The End of Irony

In the days and weeks after September 11, 2001 culture and media figures pronounced a long deserved death of irony, which would usher in a new era of sincerity. Ironically, this death was not without precedent. The End of Irony explores the parallels between this cultural phenomenon and Samuel Barber's Adagio for Strings, one of the most commonly used songs to cue a sense of sadness in film and TV, and was performed in the days after 9-11 in a memorial concert for the victims. A video of this performance interlaced with emotionally charged footage of 9-11 imagery has over 5 million views on youtube.