BLESS E-ISSN 2656-0518 Vol. No. July 2025 Bilingualism. Language, and Education Studies The HeartbreakAos Poetics : Metaphor and Symbolism in Bruno Major's the Show Must Go On Udur Delima Sibatuara English Language and Culture Department Faculty of Language Universitas Widya Dharma Pontianak sibatuaraudurd5@gmail. Abstract Figurative language can take many forms, and its meaning is not always dictated by its constituent parts. This study aims to examines the use of figurative language in Bruno Major's song The Show Must Go On, as well as how metaphor and symbolism provide emotional depth to the lyrics' depiction of heartbreak. Music serves as a medium for both entertainment and emotional expression. Figurative language is important in shaping how the lyrics are perceived by the listener. This study seeks to examine "how metaphor and symbolism enhance the emotional depth of heartbreak in the song" and "how many metaphor and symbolism are found in the "The purpose of this study is to analyze the use of metaphors and symbolism in the lyrics of the song The Show Must Go On by Bruno Major. The qualitative research employs a method to examine the lyrics line. The data was gathered by listening to the song and categorizing the metaphor . mplied, visual, extende. and symbols . bject, people, color, circumstanc. The study found that metaphor was commonly used in lyrics, particularly visual metaphors. Symbolism appeared second, with the majority of symbolism being object-based. The researchers find that metaphor and symbolism have an important role in increasing the emotional depth of sadness in the songs. These findings serve as a good reference for English teachers, students, and song listeners who are interested in how figurative language affects emotional depth. The song The Show Must Go On combining multiple figures of speeches that help shaping the lyrics more unique and expressing deeper emotion to the listener. The songwriter uses two figure of speeches such as metaphor and symbolism in order to shape the emotion in the song lyrics. By using these two figures of speeches. Bruno able to evoke a deeper heartbreak emotion of the character. The two figures of speeches were found on the lyrics. There are three types of metaphor found in the lyrics, such as implied, visual, and extended metaphor, and the symbolism found were, object people, and situation symbolism, while colour symbolism was not found in the lyrics. Keywords: figurative language, metaphor, symbolism, heartbreak, song analysis. Introduction Music has evolved to become an integral part of daily living, accompanying most Music serves as a way of communication and information sharing among individuals and communities. Music serves numerous self-actualization functions. According to Khasanah et al. Unlike most other kinds of communication that rely on symbols and words, music offers its own form of communication through sheet music and lyrics. Melani et al. ) argue that lyrics can be used as a potent communication tool, portraying precisely choreographed events in order to catch public attention. According to Khasanah et al. Songwriters employ beautiful words to express emotions such as rage, despair, and happiness, resulting in unique songs that appeal to their target audience. In order to write a meaningful yet communicative lyrics, songwriter must combine word, phrase, and sentence to form a song. Songwriters are able to use different types of lyrics depending on what genre they are creating Composers use beautiful pictures and emotional expressions in their songs to connect with BLESS E-ISSN 2656-0518 Vol. No. July 2025 Bilingualism. Language, and Education Studies audiences (Ricoeur, 2. To indirectly communicate with their audience, composers employ majas including personification, metaphor, repetition, and hyperbole (Nurlita et al. , 2. effectively portray emotion through song lyrics, songwriters must understand the use of figurative language such as symbolism and metaphor. Symbolism is commonly found in songs and poems. Symbolism is a way to show how you feel. For instance, "Sun" in a rational explanation means a star in our solar system, while "Sun" in poetry means something happy and joyful. According to Rosita et al. , a symbol expresses a meaningful term in figurative language that is used to illustrate a scenario using an item. Figures of speech enhance communication by clarifying and emphasizing ideas and feelings. Keraf defines figures of speech as language that conveys meaning indirectly through imaginative comparisons, expressions, and descriptions. Figures of speech are commonly utilized in literary works, such as song lyrics, to portray deeper emotions beyond plain words, giving depth to the message. Figures of speech help transmit complicated concepts more effectively (Nurgiantoro, 2. and as in Agtob, figures of speech are expressions that use specific comparisons or descriptions to connect with the listener or reader's reasoning. A figure of speech is used to depict a situation or emotion in a more expressive manner. Writers and songwriters use figures of speech to convey meaning and elicit emotional responses from their audience. Figures of speech in song lyrics provide aesthetic value and deep significance to deliver a message that resonates with both the listener's head and emotions. Figurative language helps songwriters communicate effectively with their audience. Additionally, figures of speech in Indonesian have distinct