Throughout her career, Taylor Swift has provided many examples of feminist themes in her music, as well as in the interviews and speeches she presents. She has consistently discussed women's empowerment through her lyrics in subtle ways, but with the release of her album Lover in 2019, she introduced more explicit and proactive feminist ideas. This can be seen primarily in her songs “The Man” and “You Need To Calm Down” in addition to many others. To conduct our research, we analyzed Taylor's lyrics as well as quotes from interviews and speeches, examining them in depth to explore their connections to feminist themes.
In “The Man,” Taylor addresses the double standards women face in society, particularly in professional and social settings. The hook of the song states, “I’m so sick of running as fast as I can. Wondering if I’d get there quicker if I was a man.” This line highlights the narrative that women can do everything they are supposed to, with the same if not more effort than men, and still get the short end of the stick. In our society, men and women can have the exact same accomplishments, but men will most likely get praised for it more. The song critiques the societal norms that men often will get recognized, and even celebrated, for the achievements in which women are overlooked or judged.
Similarly, “You Need To Calm Down” addresses hardships for women on social media, as well as individuals a part of the LGBTQ+ community. Taylor calls out people online who spread hate and negativity, particularly toward those in minority groups. She highlights how women are instantly subjected to comparisons and unattainable standards the moment they are exposed to social media. These expectations often create competition created by the media. Taylor focuses on this by stating, “We see you over there on the internet comparing all the girls who are killing it. But we figured you out we all know now, we all got crowns.” She expresses how important it is to stand up to the hate and rise above it.
Arguably one of Taylor Swift’s most feminist-leaning songs is “Mad Woman” from her album Folklore (2020). Through lyrics such as “But no one likes a mad woman. What a shame she went mad. You made her like that”, Taylor encapsulates the feeling that many women can relate to of having their feelings invalidated by the people who made them feel like that. From a young age, women are taught to always be polite, not to overreact, and to suppress their emotions in order to avoid being labeled as "too much" or "hysterical." What Taylor is saying here is that women may be criticized for having big emotions and getting mad at what society has to say about them, but without these stereotypes and unrealistic expectations placed on them, they wouldn’t be mad in the first place.
While looking at breaking stereotypes and having resilience, Taylor Swift's lyrics bring a clear insight into themes of feminism in music. Comparing her older songs such as you belong with me (2008) to some of her newer music, such as shake it off (2014), you can see a change in how Swift has brought feminism into the music industry. Her earlier song, you belong with me, is focused on Swift trying to win over a guy. This song is centralized on female rivalry and having competition for romantic partners. The lyrics, “Why can't you see? You belong with me,” offers insight into how Swift feels as if she needs validation through comparing herself to other women. To compare the song, shake it off, represents a new outlook of having self determination and resilience in the eyes of criticism. With lyrics like, “The players gonna play, play, play,” Taylor shows rejection for the need of validation, showing her growth of the idea of feminism and self confidence. This shift from rivalries to embracing resilience in Swifts’ music shows her journey in finding and challenging societal expectations.
Another key theme is Swifts’ music is the highlight of unity of women and solidarity, which become more evident in her later work. For example, In Bad Blood (2014), the song focuses on rivalry, specifically the fallout of trust between women. Although, by the time Swift released you need to calm down (2019), she had shifted from conflict to sharing unity, especially among the marginalized groups. The lyrics, ““Why are you mad? When you could be GLAAD?”, not only rejects rivalry and conflict, but also promotes unity by having support and celebration LGBTQ rights. This progression we see from Taylor shows her evolving feminist perspectives, by empowering through connections, rather than by division. With this shift, Swift has shown that she wants to use her platform to bring up broader conversations, particularly in the aspects of unity and of support for women and diverse communities.
One of the most notable quotes from Taylor Swift comes from an interview in 2019 while promoting Lover where she states, “A man is allowed to react. A woman can only overreact.” She mentions how in our society, there is different vocabulary for men and women. She used this statement to tie into the themes discussed in “The Man”. Women can do something strategic and clever while society may say it was “calculated” which has a negative connotation. There are many other examples of how people subconsciously change how the speak about each gender.
All of this evidence aligns with the ideas of Taylor Swift’s analysis of feminism, highlighting her determination to bring awareness to the issues in our patriarchal society. Her work encourages her listeners, particularly young women, to stand up against systemic discrimination, embrace their emotions, and continue to prove that they can be just as powerful as men.