon expresses a sense of relief and his problems are resolved. This applies equally
well to the character Al, who can be viewed as a symbolic figure for Simon’s struggles in the
years before Graceland.
The last chorus is the same as the second chorus. Towards the end of the song, parts of the
chorus are repeated until the song and its various interludes finally fade out. Now that the
issues have been resolved due to the last verse, the music aligns much more with the message
of the lyrics (at least in the last line). It seems to reflect happiness for finally being able to
break through a difficult phase. This can be seen as a happy ending to a song, which started
on a rather sombre note, at least where lyrics are concerned.
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10. Conclusion
The main aim of this thesis was to draw attention to the meanings and messages in the lyrics
of Paul Simon and Simon and Garfunkel. It was also an endeavour to demonstrate the critical
value of analysing song lyrics. As I have shown in my thesis, the music and songs of Simon
and Garfunkel are certainly amongst the richest and most multi-layered when it comes to
lyrical content. Simon and Garfunkel touch upon numerous different topics and issues in their
songs, the most prevalent of which are politics, society and religion. With the exception of
“Bridge Over Troubled Water”, all the songs I have examined make comments about society
and criticise it, more or less overtly. Making references to society and its development was a
very common feature of songwriters at the time. Being part of this generation, it comes as no
surprise that the songs of Simon and Garfunkel would contain elements like this. However, by
far the most frequent topic to be found in the songs I have examined is the topic of religion
and spirituality. Of course, some of the songs feature the religious aspects more clearly and
overtly; “Bridge Over Troubled Water” makes extensive use of religious elements and
rhetoric, whereas “You can call me Al” contains hardly any such aspect, with the possible
exception of the last line in the last verse. Due to the fact that religious/spiritual elements like
this keep appearing in his songs, it is quite evident that Simon, the songwriter and musical
head of Simon and Garfunkel, tends to draw a lot of inspiration from religious texts
(especially Christianity), as can be seen in “The Boxer” or “Bridge Over Troubled Water”.
Another important aspect of these songs is their political dimension. Political statements are
particularly conspicuous in “The Boxer”, “The Sound of Silence” and to some extent in “Mrs.
Robinson”. The dissatisfaction with the political system and the way it deals with society and
its people are quite apparent in these songs. Although not quite as prevalent as religious topics
and social problems, political issues do occupy a certain space in the songs of Simon and
Garfunkel, as is to be expected from folk-rock artists in the 1960s.
Aside from the big topics like politics, society and religion/spirituality, there are numerous
biographical elements to be found. “The Boxer” and “You can call me Al” are probably the
most explicit examples of Simon incorporating personal issues in his songs. However, all of
the songs, with the possible exception of “The Sound of Silence”, contain personal messages
and allusions to Simon’s personal life. This can be seen in the conflicts and difficulties that
many of the characters in his songs experience. Personal conflicts are most prominently
displayed in “You can call me Al”, whereas the characters in “The Boxer” mostly experience
65
difficulties with their social environment All of the conflicts and difficulties portrayed in the
songs have autobiographical touches at least in some respect.
Another important aspect of this thesis was to take a closer look at Paul Simon as songwriter
