Humor and illness may seem like an odd pairing, yet throughout literary history, poets have found a way to explore the lighter side of feeling unwell. Whether in the form of self-deprecating humor, exaggerated symptoms, or the sheer absurdity of being unwell, poems about sickness often provide a hilarious way to cope with what can otherwise be an unpleasant experience. In this article, we will delve into twelve of the funniest poems about being sick, exploring their wit, humor, and underlying themes. Each poem is an example of how humor can serve as a powerful tool for managing discomfort, drawing laughter from even the most trying of situations.
The 12 Funniest Poems About Being Sick You May Be Interested In
1. “The Sick” by Shel Silverstein
“I cannot go to school today,”
Said little Peggy Ann McKay.
“I have the measles and the mumps,
A rash, a cough, and a fevered lump.”
Shel Silverstein’s The Sick is one of his most beloved poems, capturing the essence of childhood’s creative excuses for skipping school. The speaker, Peggy Ann McKay, delivers a long list of exaggerated ailments, each one more ridiculous than the last. Her litany of symptoms is hilarious, playing on the idea that children often find inventive ways to avoid things they don’t want to do, such as going to school.
Silverstein’s playful tone and rhythmic cadence are key to the humor. The absurdity of the ailments—“a fevered lump”—further highlights the playful exaggeration. The poem invites readers to laugh at the melodrama and reminds us of the universal human experience of trying to avoid something unpleasant, even if it means fabricating illnesses.
2. “I’m Sick” by James Whitcomb Riley
“I’m sick, I’m sick,
It’s hard to say just what it is.
I can’t describe it—don’t ask me,
But you can see how sick I be.”
In I’m Sick, James Whitcomb Riley takes a simple subject—being unwell—and transforms it into a comically exaggerated ordeal. The speaker’s attempt to describe their illness is both vague and overdramatic, adding to the humor.
Riley’s poem is amusing because of its absurd simplicity. The speaker doesn’t know exactly what’s wrong but insists it is something serious enough to warrant attention. The humor comes from the speaker’s certainty despite their lack of specific symptoms. This mirrors real-life experiences where people sometimes complain of feeling “off” without being able to pinpoint the exact problem.
3. “Sick” by A.A. Milne
“First I fell,
And then I broke my toe—
Then I lost my appetite
And could not move my chin.”
A.A. Milne’s Sick is a whimsical exploration of a child’s exaggerated response to feeling unwell. The poem centers on a seemingly endless series of ailments, each one more absurd than the last. Milne masterfully combines childlike logic with adult-like overreaction, making it a delightful read.
Milne’s use of light-hearted rhyming and simple diction plays into the innocence of the child’s imagination. The humor is in how each ailment seems completely unrelated but are presented in a way that makes sense to the child. The poem becomes even funnier as the speaker increasingly attributes more and more bizarre symptoms to their sickness.
4. “The Lament of the Old Man” by Sir John Suckling
“I’ve lost my voice, and can’t speak clear,
I’ve lost my breath, and cannot hear;
I’ve lost my appetite, and worse—
I’ve lost my hair, and I have no purse!”
Sir John Suckling’s The Lament of the Old Man uses wit to satirize the various misfortunes of aging. The speaker of the poem reflects on the loss of physical abilities, humorously combining elements of both the comical and the grim.
Suckling’s humor is layered—what begins as a playful lament about sickness gradually shifts into a satirical commentary on aging. The poem highlights how sickness and the aging process often lead to the loss of physical faculties, yet Suckling’s tone remains light-hearted and witty. The humor lies in the over-dramatized complaints, making it an amusing yet thought-provoking commentary.
5. “The Red Wheelbarrow” by William Carlos Williams
“So much depends
Upon
A red wheel
Barrow glazed with rain
Water
Beside the white chickens.”
While not specifically about sickness, The Red Wheelbarrow by William Carlos Williams can be humorously reinterpreted as a metaphor for the absurdity of illogical or unexpected recovery. The poem, in its brevity and focus on the simplest objects, evokes the sense that much of our focus during illness is placed on trivial matters.
This minimalist poem has a sense of the ridiculous in its very simplicity. The reader may find humor in how Williams elevates a mundane, seemingly unimportant image to an existential height. While the poem is not explicitly about sickness, it touches on how people often fixate on the small, inconsequential things when they’re unwell, as if these tiny moments might somehow make them feel better.
6. “I Cannot Go to School Today” by Shel Silverstein
“I cannot go to school today,”
Said little Peggy Ann McKay.
“I have the measles and the mumps,
A rash, a cough, and a fevered lump.”
