Stars in eyes speaks to a desire for fame or a drive to be something more. What do all the other stars in Taylor’s catalog mean?
Taylor compares the 9 year old to stars.
Something special, untouchable, and unattainable. Beautiful and magical, but out of reach.
She confirms how stars are something unattainable in Untouchable. Taylor doesn’t know why she’s so caught up in this girl. But she uses words like diamond sky, sun, and a million stars spelling this person’s name to show how they are shiny, bright, sparkling, but inconceivable. This girl makes Taylor feel like she’s coming undone because she has this strong attraction, but knows she shouldn’t act on it, that it wouldn’t be reciprocated, or it would be forbidden. Taylor appraises the girl as precious and impossible to get near like the pretty stars in the sky. And the adults notice the love between the two.
Stars aligning signify perfection and idealistic happiness. Which did not occur in this particular situation.
This other person saw Taylor’s past hurts, traumas… scars. And they surrounded that pain with something beautiful and otherworldly. Taylor is incredulous this person cares for her (stars are distant and out of reach) because this type of relationship was previously unthinkable. She is invigorated by the improbable magic (it’s impossible to touch stars) that happens when this person is close. This love is healing and is all Taylor needs. Except after the person left, Taylor is without the salve on her scars and suffers a new fresh wound.
I replay my footsteps on each stepping stone/Trying to find the one where I went wrong/Writing letters/Addressed to the fire/And I was catching my breath/Staring out an open window/Catching my death/And I couldn’t be sure/I had a feeling so peculiar/That this pain would be for/Evermore/Hey December/Guess I’m feeling unmoored/Can’t remember/What I used to fight for/I rewind the tape but all it does is pause/On the very moment all was lost/Sending signals/To be double crossed/And I was catching my breath/Barefoot in the wildest winter/Catching my death/And I couldn’t be sure/I had a feeling so peculiar/That this pain would be for/Evermore/(Evermore)/Can’t not think of all the cost/And the things that will be lost/Oh, can we just get a pause?/To be certain we’ll be tall again/Whether weather be the frost/Or the violence of the dog days/I’m on waves, out being tossed/Is there a line that I could just go cross?/And when I was shipwrecked (can’t think of all the cost)/I thought of you (all the things that will be lost now)/In the cracks of light (can we just get a pause?)/I dreamed of you (to be certain we’ll be tall again)/(If you think of all the costs)/It was real enough (whether weather be the frost)/To get me through (or the violence of the dog days)/(Out on waves being tossed)/But I swear (is there a line that we could just go cross?)/You were there/And I was catching my breath/Floors of a cabin creaking under my step/And I couldn’t be sure/I had a feeling so peculiar/This pain wouldn’t be for/Evermore
I admit when I delve into poetry, especially European, prior to 1900s, formal poems, my eyes and brain go:
But what Taylor wants (listeners to understand her references and subtext) Taylor gets. So I persisted.
The connection to poety:
So Katherine Bradley + Edith Cooper = Michael Field, poetry author.
“Lovers evermore” ties this duo’s poem to Taylor’s song/album/life.
To make things even more hazy (see what I did there?) in their personal letters Bradley and Cooper called each other “Michael” and “Field” later “Henry” as nicknames, and maybe to obscure their love.
OK, buckle up, here’s another complex explanation for how the poem Taylor Swift is referencing came to be:
Got all that? [It took me a bit of time to get it]:
Sappho wrote poems/songs.
They were not discovered in their entirety, maybe not preserved, maybe lost, maybe unfinished, maybe burned by relatives wanting to hide certain unpalatable truths. I don’t know and this was not the central focus of my research.
This Wharton guy took it upon himself to write translations of each fragment of Sappho’s work. This made them more accessible to modern, English-speaking readers.
Michael Field’s (remember the collaborators and lovers, Bradley and Cooper) used the transcribed fragments as inspiration for their own poems. There was a piece of Sappho’s writing as the jumping off point for their original poetry, which sometimes kept to the intention of the original poet, and sometimes intentionally deviated from it.