and his accomplishments, especially with regard to Graceland und “You can call me Al”. One
of the main goals was to show that Paul Simon was and still is one of the most influential
songwriters of our time. I have demonstrated the historical and contemporary relevance of
Paul Simon and his flexibility, particularly when it comes to the incorporation of new musical
styles. One of the main factors of success for Simon’s Graceland was the inspiration he drew
from African tunes, during his recording sessions in South Africa. As I have shown this did
not only benefit his career but also brought the African music to Europe and America. After
the great success with Graceland, almost precisely 30 years ago, he still remains highly active
and is a successful songwriter to this day.
There is certainly no doubt that Simon and Garfunkel were one of the most successful and
influential folk-rock duos in history. However, this is not just due to their immense
commercial success but also because of their lasting impact on music and other media. The
most prominent example I have examined was their musical contributions to The Graduate.
This did not only boost the popularity of both Simon and Garfunkel and the movie, but also
led to significant changes in the film industry regarding the use of music. Up to this point only
music or songs originally composed for a particular film were used. The Graduate was the
first movie to include songs that had not been specifically composed for this film. Another
indicator for their long-lasting popularity, are the frequent references to Simon and Garfunkel
in pop culture, as I have mentioned in my introductory chapters.
In conclusion, I was able to highlight the factors that are responsible for Simon and
Garfunkel’s continuing popularity and their immense influence on modern pop music. I
pointed out several characteristics about their songs, concerning their structure, rhyme scheme
and use of melody etc. Furthermore, I have offered possible meanings for the song lyrics and
discussed the most common themes used in the songs. Of course, one can never hope to
consider all different possibilities and angles when it comes to song lyrics, but I have made an
attempt at presenting a comprehensive survey of plausible interpretations.
66
11. References
Primary Sources
Amsco Publications (1990) Paul Simon Anthology. Fifty Selected Titles. New York:
Amsco Publications.
Simon and Garfunkel (1964). Wednesday Morning, 3AM: “The Sound of Silence“. New
York: Columbia Studios.
Simon and Garfunkel (1966). Sounds of Silence: “The Sound of Silence”. New York:
Columbia Studios.
Simon and Garfunkel (1968). Bookends. “Mrs. Robinson”. Manhattan: Columbia Studio
A&B.
Simon and Garfunkel (1970). Bridge over troubled Water. “Bridge Over Troubled
Water”. New York: Columbia Records.
Simon and Garfunkel (1970). Bridge over troubled Water. “The Boxer”. New York:
Columbia Records.
Simon, Paul (1986). Graceland: “You can call me Al”. New York: Warner Bros.
Secondary Sources
Lloyd, Stephen (2009). How I met your Mother (Right Place, Right Time): Season 4 episode 22.
CBS Broadcasting, Inc.
Mirkin, David (1994). The Simpson: Season 5 episode 21 (Lady Bouvier’s Lover) [TV- Series].
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Sinatra, Frank (1969): My Way. “Mrs. Robinson”. Hollywood, Los Angeles: EastWest
Studios.
The Beatles (1967). Magical Mystery Tour: “I am the Walrus”. London: Emi and Olympic
Studios.
Vinet, Mark (2004). Evolution of Modern Popular Music: A History of Blues, Jazz,
Country, R&B, Rock and Rap. Wadem Publishing.
Whitesell, Lloyd (2008). The Music of Joni Mitchell. Oxford: Oxford University Press
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http://www.simonandgarfunkel.com/biography/ [17th May 2016].
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http://www.paulsimon.com/about/ [25th May 2016].
“Bridge Over Troubled Water” (n.d.). [Online]. Songfacts.com.