functions and purposes in Examples of figures of speech are comparison, affirmation, allusion, and Figures of speech are used based on the narrative's context and purpose. Each form has unique properties. Using figures of speech in song lyrics can enhance the message's depth and emotional appeal for listeners (Prayitno, 2. Metaphors, according to Lakoff and Johnson . , are widely used in various forms of communication, including song lyrics. Humans employ metaphors as part of their thinking patterns, not only in language but also in everyday life. Metaphors in song lyrics can convey emotions that are difficult to explain with ordinary language. Metaphors in song lyrics can express emotions like love, sadness, and hope in a more creative way. Composers use metaphors in song lyrics to enhance the song's beauty, ease of understanding, and aesthetic According to Langgeng Tri Yusniar et al. , metaphor is a linguistic style that compares and relates two things based on experience. Metaphor refers to using words to create images based on similarities or comparisons, rather than their literal meaning. Metaphor is the most concise and orderly form of comparison. "It contains two ideas: the first is a reality to be thought of . he objec. , and the second is a comparison to that reality, substituting the latter for the former. Yulianda et al. found that previous research solely examined thematic understanding and linguistic components of meaning, but did not address how metaphorical majas are used to describe sentiments. Metaphors are typically used to describe something indirectly by comparing it to something else, creating new meaning (Harto, 2. The song's metaphorical form enhances the expression and evokes strong emotions through symbolic According to Prayogi and Oktavianti . ), metaphors clarify abstract feelings for readers and listeners. Other study states that metaphors can help make abstract topics more concrete and understandable. Poets and musicians use metaphors to link things or ideas that don't seem to have anything to do with each other. This lets them show how they feel in a complicated way (Lakoff & Johnson, 2. Songwriting has grown more interesting and visually beautiful through the use of figurative language such as symbolism and metaphor. Figurative language helps songwriters be more creative by letting them use and think about different kinds of words in their lyrics. BLESS E-ISSN 2656-0518 Vol. No. July 2025 Bilingualism. Language, and Education Studies using figurative language, song lyrics would not be standard and gives an additional aesthetic to it. it gives uniqueness all over the lyrics, adding a lot of word play and express the emotion in the lyrics itself. As Bishop . points out, every usage of metaphorical and symbolical approaches allows the songwriter to use a diverse variety of terms. This study intends to understand how metaphors and Symbolism can represent deep emotions (Harnia, 2. , which uses lyric analysis to explore how metaphors and Symbolism might effectively convey emotions and nuances to listeners in modern music (Perrine, 1. Bruno Major song mostly known for the use of figurative language. his song may not be easy to understand for most of the people. Bruno uses a lot of figurative language in his song named The Show Must Go On. Major use some complex metaphor and symbolism embedded in the In addition to its musical beauty, "Bruno Major's The Show Must Go On" offers an opportunity to investigate language, culture, and emotions in art. For the study, the following research questions were developed: How do metaphor and symbolism enhance emotional depth of heartbreak in the song? What are the most metaphor and symbolism used in the Bruno MajorAos AuThe Show Must Go OnAy? Methodology The study employed a qualitative approach, including listening and recording techniques, to examine the use of metaphors and symbolism in Bruno Major's 'The Show Must Go On'. This study intends to investigate the use of metaphorical figures of speech in lyrics to portray profound feelings, in accordance with the premise of qualitative research that interprets non-numerical data (Creswell. John W. , n. A qualitative approach was used to investigate metaphor as an expression of emotion in song lyrics, allowing for a thorough examination of subjective meaning and context. A qualitative approach was used to investigate metaphor as an expression of emotion in song lyrics, allowing for a thorough examination of subjective meaning and context. Lakoff and Johnson . suggest that using textual data, such as song lyrics, can uncover hidden linguistic patterns and emotional contexts. Qualitative research provides insight into how metaphors are utilized to convey emotions in artwork. This study takes the simak catat approach, which entails observing and capturing essential components of lyrics posted on YouTube. This note-taking technique enables academics to explore metaphors in depth and systematically by focusing on each line of lyrics (M. S & Mahsun, 2. This study applies the simak catat approach, which entails closely scrutinizing the lyrics to Bruno Major's 'The Show Must Go On'. This technique encourages transparency in data collection and management, reproducibility of results, and explicit guidelines for evaluating metaphors in song lyrics. The major data was gathered by continually listening to the lyrics and applying metaphors to the symbolic phrases in the lyrics. Data was evaluated using