Reply #254: Well, "sad" doesn't necessarily mean "bad"

[rockymountaindem]

For instance, nobody says Shakespeare was a bad writer because Romeo and Juliette had a sad ending.

In any event, the death of Robert in FWTBT isn't supposed to be sad. Certainly it is sad for the "little rabbit", but as far as Robert is concerned, he is dying for something worth dying for and he embraces his fate. Furthermore, he gets to extract vengence on the Lieutenant who beheaded El Sordo, so one could say that the conclusion of the book is one of poetic justice, not tragedy.