Okay, I think there's more to it than anyone has mentioned. Paul Simon took the old song about Scarborough and added the Canticle part to completely change the meaning of the song to an antiwar theme. Think of this and reread the lyrics--the speaker is a soldier who has been mortally wounded in battle. He left his girlfriend in Scarborough, and is unsure of the status of the relationship. He tells the listener to find her and ask her to perform these tasks (last rites, maybe--maybe the cambric shirt is a bodybag?) If she does, then he will know (posthumously) that she really does love him. It shows how war is a foolish waste of young life. The contrast and balance between the two songs reflects the contrast between the endless possibilities of young love and the futility of war.
Okay, I think there's more to it than anyone has mentioned. Paul Simon took the old song about Scarborough and added the Canticle part to completely change the meaning of the song to an antiwar theme. Think of this and reread the lyrics--the speaker is a soldier who has been mortally wounded in battle. He left his girlfriend in Scarborough, and is unsure of the status of the relationship. He tells the listener to find her and ask her to perform these tasks (last rites, maybe--maybe the cambric shirt is a bodybag?) If she does, then he will know (posthumously) that she really does love him. It shows how war is a foolish waste of young life. The contrast and balance between the two songs reflects the contrast between the endless possibilities of young love and the futility of war.