content analysis to detect metaphors and meanings in music lyrics. The investigation involved relating the connotative meaning of each metaphor to the intended emotion (Krippendorff, 2. The technique entails detecting metaphors and symbolism in lyrics, capturing them in an organized manner, and managing the data transparently. Data is categorized by metaphor type and symbolism, allowing for further study. The song are going to be collected and download it from multiple sources including Spotify. YouTube, and YouTube Music. The data was validated using theoretical triangulation, which involved comparing it to other metaphor and emotion theories in the literature. This is intended to increase data authenticity and enable accurate analysis (M. & Mahsun, 2. Findings and Discussion Song lyrics represent the writer's thoughts, sentiments, and experiences through carefully chosen words. The lyrics of Bruno Major's AoThe Show Must Go OnAo use metaphors and symbolism to communicate complicated feelings like appreciation, happiness, and hope. This BLESS E-ISSN 2656-0518 Vol. No. July 2025 Bilingualism. Language, and Education Studies debate will analyze the song's lyrics, emphasizing the usage of metaphors and symbolism, their purpose, and how they express feelings to the audience. Table 1 Lyrics of The Show Must Go On Line 1 The credits roll, you got the girl Line 2 The bad guy was defeated Line 3 As Pet Sounds plays Line 4 You drive into the sunset Line 5 The crowd applauds, you take a bow Line 6 It happened like you dreamed it Line 7 You got everything you have ever wanted Line 8 Cut the scene, it's 4:15 Line 9 You're staring at the ceiling Line 10 It all feels out of your control Line 11 You push it down so no one knows Line 12 If you're always putting on a show Line 13 You'll lose yourself before you know Line 14 As easy lovers come and easy go Line 15 So you wear the mask, go dry your eyes Line 16 You keep it all locked up inside Line 17 Pawn your broken heart and sell your soul Line 18 And you'll tell yourself you must be strong Line 19 'Cause the show must go on Line 20 The endless race to validation Line 21 Tell yourself you need it Line 22 The ego's always hungry, so you feed it Line 23 Keep alive the child's mind Line 24 You nurture and believe him Line 25 Your heart will tell the truth if you receive it Line 26 It recently occurred to me Line 27 That time on earth is fleeting Line 28 Since none of us are in control Line 29 We oughta learn to let it go Line 30 If you're always putting on a show Line 31 You'll lose yourself before you know Line 32 As easy lovers come and easy go Line 33 So you wear the mask, go dry your eyes Line 34 You keep it all locked up inside Line 35 Pawn your broken heart and sell your soul Line 36 And you'll tell yourself you must be strong Line 37 'Cause the show must go on The Role of Metaphor and Symbolism in Enhancing Emotional Depth of Heartbreak After found the figurative language used in the song, it is important to know how the figurative language especially metaphor and symbolism give depth emotion of heartbreak in the song. The important analysis of emotion give clear understanding of a song, so with the known figurative language used in the song, the researcher will break down each line and interpret it base on the figurative language use in the song. Figurative language not only known to change meaning of a word. It can also use to evoke deeper emotion and also meaning in poem and song. Therefore, with the help of figurative language such as metaphor and BLESS E-ISSN 2656-0518 Vol. No. July 2025 Bilingualism. Language, and Education Studies song writer able to create a deeper meaning in each line of the lyrics. by creating deeper interpretation the listener able to felt the emotion that the lyrics try to sent. The following analysis of metaphor and symbolism on how they contribute to the emotion depth of heartbreak in the song: Line 5 The crowd applauds, you take a bow This line containing metaphor that use in the word or phrase Authe crowd applaudsAy and Auyou take a bowAy. The phrase emphasized that in life people tend to give person Even though inside his heart, he felt broken. Line 10 It all feels out of your control The line 10 Auit all feels out of your controlAy works as a metaphor. The Auout of controlAy showed that the character who has a heartbreak cannot controlled his emotion. This metaphor help enhancing the emotion of internal suffer. Line 11 You push it down so no one knows The phrase indicating the use metaphor, especially appeared in the phrase Aupush it down so no one knowsAy indicating the character treating his emotional heartbreak like an object that able to be hid away. This metaphor represents how the character handles his heartbreak, showing the character try to deal with it without expressing it, but the character hides it themselves. This phrase contributes to the emotional heartbreak of a character, showing common response dealt with heartbreak. Line 12 If you're always putting on a show The phrase in line 12 used metaphor, this used in the Auputting on a showAy showing that despite having an emotional heartbreak, the character tend to live the normal life. This acts out that the character hides his heartbreak. This suggest that the character try to live normal life while having an emotional heartbreak. This lane contributes to show what is the character emotion. Line 13 You'll lose yourself before you know The phrase uses metaphor