The final product is a book of poetry, Long Ago, published under the name Michael Fields, containing the “It was deep April” poem.
It is this poem that Taylor, in the tradition of the aforementioned poets, used as inspiration for her evermore song.
whew!
So basically, Taylor was inspired by Sappho.
Bare with me, I promise this directly relates to Taylor’s songs. Let’s talk about how Sappho literally invented the word/concept of “bittersweet” to describe WLW love:
Sappho uses “bittersweet” to summarize homosexual love, and Long Ago has that very phrase twice.
Michael Field knew what they were doing. They had learned the origin of the word/concept of bittersweet and intentionally referenced it to signal queer subject matter.
within the album/catalog:
Me! | I Think He Knows | London Boy | You Need to Calm Down | Paper Rings
vs.
Soon You’ll Get Better | The Archer | Death by a Thousand Cuts | Cornelia Street
within the line:
Rose Garden filled with thorns
Snuck through the garden gate every night that summer just to seal my fate
I love you ain’t that the worst thing you’ve ever heard
within the song:
gold rush
Gleaming Twinkling Eyes like sinking ships On waters so inviting I almost jump in
But I don’t like a gold rush, gold rush I don’t like anticipating my face in a red flush I don’t like that anyone would die to feel your touch Everybody wants you Everybody wonders what it would be like to love you Walk past, quick brush I don’t like slow motion double vision in rose blush I don’t like that falling feels like flying ’til the bone crush
I notice everything you do or don’t do/You’re so much older and wiser, and I…/…If it’s all in my head, tell me now/Tell me I’ve got it wrong somehow/I know my love should be celebrated/But you tolerate it…/…Where’s that man who’d throw blankets over my barbed wire?/I made you my temple, my mural, my sky/Now I’m begging for footnotes in the story of your life/Drawing hearts in the byline/Always taking up too much space or time/You assume I’m fine, but what would you do if I/I break free and leave us in ruins?/Took this dagger in me and removed it?/Gain the weight of you then lose it
[I didn’t cite this bc it’s some homophobic church doubling-down on their intolerance, and though I think they have a point about the definition of terms, I didn’t want to give them any more traffic].
There were some even cooler designs but WordPress is a Bit(H and nothing would fit the banner without cutting out practically everything.
930 x 198 Pixels is a @$%$# Nightmare!
While we’re talking about logistics I also changed up the topics above the header. In keeping with the animal theme, I tried to do some wordplay, but they translate to:
Animals
Places
(Anti) Valentines
School/College/Education
Work/Career
Sexuality/LGBTQQAA
Music
Exercise/Diet
Current Events/News
Analysis of Media/Vocabulary
Just click any of those to filter posts by category.
Also, don’t forget about the “search” function in the top right for specific posts or key words. In combination with CTRL F you can find anything you want.
The current popular posts are listed on the right.
Under that is a word cloud to look at posts with a specific tag.
Then there is a list of my few last posts under that.
And finally, there’s a calendar of what I posted by date.
I look through the windows of this love/Even though we boarded them up/Chandelier’s still flickering here/’Cause I can’t pretend it’s ok when it’s not/It’s death by a thousand cuts/My heart, my hips, my body, my love/Trying to find a part of me that you didn’t touch/Gave up on me like I was a bad drug/Now I’m searching for signs in a haunted club/Our songs, our films, united we stand/Our country, guess it was a lawless land/Quiet my fears with the touch of your hand/Paper cut stings from our paper thin plans/My time, my wine, my spirit, my trust/Trying to find a part of me you didn’t take up/Gave you too much but it wasn’t enough/But I’ll be all right, it’s just a thousand cuts
Here’s another Lover track that is more easily understood by separating the perspectives/subjects in the song. I’ll show you the parts I mean, then do multi posts on the gay content inside each of those parts.
Here’s another song that might be easier to untangle in parts:
I Think He Knows
I color coded the parts of the song that go along with each person:
Fuck! This was effortful to write!
