the sound of silence

Feb.1964 by Paul Simon



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

In restless dreams I walked along
Narrow streets of cobble stone
Beneath the halo of a street lamp
I turned my collar to the cold and damp
When my eyes were stabbed
By the flash of a neon light
That split the night
And touched the sound of silence

And in the naked light I saw
Ten thousand people maybe more
People talking without speaking
People hearing without listening
People writing songs that voices never share
And no one dare
Disturb the sound of silence

"Fool" said I,"You do not know
Silence like a cancer grows
Hear my words that I might teach you
Take my arms that I might reach you"
But my words like silent raindrops fell
And echoed in the wells of silence

And the people bowed and prayed
To the neon god they made
And the sign flashed out its warning
In the words that it was forming
And the signs said "The words of the prophets
are written on the subway walls
And tenement halls"
Whispering in the sounds of silence

1963年11月肯尼迪遇刺，保罗西蒙在次年二月写下了这首纪念肯尼迪的歌曲，后来成为《毕业生》的插曲。《毕业生》里达斯丁霍夫曼饰演的角色正象征了歌词里的我，和肯尼迪也有些相同。向强权挑战，向过去挑战，向不公平挑战。。。也许正是这种不甘屈服的性格，才使肯尼迪长久的活在人们的心中，才使《毕业生》百看不厌。

再引用一个网友的评论：

“这首歌是Paul Simon在1964年写的，他与 Art Garfunkel所合唱。歌曲透过描写一种关于大众沈浸在沉默（盲目、压制等象征）之中的梦幻（Vision），来批判社会只知道盲目崇拜物质偶像（Neon god they made），不知道也不敢正视社会的真实面（例如地下铁与廉价公寓中的穷人）。沉默变成了一种声音（sound of silence）让大众以为一切都还是正常。Paul Simon在美国社会正经历如越战、反种族歧视等社会动乱的年代写这首歌，应该是希望社会能够突破这些盲目与不合理的压抑，而找到出路。”

电影中人物随着剧情的变化过程就像现实生活中每个人的成长一样，经过努力奋斗而得到沉甸甸的果实，是很多电影的手法。如《毕业生》，《我的野蛮女友》，《肖申克的救赎》也属于这类。这类电影往往给人无穷的力量。目前也是主流。电影要根据时代创作，时代需要自由，自然创作追求自由的；时代呼唤给自由一定的限制，就创作此类作品。这才是电影人孜孜追求的。把握时代的脉络，走在前面，引导潮流，发出时代的呼唤，说出人们平时不敢或不愿说出的声音。

如同所有领域一样，电影创作困难在第一手资料的获得上，尤其是写实类电影。如果不能找出真正的真相，而是以偏概全，或大局观不够，只狭隘的看现在，而不是着眼于未来的5年，10年，终究是治标不治本。挑起冲突，引起人们的关注，固然是好事，但能提出解决方案更胜一筹。比如如果写个《我的煤矿生活》，要站在工人和煤矿主双方的角度，重要在解决问题，而非挑起冲突。但最终一定要让弱势者获益。

参考资料: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Sounds_of_Silence