as its way to express personality that will fade away. The line AuYou'll lose yourself before you knowAy shows the character is hiding his inner emotion and rejecting to share it expressively. By hiding it, the character will slowly lose his true identity and causing deeper emotional heartbreak as the effect of it. The internal struggle that the character suffers, will lead the character to lost his true identity, contributing to the emotional heartbreak of the song. Line 15 So you wear the mask, go dry your eyes The phrases suggesting the use of two figurative languages, to word AumaskAy appeared as symbolism use as an object of emotion isolation while metaphorically it act as a way the character fake his emotion. This show generally that people tend to hide his emotion in public rather than shows it. Line 17 Pawn your broken heart and sell your soul The phrase combined metaphor and symbolism. The word AupawnAy represents as a metaphor that able to be used and thrown away. and the words AuheartAy and AusoulAy symbolizes true emotion of the character. Line 20 The endless race to validation The line here use metaphor, indicating that the character hunger for appreciation from This will affect the character emotion to break. The phrase contributes to an action of the character that affect the emotion. Line 22 The ego's always hungry, so you feed it The use of metaphor in the word AuegoAy helps visualize the starving emotion. The phrase Authe egoAos always hungry, so you feed itAy emphasized that human always starve for starting a relationship. This can also interpret to an emotion heartbreak that when the character is involved in a relationship. the character tends to sacrifice everything that he has despite he suffers it. BLESS E-ISSN 2656-0518 Vol. No. July 2025 Bilingualism. Language, and Education Studies Line 23 Keep alive the child's mind The use of symbolism showed on the word AuchildAy. This word emphasizing that the character is suggested to kept his innocence mind even though the character inner emotion is broken. Line 25 Your heart will tell the truth if you receive it The use of the word AuheartAy suggests that his emotion is symbolizing an item or object that can receive emotion such as affection and love. Line 27 That time on earth is fleeting The use of metaphor on the word AuearthAy suggesting that life has a limitation, same as emotion, there are a limitation of it, that would not be able to withstand for a long period of time. Line 28 Since none of us are in control The phrase emphasizing that emotion cannot fully be control. The metaphor appeared in the word Aunone. AuusAy and AucontrolAy create a deeper meaning into the phrase, and indirectly explains emotional limitations. Line 29 We oughta learn to let it go The phrase use metaphor to interpret the sacrificing of the character emotion. Indicating that the character has suffer emotional burden, and the character deal it with abandoning his inner emotion. The word AulearnAy suggest that the character must accept that his relationship does not succeed, and followed by the phrase Aulet it goAy encourage that the unsuccessful relationship that the character felt, its time to release his feeling toward that Line 37 'Cause the show must go on The use of metaphor and symbolism here interprets that the character must live his life even though he feels an emotional burden. The word AushowAy here represents as a metaphor and symbolism, emphasizing that the word explains about emotional endurance and life that must keep going. In summary, there is total of fifteen lines that contribute to the interpretation of heartbreak in the song. Metaphors found in the song Metaphor is a figure of speech used to compare where there are two different objects appeared unrelated. As it is mentioned by Novitasari . , metaphor is part of tool in figurative language use to help writer of poem or song to alter meaning of a word. Altering a meaning of a word can be used to determine whether the poem or song lyrics are unique. For instance, the phrase Aulife is like a rollercoasterAy this phrase emphasized the use of metaphor where its comparing two unrelated things such AulifeAy and AurollercoasterAy. This phrase has a metaphor meaning which life can goes up and down, whether it is being happy or sad. altering the phrase, the writer of a poem and song can create a unique way to express a meaning, so the writer does not have to write an entire meaning text. In the song of The Show Must Go On there are several metaphors found and used by the songwriter such as: The crowd applauds, you take a bow (Line 5 ) The crowd here represent a life is a show and fill with judgement, whether you are doing a good or bad impact to people surrounding you, while you take a bow here when people do such a bad stuff, he must take a bow signing he is pretending that everything is fine, but truly is not. It all feels out of your control (Line . The phrase it all feels out of your control emphasize that life is being uncontrollable such as feelings or even natural disaster. This creates a meaning that all of people action towards their own life and experience is cannot be controlled. You push it down so no one knows (Line . BLESS E-ISSN 2656-0518 Vol. No. July 2025 Bilingualism. Language, and Education Studies The phrase You push it down so no one knows point up that the person trying to hide his inner emotions, employing that emotion is treated like a physical thing that able to be