Bo Burnham's Funny Feeling - 2

Written by Harsh Mehta

Edited by Jaanvi Thorat

Illustration by Sanjana Mathur

Welcome back to part 2 of this article! It’s been quite a while, hasn’t it? Last time on the ECHO show, we explored the first 2 verses of, ‘That Funny Feeling,’ by Bo Burnham. This time, we’ll wind it up, and I’ll finally reveal what I believe, that ‘funny feeling’ really is. Let’s not keep you waiting any longer and jump right into it.

Verse 3 delves deeper into the funny feeling. It talks about agoraphobia, which is the fear of the outside and an inability to focus. Every attempt at getting better consistently paves a path for corruption by impersonality. Everything, including our mental and physical health, is encompassed in a system run for profit. A tool that could have a profound impact on the mental state of a person, is also delivered by a metal hunk used by a mega-corporation. All of us, the people in question, begin to disassociate. That is when the pain of stagnancy escalates to a level that the brain can’t realistically comprehend by simply refusing to do so. It subsequently leads to a loss of connection with oneself and the outside world. While the impacts of acute issues like climate change take their toll, and the end grows near, we sit idly in the cages built for us by the system, devoid of genuine humanity and interpersonal contact. We are aware of what's coming, we see the signs, but we turn our heads. Comprehending, but being unable to do anything about it.

I believe that the funny feeling is the alienation we face in our lives from late-stage capitalism. We have no semblance of control over our lives. Even fond memories are corrupted by the pursuit of profit and time. We are all doomed to depersonalization and derealization, as the system leads us to the end. It’s a deep existential dread that bubbles up in all of us, the fear of the dystopia that we are headed towards. We sit there, consuming derivative art, devoid of all creative value, and just hide. Hide, waiting for the end as the pursuit of profit makes society completely ignore the existential threats to our lives, namely, climate change. That is the message of this song and what the funny feeling is. It’s funny because it isn’t anything peculiarly specific. It’s a growing void, the pit in your stomach growing. It’s the emptiness one feels when there isn’t a major problem, but it just fills up the choking bottle of emotions, a little more. You don’t feel like crying, you just lean back in your chair and look up at the ceiling, wondering what the point of everything is. Not particularly thinking about anything, not necessarily feeling a lot, but you feel helpless. It seems like the shadows dance around you, peeking out from behind the furniture. You see the figures in your peripheral vision, but you aren’t alarmed. It feels like they’re laughing at you as you sit there, devoid of everything and utterly helpless to do anything. In the end, it's just a poetic acceptance by Bo Burnham. He is practically welcoming the end now, talking about it like a lullaby to a child, about a loved one coming home soon. Life itself has been corrupted so much that the end seems warm, just at a change of pace. Something truly different, a great equalizer for everyone.

To conclude, all I would like to do is urge you to unfailingly watch the special “Inside”, on Netflix. It’s truly an amazing experience.