So in the song Jo$h is addressed as being suspicious of the nature of Taylor and Karlie’s relationship (friends look at each other like that). Taylor tells of her bearding situation with Joe that helps her career. And she also tells of her affair with Karlie. And Karlie tells us Jo$h is obsessed with her, and she doesn’t have to tell him about Kaylor, because she thinks he knows.
About Jo$h:
I think he knows
[this is a different thought, though Taylor skipped the punctuation to remain elusive]
his footprints/On the sidewalk…
…I think he knows
[this one too. Taylor says she thinks Jo$h knows about Kaylor.]
his hands around/A cold glass…
[Then Taylor describes how Jo$h is drinking and noticing the flirting of Kaylor. Also speaks to when Jo$h is just drinking, waiting for Karlie to come back to him when Karlie is over at Taylor’s]
…He got my heartbeat
[P.S. I don’t believe in “owning” your lover or spouse, talk to Taylor about that… Anyway, Karlie is in Taylor’s heart. But Jo$h “has” Karlie, so Taylor cannot be in a full Kaylor serious relationship. Thus Josh owns Taylor’s heartbeat since he has contractually obligated (either bearding contract or marriage contract) Karlie to be with him]
Got that
[I think this “Got that oh! I mean” is significant. Taylor interrupts herself or is startled by something. It could be that Taylor is talking about Kaylor in loving terms, then Jo$h shows up and she has to quickly switch topics to keep the secret. Worse, the interruption could be showing how Jo$h’s sudden physical presence interrupts Kaylor love-moments.]
oh! I mean
Wanna see what’s under that attitude…
…And I ain’t gotta tell him[Josh]/I think he knows/I think he knows/I think he knows/Like, I [Taylor] want you [Karlie], bless my soul…/……I think he knows/I want you, bless my…
[This could be repetition by Taylor just to make a catchy song, but I like to think about it as Karlie chiming in and agreeing, by repeating it also.]
And I [Karlie] ain’t gotta tell him [Josh]…/…I think he [Josh] knows/I [Karlie] want you [Taylor], bless my soul…/…
Taylor singing about Kaylor:
Lead to where I can’t stop/Go there every night/Make me wanna know that body/Like it’s mine…/……I want you, bless my soul/Lyrical smile, indigo eyes, hand on my thigh/We can follow the sparks, I’ll drive…/…So where we gonna go?/I whisper in the dark/Where we gonna go?
… Like, I [Taylor] want you [Karlie], bless my soul [asking for divine protection]
About Joe/Beard:
He got that boyish look that I like in a man/I am an architect, I’m drawing up the plans…/…Skipping down 16th Avenue [Nashville’s music row]
Karlie:
[This verse switches to Karlie’s POV]
I think he [Jo$h] knows/When we [Kaylor] get all alone/I’ll [Karlie] make myself at [Taylor’s] home
And he’ll [Jo$h] want me [Karlie] to stay
[at Jo$hlie’s house instead of visiting Taylor]
I think he knows/He better lock it down [marry her or sign a contract?]/Or I won’t stick around/’Cause good ones never wait…
He got that boyish look that I like in a man/I am an architect, I’m drawing up the plans…
[Karlie is ALSO orchestrating her relationship (whatever it is: sugar-daddy, lavender, poly-bearding, sperm-donor) with Jo$h. Though I tried really, really hard to find a 16th Ave connection for Karlie and never did find one.]
…He’s [Jo$h is] so obsessed with me [Karlie],
I [Karlie] want you [Taylor], bless my soul/I ain’t gotta tell him [Jo$h]/I think he knows
Commentary to herself (Taylor):
It’s like I’m seventeen, nobody understands/No one understands…/…
[Taylor chimes back in]
and boy I understand/Boy I understand [being obsessed with Karlie]…
I split the songs up on the Lover album as well so we can delve into each one a bit more.
And to make it even more confusing I tried to examine The Archer by the audience Taylor is addressing in the lyrics. She talks to: 1) Her internal self
2) the media and general public
3) her fans.