hide. If you're always putting on a show (Line . The phrase If you're always putting on a show pointing that life is like a drama performer in a stage that always act everything, whether it is physical, verbal or emotion. This emphasize that when we live a life, we always try to fake out our emotion and physique just to impressed other people. So you wear the mask, go dry your eyes (Line 15 ) The phrase Auwear the maskAy emphasizing the person not literally wearing a mask, but metaphorically hide his true emotion. You'll lose yourself before you know (Line 13 ) The phrase You'll lose yourself before you know emphasizing that the person whom constantly act out of his true identity and hide his emotion are going to lose his true own Pawn your broken heart and sell your soul (Line . The phrase Pawn your broken heart and sell your soul use of pawn and broken heart emphasizing that the person is suggested to hide his inner emotion, and the use of sell and soul here suggesting that the person must use fake identity and hide the real one. The endless race to validation (Line . This phrase emphasizing life is like an endless search of approval from other people such as good one, and acceptance of situation or relationship. The ego's always hungry, so you feed it (Line . The use of ego act as a being that always hunger for attention, approval, and acceptance from other being. This explains that human always search for an appreciation of others in term of attention. That time on earth is fleeting (Line 27 ) Earth is a planet that already orbiting sun for over billion years, but in the phrase suggesting that earth is fleeting which mean it has a short time. metaphorically the use of earth here acts as a life. while fleeting means that everyone has a short time in life. Since none of us are in control (Line . The phrase suggesting that all of human being cannot control of what it already meant to be, such as life that cannot be predict or fully controlled by us, and there always an external factor that are out of control. This factor leads to an uncertainty of life and emotion towards other and the person itself. We oughta learn to let it go Line 29 This line suggesting that people must let go or move on with their negative emotion and bad habit in their life. Pawn your broken heart and sell your soul (Line . The phrase was repeatedly used to emphasized an emotional and physical burden in a 'Cause the show must go on (Line . The use of the show here acts as life that must go on, whether their things that we do not like, accept, or causing an emotional breakout, the life must continue despite all the internal and external event in our life. From the data above found fourteen used of metaphor in the lyrics, which each line interpreting different explanation towards emotions specifically emotional burden. From the metaphors finding, researcher will separate them whether each line belong to implied, visual and extended metaphor. Implied metaphor Implied metaphor is a metaphor used to compared two different things that unrelated to each other, for example the phrase Auhe is the king of his own mindAy stating that he has BLESS E-ISSN 2656-0518 Vol. No. July 2025 Bilingualism. Language, and Education Studies controlled towards his mind and behaviour. As it is stated by Puadah . , the use of implied metaphor creating a special phrase that can be used to alter meaning of a phrase and sentence. In short, implied metaphor help song writer creating their lyrics using unrelated object to occurs a unique meaning. So In the line 5 The crowd applauds, you take a bow, there are no literal description on the phrase Authe crowds applaudsAy, nor explaining why the crowds applauds and suddenly it said Auyou take a bowAy this suggest that no explanation what performance he does that led the person to bow in front of a crowds. This suggesting that the use metaphorical word for pronoun AuyouAy act as actor who performs in his life that pretending everything was done successfully but it is not. Then Line 20 The endless race to validation, the use of race and validation was unrelated. The phrase describes that life is like a race, but life is not literally a race. While validation does not have an end to it. Metaphorically, the phrase tries to interpret that life is a performance to claim a validation of emotions and acceptance towards other people. Meanwhile Line 22 The ego's always hungry, so you feed it, ego here is treated like a human that can starve and feel hungry for food, but literally ego is an emotion of human that does not have any hunger. The line metaphorically describe that human ego always starves for attention, compliment and validation from other people. Visual metaphor Visual metaphor is a metaphor that using an image to describe a meaning. The use of visual metaphor helps creating playful and imaginative lyrics in song. As mentioned by Ramadhika . , explains that visual metaphor uses representative images as a way to describe a situation, feeling and meaning in a word, phrase or sentences. For example, the phrase Aulife is like a razors bladeAy interpret that human life has a limited of time, like a razors blade that can be only used once. As in Line 11 AoYou push it down so no one knowsAo, the visualizing Aupush it downAy as a way to hide inner emotion from other people, it emphasizes AupushAy the emotion deep inside and hide it only for himself to know. Also Line 15 AoSo you wear the mask, go dry your eyesAo. Mask