Bo Burnham – Sad

This song juxtaposes humor and sadness to show they have more in common than might appear on the surface. Each image or joke within the song has a simple and deeper meaning to show that sad things can, on some level be funny, and vice versa. Burnham alludes to the way we see sad things all the time but do nothing to amend or stop them happening. Furthermore, he describes how there are many sad realities we happily ignore because they do not concern us and therefore we live quite selfish lives, even to the point that we may laugh at other misfortune in a ‘glad its not me fashion’. He employs onomatopoeia, irony, double meaning, figurative language, confession, dramatic irony, and a comedic persona. The song concludes with him stating that empathy is a good thing; but, too much can be exhausting and therefore humor is important in life.

Link to Lyrics: https://genius.com/2645650