El sonido del silencio: incertidumbre y anomia en la juventud a través de El graduado

Abstract

This article analyzes the film The Graduate (1967) to explore the uncertainties of youth in the 1960s that can be mirrored in today’s generations. The film deals with the life of Benjamin Braddock, who, after graduating, finds himself in an anomic state due to the uncertain future that awaits him. In this sense, it is also intended to show a concrete example of the decisive role assumed by the popular music of Simon & Garfunkel, specifically the song The Sound of Silence, in the discursive subversion of The Graduate by expressing the social concerns of the youth of the time through the protagonist’s sense of isolation and search for meaning. Although the decades differ in context, the themes of autonomy and rebellion against social expectations unite the youth of both eras by highlighting universal topics such as identity and social change.