here use as a visualization of a fake identity of in person. Metaphorically the use of AumaskAy visualizes a person that hiding his true identity for other people to watch. Then Line 17 AoPawn your broken heart and sell your soulAo. Metaphorically. AupawnAy serves as a visual device use by a person to achieve a goal. The phrase uses AupawnAy as an object for broken heart that able to be thrown way or used to sacrifice his heart and soul for other people. Even in Line 22Ay The ego's always hungry, so you feed itAy The use of ego here is not literally an emotion but visualized as a being or species that can starve. Extended metaphor Table 2 Identified Metaphor Type of metaphor Implied metaphor Visual Metaphor Extended metaphor Total Found metaphor Percentage 33,33% 44,44% 22,22% It is the part of figure of speech that related to metaphor itself, but in standard metaphor it is known the use of an object that are unrelated to each other to present a meaning and idea while extended use unrelated object and elaborate it to a word, phrase, sentence, or whole text to create a deeper interpretation of meaning. As it is stated by Atallah and Wibowo . , extended use to create an entire deeper meaning in literary work by altering a single word or whole literary text. For example, the phrase Aulife is like a boatAy is metaphorically has a meaning where life is filled with uncertainty, but with extended metaphor, the phrase can be transformed into a whole sentence such Aulife is like a boat, where there always a challenges and happiness that appeared in our life, creating a meaningful yet fun and sad experiences. Therefore as in Line 5 AuThe crowd applauds, you take a bowAy Metaphorically, the crowd here BLESS E-ISSN 2656-0518 Vol. No. July 2025 Bilingualism. Language, and Education Studies represent a people surrounding a person, while take a bow represent that he is happy the way he act to other people but actually he is not. Also in Line 12 AuIf you're always putting on a showAy. This phrase occurs multiple time in the song, the phrase Auputting on a showAy is acting the person try to pretending every experience in his life was fine. The most used figure of speech is visual metaphor and there are four visual metaphors appeared in the song as shown on the Symbolism Found In The Song Symbolism is a way of expressing an idea, emotion and meaning using an object. the use of symbolism helps songwriter or poet to shape their writing more expressively. creating vivid yet imaginary verse of word, phrase, and sentence. As it is mentioned by Subhan and Funck . , the use of symbolism is to represent idea in form of object. Symbolism can appear and express differently in difference culture, in Indonesia the red colour represents fighting spirit while in China is represent as prosperity, luck, and positive energy. By using symbolism songwriter able to evoke some object and use it to as a way to evoke emotion to the listener. There are some symbolisms used in the lyrics The Show Must Go On such as: The credits roll, you got the girl (Line 1 ) The use of phrase Aucredit rollAy symbolize an ending of a relationship to a person, or it can be the ending of a life. Continuing the phrase Auyou got the girlAy in drama movie, girl representing a gratitude and happy ending. So you wear the mask, go dry your eyes (Line . The word AumaskAy symbolizes a hidden identity, meaning a person behind the mask was not appeared to be his self, but pretending to be someone else. Following the second phrase Augo dry your eyesAy this phrase continues to give a complete meaning the effect of using a AumaskAy, that the person is not happy at all with the way he showed his identity to the public. It is emphasized that the person has to fake his identity in order to achieve other appreciation and affection. Pawn your broken heart and sell your soul (Line . The use of AuheartAy represents the person love and affection has been broken by others resulting symbolize emotional pain. While Ausell your soulAy symbolize the person lost his emotional affection. It is emphasized that the person had to sacrificed his inner feeling to fulfilled other expectation. The endless race to validation (Line . The phrase Auendless race to validationAy symbolize that the person sacrifices his life just to achieve other appreciation, and emotion connection. Furthermore, the phrase indication that chasing of approval has no end. Keep alive the child's mind (Line . The use of the word AuchildAy is showing that the person must keep his emotional purity. The word AuchildAy symbolize heart that is pure and innocence. Your heart will tell the truth if you receive it (Line . This phrase symbolize especially AuheartAy explains that whenever a bad situation or relationship appeared in life, his heart always appeared as an emotional core representing love and affection. 