http://www.songfacts.com/detail.php?id=247 [21st May 2016].
“Bridge Over Troubled Water” (n.d.). [Online]. The Official Simon and Garfunkel Site.
http://www.simonandgarfunkel.com/music/bridge-over-troubled-water-40th-anniversary-
edition/ [19th May 2016].
“Christian Counselling” (n.d.). [Online]. Wikipedia.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christian_counseling [13th April 2016].
“Mrs. Robinson” (n.d.). [Online]. The Official Simon and Garfunkel Site.
http://www.simonandgarfunkel.com/track/mrs-robinson-5/ (12th April 2016).
“Mrs. Robinson” (n.d.). [Online]. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mrs._Robinson

[7th June 2016].
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“Paul Simon - You Can Call Me Al” (n.d.). [Online]. YouTube- PaulSimonVEVO.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uq-gYOrU8bA [29th May 2016].
“Paul Simon” (n.d.). [Online]. Wikipedia. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Simon [17th

May 2014].
“Simon and Garfunkel ‘The Boxer’” (n.d.). [Online]. Rollingstone.com.

http://www.rollingstone.com/music/lists/the-500-greatest-songs-of-all-time-
20110407/simon-and-garfunkel-the-boxer-20110526 [14th April 2016].
“Simon and Garfunkel” (n.d.). [Online]. Wikipedia.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Simon_%26_Garfunkel [17th May. 2016].
“Song Quotes” (n.d.). [Online]. Simon and Garfunkel homepage.

http://freespace.virgin.net/r.kent/quotes.html [22nd May 2016].
“The Boxer” (n.d.). [Online]. The Official Simon and Garfunkel Site.
http://www.simonandgarfunkel.com/track/the-boxer-7/ [12th April 2016].
“The Boxer”. [Online]. Songfacts.com. http://www.songfacts.com/detail.php?id=2751

[14th April 2016].
“The Sound of Silence” (n.d.). [Online]. Wikipedia.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Sound_of_Silence [12th April 2016].
“You can call me Al” (n.d.). [Online]. Songfacts.com.

http://www.songfacts.com/detail.php?id=1068 [29th May 2016].
“You can call me Al” (n.d.). [Online]. The Paul Simon Official Site.
http://www.paulsimon.com/track/you-can-call-me-al-6/ [19th May 2016].
“You can call me Al” (n.d.). [Online]. Wikipedia.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/You_Can_Call_Me_Al [25th May 2016].
69
12. Appendix
12.1. English Abstract
An Analysis of Selected Songs by Simon and Garfunkel
Diploma Thesis
by Georg Lukas
Abstract
The main aim of this diploma thesis is to provide a comprehensive, in-depth literary analysis
and interpretation of a selected number of songs by Simon and Garfunkel and by Paul Simon
as solo artist. Literary analyses of song lyrics are comparatively rare and tend to be underrated
in their critical value. Therefore, one of the main goals of this thesis is to draw attention to the
richness of content that can be found in the song lyrics of Paul Simon and Simon and
Garfunkel. Hence, the main focus of this thesis lies on the literary analysis and interpretation
of five representative songs: “The Sound of Silence”, “Mrs. Robinson”, “The Boxer”, “Bridge
Over Troubled Water” and “You can call me Al”. In order to supply information on context
and background, two biographical chapters about Paul Simon and Simon and Garfunkel are
provided at the beginning of this thesis. In the critical analysis, each song is dealt with in a
separate section. Furthermore, each individual song analysis is preceded by a chapter on the
specific historical background, the impact and a short discussion of the music and structure of
the song. This part is provided to facilitate the analysis and understanding of the songs. The
actual analysis deals with each song’s meaning, message and possible interpretations. Each
verse and chorus (if one exists) or refrain is discussed separately. Different possible meanings
and interpretations are examined in order to find the most plausible ones.
In conclusion, this thesis demonstrates the multi-layered meanings and messages (politics,
society etc.) of these lyrics. Furthermore, the findings of this thesis reveal aspects and details
that are crucial for a comprehensive understanding of the songs.
70
12.2. German Abstract
Eine Analyse ausgewählter Songs von Simon and Garfunkel
Diplomarbeit
von Georg Lukas
Abstract
Das Hauptziel dieser Diplomarbeit ist die umfassende, detaillierte literarische Analyse und
Interpretation einer Auswahl von Songs von Simon and Garfunkel sowie von Paul Simon als
Solokünstler. Analysen von Songtexten sind vergleichsweise selten und werden daher auch
oft in ihrem kritischen Wert unterschätzt. Daher ist eines der Hauptziele dieser Diplomarbeit,
Aufmerksamkeit auf den inhaltlichen Reichtum der Songtexte von Paul Simon bzw. Simon
and Garfunkel zu lenken. Der Hauptfokus dieser Diplomarbeit liegt daher auf der Analyse
und Interpretation von fünf repräsentativen Songs: “The Sound of Silence”, “Mrs. Robinson”,
“The Boxer”, “Bridge Over Troubled Water” und “You can call me Al”. Um die
Zusammenhänge und Hintergründe zu verdeutlichen, finden sich zu Anfang dieser Arbeit je
ein biographisches Kapitel über Paul Simon und eines über Simon and Garfunkel. In der
kritischen Analyse wird jeder Song in einem eigenen Abschnitt behandelt. Jeder einzelnen
Songanalyse wird zudem ein kurzer Abschnitt über die historischen Hintergründe, die
Wirkung und die Musik und Struktur des jeweiligen Songs vorangestellt. Dieser Teil soll der
Analyse und dem Verständnis der Songs dienen. Die eigentliche Analyse beschäftigt sich mit
den Bedeutungen des Textes und möglichen Interpretationen. Jeder Vers und Chorus (falls
vorhanden) bzw. Refrain wird einzeln behandelt. Mögliche Bedeutungen und Interpretationen
werden in der Analyse untersucht, um die plausibelsten zu finden.
Diese Diplomarbeit bestätigt die Vielschichtigkeit dieser Songtexte in Bezug auf