Cons of coming out: media/public/betrayers/enemies/historical evidence it doesn’t end well
The Archer
‘Cause cruelty wins in the movies…/…But what if I’m alright, right, right, right here?[Lavender Haze]/…And all of my heroes die all alone…/…’Cause they see right through me/They see right through me/They see right through…/…They see right through/They see right through me…/…All the king’s horses, all the king’s men/Couldn’t put me together again…/…’Cause all of my enemies started out friends
I split the songs up on the Lover album as well so we can delve into each one a bit more.
And to make it even more confusing I tried to examine The Archer by the audience Taylor is addressing in the lyrics. She talks to:
1) Her internal self
2) the media and general public
3) her fans.
The Archer
Internal struggle
Combat, I’m ready for combat/I say I don’t want that, but what if I do?/…I jump from the train, I ride off alone/I never grew up, it’s getting so old…/…I’ve been the archer/I’ve been the prey/Who could ever leave me, darling?/But who could stay?/…And I cut off my nose just to spite my face/Then I hate my reflection for years and years/I wake in the night, I pace like a ghost/The room is on fire, invisible smoke…/…I’ve been the archer,/I’ve been the prey/Screaming, who could ever leave me, darling?/But who could stay?/(I see right through me, I see right through me)…/…I see right through me/I see right through me…/…I’ve been the archer/I’ve been the prey/Who could ever leave me, darling?/But who could stay?/(I see right through me, I see right through me)…/…Combat, I’m ready for combat
The songs on Reputation are packed with meaning, and there are many rabbit holes to go down. As such, this post would be too long if I included each song as I did with Debut, Fearless, Speak Now, Red, and 1989. Pretty much every track on Reputation has queer content. There could probably be an argument made for LWYMMD and TIWWCHNT, especially the video and live performances, but neither really have lyrics conducive to this particular analysis. All the rest of the songs are included. Here are the links to each gay Reputation moment:
…Ready For it?
Golden age of Hollywood and bearding
Heterosexual marriage with frequent same sex interactions outside of the marriage
I didn’t include End Game because having features muddies the water about who contributed what. It’s probably Taylor being gay on main again, but I can’t rule out that Ed or Future added to the lyrics.
The songs on Reputation are packed with meaning, and there are many rabbit holes to go down. As such, this post would be too long if I included each song as I did with Debut, Fearless, Speak Now, Red, and 1989. I’ll release these song by song.
New Year’s Day
There’s glitter on the floor after the party/Girls carrying their shoes down in the lobby…/…You and me from the night before but/Don’t read the last page/But I stay when you’re lost and I’m scared and you’re turning away/I want your midnights/But I’ll be cleaning up bottles with you on New Year’s Day/You squeeze my hand three times in the back of the taxi/I can tell that it’s going to be a long road…/…But I stay when it’s hard or it’s wrong or you’re making mistakes/Please don’t ever become a stranger whose laugh I could recognize anywhere…/…You and me forevermore
kit10phish.wordpress.com 
Taylor Swift’s Gay Moments: evermore ~ tolerate it
16 Aprtolerate it
I notice everything you do or don’t do/You’re so much older and wiser, and I…/…If it’s all in my head, tell me now/Tell me I’ve got it wrong somehow/I know my love should be celebrated/But you tolerate it…/…Where’s that man who’d throw blankets over my barbed wire?/I made you my temple, my mural, my sky/Now I’m begging for footnotes in the story of your life/Drawing hearts in the byline/Always taking up too much space or time/You assume I’m fine, but what would you do if I/I break free and leave us in ruins?/Took this dagger in me and removed it?/Gain the weight of you then lose it
[I didn’t cite this bc it’s some homophobic church doubling-down on their intolerance, and though I think they have a point about the definition of terms, I didn’t want to give them any more traffic].
***Trigger Warning***
hate crime
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Matthew_Shepard
Tags: analysis, bias, Bible, career, church, commentary, community, conservative, conversation, Crime, documentary, ethics, Evermore, film, Gaylor, hate, heteronormative, homophobia, homophobic, Laramie, LGBT, love, Matthew Shepard, murder, norms, parents, prejudice, religion, society, Taylor Swift, Tolerate It, values, Wyoming