'Cause the show must go on (Line . The word AushowAy symbolize life, life that must kept going despite any situation or emotional experience the person felt towards his life. The phrase indicating that even though that when his life is uncertain. he must live his life as it is. Based on the data above concluded that there are seven symbolism found in the lyrics. After found the symbolism, the researcher will separate each of the line into different types of symbolism, such as object, people, colour and situation symbolism. BLESS E-ISSN 2656-0518 Vol. No. July 2025 Bilingualism. Language, and Education Studies Object symbolism Object symbolism is part of symbolism that occurs by using physical object to represent idea, for example AubirdcageAy interpret a meaning of isolation of emotion. According to Aditiawarman and Rahmadani . , object symbolism using a physical item to represent an For example. AubirdcageAy represent individual emotional isolation. So, from the Line 15 AuSo you wear the mask, go dry your eyesAy,The object of AumaskAy represents an idea of hiding true By hiding it, the person can act out differently outside his true identity to achieve approval, acceptance, and also appreciation from other. In Line 17 AuPawn your broken heart and sell your soulAy. The both word AuheartAy and AusoulAy represent different idea. The AuheartAy represents an emotional feeling while AusoulAy representing emotional sacrifice. These both phrases use AuheartAy and AusoulAy as an object to represent an emotion. And the Line 25 AuYour heart will tell the truth if you receive itAy. The use of heart line 17 and line 25, appeared to be center of affection, indicating that his AuheartAy is treated as an object to receive affection, love, and appreciation. People symbolism People symbolism refers to the use of character as a representation of idea. People here meant a character, such as man, boy, girl, woman, police, or judge. Each representation of a character able to interpret different idea. As stated by Dewi et al . , people or character able to be used as an addition of a word in order to create a deeper meaning toward literary For example, character such as police or teacher can be used to represent good person. For Line 1 AuThe credits roll, you got the girlAy . The word AugirlAy symbolizes as an idea of a good ending and an achieved goal in life. Then Line 23 Ay Keep alive the child's mindAy. The character AuchildAy symbolizes youthful emotion that surrounds by happiness, innocent, and pure emotion. The adding of word AuchildAy followed with AumindAy shows that the person must keep his emotion and mind pure and innocent. Situation symbolism Situation symbolism appears as the use of condition as a way to express idea and As stated by Trisnantasari . , situation able to explain different idea and Several condition can be used as an example of situation symbolism, such as rainy Rainy day included as situation symbolism to represent an idea that the emotion surrounding appears gloomy. For Line 1 AuThe credits roll, you got the girlAy, as The phrase Authe credits rollAy symbolizes that the situation come to an end. This means relationship situation has ended either bad or good. Also )Line 37 Ay 'Cause the show must go onAy. The word AushowAy here symbolizes as life that must goes on whatever the situation is. So, from the fndng above there are three types of symbolism found in the The Show Must Go On song, as object, people, and situation symbolism, but the colour symbolism was not found in the lyrics. The lyrics mostly applied object symbolism which appeared for three time, and for other symbolism such people and situation only showed two as shown on the table below. Table 3 Identified Symbolism Type of symbolism Object symbolism People symbolism Situation symbolism Colour symbolism Total Found symbolism Percentage 42,86% 28,57% 28,57% Discussion This study analyzes metaphors and symbolism used in music lyrics of Bruno Major's AoThe Show Must Go OnAo. The result show that the most use of figure of speech was metaphor, with the use of fifteen metaphors and there are seven symbolisms used in the lyrics. Visual BLESS E-ISSN 2656-0518 Vol. No. July 2025 Bilingualism. Language, and Education Studies metaphor appeared as the most used metaphor, with the total of four visual metaphor applied in the lyrics. In addition, the use of symbolism, there are three especially object symbolism Furthermore, the least metaphor used in the song was extended metaphor, and for the symbolism people, situation was only used 2 times, and colour symbolism was not used in the The figurative language use in the research are based on the theory stated by Rezeki. Laimena, and Que. The theory asserts that metaphor has three types of metaphor and four types of symbolism, that is implied, visual, extended metaphor and object, people, situation, and colour symbolism. In analyzing visual metaphor that showed in the lyrics The Show Must Go On. According to the theory, visual metaphor uses an object or visible thing to evoke emotion or describes vivid imagery. In the line 15, the word AumaskAy visualizing an entire phrase as a way to hide inner emotion, the character implicates that mask use to cover his emotion of heartbreak. There is also second metaphor appeared named implied metaphor. This metaphor states that use of an idea and meaning that are unrelate to create a deeper meaning in a word, phrase, or In the line 20, the combination of the phrase Auendless raceAy and AuvalidationAy was not related to each other. The phrase Auendless raceAy and the AuvalidationAy implicating that the character emotion was chasing something that does not has an end to it. This interprets to an entirely different meaning rather than its literal meaning. The visual metaphor uses in the line 20 help the songwriter interpret an entirely different meaning. and the third metaphor used named extended metaphor. Extended metaphor explains that one word, phrase, and sentence can be write into a whole text explaining the deeper interpretation. The song The Show Must Go On use extended