The first book to explore the philosophy of Taylor Swift
Taylor Swift is a Mastermind when it comes to songwriting, relationships, and performing at sold-out stadiums around the world. But did you know that she is also a philosophical mastermind? Since the release of her debut album, Taylor has been writing about ideas that have kept philosophers busy for hundreds of years.
Taylor Swift and Philosophy is a fun and accessible discussion of the themes, concepts, and questions that arise from Taylor's life and work. Combining top-tier philosophical research and a passion for Taylor's music, a team of scholars investigate the wisdom that can come from Taylor's songs, bringing new perspectives to important contemporary issues.
You don't have to be a specialist in philosophy or a devoted Swiftie to enjoy this one-of-a-kind book. Written with general readers in mind, each of the twenty-six chapters will deepen your appreciation of Taylor's work while discussing a wide range of topics, from the impact of first impressions and the moral obligation to speak out against injustice, to whether Taylor Swift is actually a philosopher herself.
Providing a kaleidoscope of ideas for you to explore, this book:
- Discusses contemporary philosophical topics relating to Taylor Swift's life and work
- Explains the philosophical connections of ideas expressed in songs from all Taylor Swift's eras
- Features original essays by Swifties who are also philosophy professors and scholars
- Explores philosophical topics such as the nature and ethics of friendship, reputation, love, heartbreak, inequality, memory, imagination, time, gender, identity, and many more.
Part of the acclaimed Blackwell Philosophy and Pop Culture series, Taylor Swift and Philosophy: Essays from the Tortured Philosophers Department is a must-read for all Taylor Swift fans, philosophers interested in popular culture, enthusiasts of media studies and sociology, and general readers of popular philosophy curious about Taylor Swift's music, celebrity, and artistry.
Contributors viii
Introducing Taylor Swifts Philosophy Era xiv
Catherine M. Robb and Georgie Mills
Who Is Taylor Swift Anyway? Ew 1
1 Is Taylor Swift a Philosopher? 3
Catherine M. Robb
2 You Should Find Another Guiding Light: Is Taylor Swift Admirable? 12
Kate C.S. Schmidt
3 Eyes Open: Taylor Swift and the Philosophy of Easter Eggs 19
Eline Kuipers
4 Taylor Swift and the Ethics of Body Image 28
Gah-Kai Leung
5 So Mother for That: Taylor Swift and Childless Mothering 36
Lucy Britt and Brian Britt
Look What You Made Me Do: Reputation, Forgiveness, and Blame 47
6 Can I Forgive You for Breaking My Heart? 49
Sophia Pettigrove and Glen Pettigrove
7 How to Forgive an Innocent: Taylor, Kanye, and the Ethics of Forgiveness
58
Sarah Köglsperger
8 This Is Why We Cant Have Nice Things: Goodwill as a Finite Resource 66
Georgie Mills
9 Taylor Swifts Philosophy of Reputation 72
Catherine M. Robb and Roos Slegers
10 Its Me, Hi! Im the Problem Its Me: Taylor Swift and Self- Blame 81
Agnčs Baehni
The Girl in the Dress Wrote You a Song 89
11 Begin Again (Taylors Version): On Taylor Swifts Repetition and
Difference 91
King-Ho Leung
12 Is Taylor Swifts Music Timeless?: A Metaphysical Proof 99
Patrick Dawson
13 I Remember It All Too Well: Memory, Nostalgia, and the Archival Art of
Songwriting 107
Rebecca Keddie
14 Taylors Version: Rerecording, Narrative, and Self- Interpretation 116
Jana Alvara Carstens
With My Calamitous Love and Insurmountable Grief 127
15 Taylor Swift on the Values and Vulnerability of Love 129
Macy Salzberger
16 Every Scrap of You Would Be Taken from Me: Taylor Swift on Grief 137
Jonathan Birch
17 What a Shame She Went Mad: Anger, Affective Injustice, and Taylor
Swifts mad woman 147
Erica Bigelow
18 Im Fine with My Spite: The Philosophy of Female Anger in the Work of
Taylor Swift 154
Amanda Cercas Curry and Alba Curry
I Shouldve Known: Taylor Swifts Philosophy of Knowledge 163
19 Summer Love or Just a Summer Thing?: Feminist Standpoint Epistemology
and the folklore Love Triangle 165
Lottie Pike and Tom Beevers
20 The Trouble with Knowing You Were Trouble 174
Eric Scarffe and Katherine Valde
21 I Knew Everything When I Was Young: Examining the Wisdom of Youth 182
Urja Lakhani
22 How Do We Know What Taylor Swift Is Feeling? 189
Neil Mussett
Back to December: Fate, Memory, and Imagination 199
23 A Real Lasting Legacy: Memory, Imagination, and Taylor Swift 201
Christopher Buford
24 Stained Glass Windows in My Mind: Modality in the Imagery of Taylor Swift
208
Shoshannah Diehl
25 Take Me to the Lakes: Transcendentalism and Ecology in Taylor Swifts
folklore 216
Joshua Fagan
26 Wildest Dreams: Stoic Fate and Acceptance (Taylors Version) 225
David Hahn
27 Mythic Motifs in The Tortured Poets Department: The Story Isnt Mine
Anymore 231
Georgie Mills
Index of Terms and Names 238
Index of Taylor Swifts Songs and Albums 241
CATHERINE M. ROBB is an Assistant Professor of Philosophy at Tilburg University, Netherlands. Her research interests include ethics, metaphysics, aesthetics, and applied philosophy, with a focus on the nature and value of ability, skill and talent, and related ethical implications.
GEORGIE MILLS is a Research Fellow at Delft University of Technology, Netherlands. She is primarily a philosopher of science, emotion, and medicine with a range of interests in the philosophy of pop culture. She has published work on Punk, Post-Punk, Britney Spears, and Ted Lasso.