This poem by Shel Silverstein is a classic. In it, Peggy Ann McKay makes up every illness under the sun to get out of going to school. The poem is one of Silverstein’s most charmingly comical works, featuring a child’s imaginative—if slightly dishonest—illness list.
What makes this poem hilarious is its sheer absurdity. The child in the poem comes up with every possible ailment, and each one is more outrageous than the last. The humor lies in how the speaker—while fully aware of their exaggerated stories—convinces themselves that these fictional maladies are perfectly reasonable excuses to skip school.
7. “The Fever” by Robert Frost
“I’ve had my fever all night long,
And now it’s gone—
But I’m still sick,
And I don’t know why.”
In The Fever, Robert Frost uses humor to juxtapose the child’s desire to have their fever acknowledged with the frustration that comes when sickness lingers without clear explanation.
Frost’s poem plays on the confusion and frustration that often accompanies illness. The humor emerges from the fact that the speaker has experienced the fever but is left with no real answers about why it’s happening or why it continues. The poem highlights how illness, though frequently treated seriously, can also be an absurd and frustrating experience.
8. “A Visit from St. Nicholas” by Clement Clarke Moore
“He had a broad face and a little round belly,
That shook when he laughed, like a bowlful of jelly.”
Although not specifically about sickness, this beloved Christmas poem can be humorously interpreted as describing the physical transformation of someone who has indulged too much during the holiday season—perhaps a nod to the overindulgence that often leads to post-holiday sickness.
The image of Santa Claus shaking like “a bowlful of jelly” is inherently humorous, and in the context of sickness, it could evoke the image of someone indulging in too much food and drink, only to end up feeling unwell. The humor is gentle, and the poem continues to be funny because of its light-hearted tone and playful imagery.
9. “The Dentist and the Crocodile” by Roald Dahl
“The crocodile, with gleaming teeth,
First let me see your tongue, said he.
I mean, of course, to be polite,
But this will hurt you, so I’ll bite.”
Roald Dahl’s The Dentist and the Crocodile takes the fear of the dentist’s office and turns it into a darkly comic scenario, where the crocodile’s teeth are just as menacing as the dentist’s tools.
Dahl’s usual blend of whimsy and macabre humor is at play here. The poem is absurd because it places the fear of the dentist in the context of a crocodile’s menace. The humor is rooted in the fact that the crocodile, representing the menace of the dentist, is so over-the-top in his behavior. Dahl’s clever manipulation of rhyme and rhythm adds to the comedic effect.
10. “The Will of the Wisp” by W. H. Auden
“I had a fever once,
The doctor came,
He gave me pills,
And I got better. But not in time.”
W.H. Auden’s The Will of the Wisp touches on the fleeting nature of both illness and health. The poet reflects on the frustration of getting sick, being treated, and yet not fully recovering.
This poem blends humor with melancholy. The humor emerges from the speaker’s resigned tone—despite treatment, the illness lingers. The poem is a reflection on how sickness often takes longer to resolve than we hope or expect.
11. “The Raggedy Man” by James Whitcomb Riley
“He’s as good as a man to help me feel,
But if he gets a cold,
You can’t help him at all.”
Riley’s The Raggedy Man brings in humor through the portrayal of a character who, despite being seemingly invincible, cannot escape the common cold. The humor lies in the contradiction between his helpful nature and his susceptibility to minor ailments.
The poem plays with the human tendency to exaggerate the severity of illnesses, even when the ailment is as simple as a cold. Riley’s playful tone makes the ordinary seem more comically tragic than it is, and it’s this contrast that brings the humor.
12. “A Child’s Prayer for the Sick” by Anonymous
“Bless the child that’s in the bed,
Sick with fever in the head.
And please don’t let it go to school,
But leave the room and go to bed.”
This humorous prayer reflects a child’s desire to avoid the responsibilities of school while pretending to be sick. The poem cleverly satirizes how children, in their innocence, can view sickness as a way to escape the mundane.
The poem is both funny and insightful in its depiction of how children often see illness not as a burden but as an opportunity. The child’s prayer is comically selfish in its request, showing a humorous and honest reflection of how illness is sometimes viewed by young minds.
Conclusion
The twelve poems explored here each offer a unique, humorous perspective on sickness. Whether using exaggeration, self-deprecation, or absurd imagery, these poets manage to bring laughter to an experience that is often viewed with dread or frustration. Humor, as shown through these works, allows us to reflect on our vulnerabilities in a light-hearted way, providing a sense of comfort and release from the discomforts of illness. By blending humor and illness, these poems remind us that laughter can be a powerful coping mechanism, even in the most uncomfortable of times.
