1. Imagery:
- "Hello darkness, my old friend" and "In restless dreams I walked alone" paints vivid images of isolation and solitude.
2. Metaphor:
- The darkness is portrayed as a personified friend representing emotional loneliness.
3. Personification:
- "Silence like a cancer grows" personifies silence as a malignant force.
4. Alliteration:
- "Fools", "said", and "silence" create a poetic consonance.
5. Simile:
- "Like a bridge over troubled water" compares support and comfort to a sturdy bridge.
6. Symbolism:
- "The sounds of silence" symbolize inner turmoil, hidden emotions, and the struggle for self-expression.
7. Antithesis:
- The contrast between "silence" and "sound," emphasizing the tension between external peace and internal unrest.
8. Paradox:
- "People talking without speaking" highlights the irony of empty conversations and superficial communication.
9. Metonymy:
- Using "winter" and "night" to signify periods of despair and darkness.
10. Hyperbole:
- "And emptiness is filled" is an exaggeration to accentuate the weight of desolation.
11. Assonance:
- "People hearing without listening" creates an echoing vowel sound that mimics the act of selective listening.
12. Parallelism:
- The repetitive line structure of "Hello darkness, my old friend" and "And vision softly creeping left its seeds while I was sleeping" establishes a consistent rhythmic pattern.
13. Euphemism:
- "Touched his shoulder in the night" suggests a brief moment of human connection or comfort in a somber world.
14. Oxymoron:
- "Fools", said I, "You do not know" uses the combination of oppositional terms to highlight self-perceived wisdom amidst confusion.
15. Rhetorical Question:
- "Who is the man who walks along the road? Himself." This question sparks introspection and self-evaluation.
16. Allusion:
- References to "the words of the prophets written on the subway walls" and "the sermon on the mount" have religious and biblical connotations, adding a spiritual layer.
17. Onomatopoeia:
- "For the words of the prophets are written on the subway walls, and tenement halls" uses the "w" sound to capture the buzzing and murmuring of urban life.
"The Sound of Silence" stands as a testament to Simon & Garfunkel's mastery of poetic devices, crafting a profoundly moving and thought-provoking song that resonates deeply with listeners.