metaphor on the line 12 this phrase appeared multiple time on the lyrics, the repetition of the phrase indicates emphasizing a deeper meaning. This is shown in the word AualwaysAy. AuputtingAy, and AushowAy explain that the character has to perform in his life. Beside metaphor, there are also several symbolisms was occurred in the lyrics. The use of symbolism helps songwriter to evoke meaning using a thing or an object that interpret In the analysis shown that the most used symbolism was object symbolism, followed with two other symbolism that is people and situation symbolism. The song writer uses object symbolism to represent an idea. It shown in the line 15 the song writer uses an item AumaskAy to represent that the character has two personalities and emotion. This shaping the lyrics strong At the same time, the songwriter also used people symbolism in the lyrics. People symbolism refers to the use of character in order to interpret meaning. This can be seen in the The line emphasizing people symbolism on the word AuchildAy. Child refers to people that has pure emotion and innocent. This explains that the character has to keep his inner emotion despite other bad experience he perceived. From some symbolism such as object and people symbolism, the lyrics revealed the use of situation symbolism. Situation symbolism refers to the use situation or event as a way to interpret meaning. in the line 37, the word AushowAy explains the event in the lyrics. The event explains life is like a show, where the character performs it in front of the crowd of people. The people symbolism figurative language helps songwriter use an event into the lyrics to describe an idea behind a situation. Furthermore, the last symbolism was colour symbolism. Colour symbolism refers to the use of thing that has bright saturation to it. It can be red, black, or In the lyrics, but there no found use of colour in the lyrics. This research finding has similar result to the findings conducted by Yusnitasari et al . , entitled An Analysis of Figurative Language on The Song Lyrics AuYou Are My SunshineAy By Anne Murray found the use of metaphor and symbolism to interpret meaning of a word. The result in the study found that the most used figurative language was metaphor and symbolism was only found one and another research conducted by Sandy et al . , entitled An Analysis Of Figurative Language In Selected HardyAos Poems, found the use of metaphor and symbolism. The paper showed that there was three metaphor found, and one symbol in the poem. The use of figurative language in the song The Show Must Go On helps the lyrics interpreting several BLESS E-ISSN 2656-0518 Vol. No. July 2025 Bilingualism. Language, and Education Studies figures of speech to shape the emotional heartbreaks of the song. The songwriter. Bruno Major, implicating that the character emotion was badly broken, that the character had to hide is inner emotion by applying other personality. The fake personality that the character use slowly erasing his true identity. Conclusion The song The Show Must Go On combining multiple figures of speeches that help shaping the lyrics more unique and expressing deeper emotion to the listener. The songwriter uses two figure of speeches such as metaphor and symbolism in order to shape the emotion in the song By using these two figures of speeches. Bruno able to evoke a deeper heartbreak emotion of the character. The two figures of speeches were found on the lyrics. There are three types of metaphor found in the lyrics, such as implied, visual, and extended metaphor, and the symbolism found were , object people, and situation symbolism, while colour symbolism was not found in the lyrics. Based on the analysis, the metaphor that mostly used by Bruno was visual metaphor. Visual metaphor appeared 44,44% in the lyrics. Furthermore, implied metaphor was found 33,33% and extended metaphor 22,22%. The songwriter uses these all metaphor to enhance emotion for the lyrics. Symbolism is appeared in the lyrics for the total of seventh time. The symbolism that mostly used by Bruno is object symbolism. Object symbolism appeared for 42,86%, and people symbolism found 28,57%, situation symbolism found 28,57% while colour symbolism was not used in the lyrics. The analysis found that Bruno tends to use more metaphor rather than symbolism. The songwriter use metaphor to enhance lyrical writing. Metaphor shapes the lyrics by comparing two unrelated object to cover a meaning. comparing two unrelated object the listener can deeply listen to the song and interpret the Therefore, this state that metaphor can be used to shape lyric emotionally. This research has implications for both the music industry and education. The findings can serve as a reference for musicians to enhance the emotional appeal and universality of their songs through effective usage of metaphors. This research can be used in education to teach students about the use of metaphors as linguistic and aesthetic strategies. Research findings can have a significant impact on both academic and broader behaviors. Cross-cultural research could shed light on how different cultural contexts impact the use and interpretation of metaphors in music. Comparing Indonesian music to other countries can provide a worldwide perspective on the usage of metaphors in expressing emotions through Expanding the research scope will enhance our understanding of the role of metaphors in arts and culture. References