Student’s Name
Instructor’s Name
Course Tittle
Date
In this paper, I am writing an argument that asserts a claim of fact in demonstrating the connection between Just a girl song by No Doubt, Tragic Kingdom 1995 and the Sound of Silence by Simon and Garfunkel. I give reasons for how these two songs are relevant today and their social, civic, or activism relevance. Just a Girl by No Doubt band has become a fabulous song of this era ever since it was a hit of the ’90s. On the other hand, the Sound of Silence makes an allusion to the extreme consumerism and capitalism that is suffocating society in the current days and also shows disgruntlement for humans who do not care to pay attention to anyone anything (Gayle, 587). The two music groups musical relevance remains overarching in their significance in today’s contemporary world. Music’s application can be limited to the time it was created, but these two songs withstand the ever-changing tides of civic, social culture.
Just a Girl song was written by Gwen Stefani and Tom Dumont, who were the members of No Doubt band among the other two members for their third album, Tragic Kingdom. It was released in 1995 as the album’s lead single that challenges power dynamics between women and their place in the social hierarchy. The song helped the band break into mainstream music, climaxing at position twenty-three on the United States Billboard Hot 100 (Apter, 5). It got a deep bass and a strong electric guitar that provide the basis for a politically charged piece that brings the words “oppression” and “powerhouse” to mind. It is a moderately fast song written in the key of D major and at 110 beats per minute. The lead singer Gwen’s voice spans almost an octave and a half from B3 to E5 in scientific pitch notation. The music got released in the 90s but still proves to be relevant and powerful today. On the other hand, The Sound of Silence by Simon and Garfunkel was released in 1966 and still remains pertinent today. In this fantastic music, both songwriters Simon and Garfunkel ironically imply their frustration with the current world and its changing manner (Ajmal et al, 2337). In the period of 1960s, this lyrical poetry has left an ineradicable mark on pop culture. This song lyric has a disturbing depiction of a society that works with self-absorption and materialism. It uses the imagery of darkness and light to demonstrate how an individual’s enthusiasm and ignorance destroys their ability to communicate even on simple levels.
These two songs are still relevant today, and they got social, civic, and activism relevance in the current days. Their themes connect with the present life. To begin with, in Just a Girl, Gwen wrote it about being frustrated at her father being overprotective because of her gender, saying at that moment: “I wouldn’t trade being female, for anything, but the guys don’t understand what a burden it can sometimes be.” (Gayle, 588) Like the modern world, genders issues continue to persist in many forms, including occupational segregation, the disparity in women’s political participation and presentation, and the unequal distribution of household labor. Just a girl song has become a girl-power anthem. The song itself is written about Stefani’s annoyance over female stereotypes, depicting women as weak and needing men to look after them. It is evident from the lyric; for instance, “this world is forcing me to hold your hand,” signifying that she cannot be fully independent as a woman. The chorus is sarcastic, asserting, “I’m just a girl, little oh me/Don’t let me out of your sight/I’m just a girl, all pretty and petite/ So don’t let me have any rights.” The sarcasm of the song makes fun of the male perception of having to protect women as if they were all fragile and weak beings not able to fend themselves. This reflects what is seen in the modern world. Women in most societies are depicted as week beings who need men for guidance and direction in most things.
On the other hand, in The Sound of Silence song, the two lyricists describe the conflict between the material and spiritual values in the modern world. It commences with an address to darkness. The song appears to realize what individuals are in essence- lonely people, dwelling in the darkness, in the void (Ajmal et al, 2340). The music sounds like it could have been written today. It speaks about the political unrest of the day and the emotional disconnect that characterizes human relations. The song speaks to an entire generation the same way prophets spoke to their generations in the Biblical world. The lyrics are still relevant today in a way that we sense the relevance of the lyrics in the world we live in today (Alexandria, 12). These days most individuals ignore the “sounds of silence”: these days, the individuals in society are more likely to pay attention to their cell phone than the warnings taking place around the world whether they are of the Coronavirus pandemic or climate change; the media experts and pundits talk without saying anything; it is a world that is too uncaring to the signs of disaster. In the modern days, we are experiencing a silence that none of us ever expected to perceive.
Additionally, ‘Just a Girl is music to which many young girls in the contemporary world can relate. The issue of feminism is highly discussed these days. The title of the song alone is packed with animosity. Instead of saying, “I’m a girl”, which practicality symbolizes a variety of qualities, asserting, “I’m just a girl,” is comparable to attempting to rationalize the classification of all women into one particular category. “Just” a girl is debasing. Using the term “just” in the title illustrates how women are thought of as an “archetypal prototype.” In the first verse, Gwen explains how she has been blinded all day long, and she does not require a man, who could be her brother, husband, or father, to be by her side each time. It reflects female empowerment, which is still relevant today. From that verse, we realize that she was not happy with society’s view of women. Nowadays, most women are not pleased with how society views them (Apter, 11). Gwen felt that women could get more power through their sexuality. On the Silence by Simon and Garfunkel shows how these days, our nation has been much noisier than in the 1960s when this song was released. A lot of modern public speech and noise in the 60s appear to echo more within a reverberation chamber than between groups or individuals, and there certainly does not appear to be a lot of reflecting or listening in some significant quarters. The song calls them to fool because silence has an abnormal, unhealthy growth, like cancer.
Both the Sound of Silence and Just Girl songs are still relevant today. They both talk about subjects or themes that concern society in the modern-day. The song by the No Doubt band is relevant in a way that it reflects on the struggles that women go through. On the other hand, the Sound of Silence is a visionary song that warns against the lack of spiritual seriousness in modern people.
Works Cited
Ajmal, Muhammad, et al. “Cognitive Stylistic Analysis of Simon’s “The Sound of Silence”.” International Journal of Future Generation Communication and Networking 13.3 (2020): 2336-2345.
Apter, Jeff. Gwen Stefani and No Doubt: Simple Kind of Life. Omnibus Press, 2009.
Starks, Alexandria. “Simon & Garfunkel’s” The Sound of Silence”: A Narrative Paradigm’s Approach.” (2020).
Wald, Gayle. “Just a girl? Rock music, feminism, and the cultural construction of female youth.” Signs: Journal of Women in Culture and Society 23.3 (1998): 585-610.