Bedeutungen und Botschaften (Politik, Gesellschaft etc.). Des Weiteren diskutiert diese
Arbeit Aspekte und Details, die für ein umfassendes Verständnis dieser Songs unverzichtbar
sind.
71

The Sound of Silence

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The Sound of Silence:

An Analysis of Selected Songs by Simon and Garfunkel

zur Erlangung des akademischen Grades

an der Karl-Franzens-Universität Graz

am Institut für Anglistik

Begutachter: Ao. Univ.-Prof. Mag. Dr. phil. Hugo Keiper

3. Simon and Garfunkel 9

4. Introduction: Song Analysis 12

5. “The Sound of Silence” 13

8. “Bridge Over Troubled Water” 43

3. Simon and Garfunkel

4. Introduction: Song Analysis

5.3. Music and Structure of “The Sound of Silence”

Verse 19: Rhyme Scheme:

1. Hello, darkness, my old friend A

8. In restless dreams I walked alone A

Verse 3: Rhyme Scheme:

15. And in the naked light I saw A

Verse 4: Rhyme Scheme:

6.3. Music and Structure of “Mrs Robinson”

Chorus 1: Rhyme scheme

1. And here's to you, Mrs. Robinson, A

Verse 1: Rhyme scheme

10. And here's to you, Mrs. Robinson, A

15. Hide it in a hiding place where no one ever goes. A

19. Coo coo ca-choo, Mrs. Robinson, A

7.3. Music and Structure of “The Boxer”

7.4. Analysis and Interpretation: “The Boxer”

1. I am just a poor boy

9. When I left my home and my family

8.3. Music and structure of “Bridge Over Troubled Water”

8.4. Analysis and Interpretation: “Bridge Over Troubled Water”

1. When you're weary

12. When you're down and out

9.3. Music and Structure of “You can call me Al”

“Biography” (n.d.). [Online]. The Official Simon Garfunkel Site.

“Biography” (n.d.). [Online]. The Paul Simon Official Site.

“Bridge Over Troubled Water” (n.d.). [Online]. Songfacts.com.

“Christian Counselling” (n.d.). [Online]. Wikipedia.

“Mrs. Robinson” (n.d.). [Online]. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mrs._Robinson

“Paul Simon” (n.d.). [Online]. Wikipedia. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Simon [17th

“Simon and Garfunkel ‘The Boxer’” (n.d.). [Online]. Rollingstone.com.

“Simon and Garfunkel” (n.d.). [Online]. Wikipedia.

“Song Quotes” (n.d.). [Online]. Simon and Garfunkel homepage.

“The Boxer”. [Online]. Songfacts.com. http://www.songfacts.com/detail.php?id=2751

“The Sound of Silence” (n.d.). [Online]. Wikipedia.

“You can call me Al” (n.d.). [Online]. Songfacts.com.

“You can call me Al” (n.d.). [Online]. Wikipedia.

Diese Diplomarbeit bestätigt die Vielschichtigkeit dieser Songtexte in Bezug auf

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