History Headscratchers / TaylorSwift

* I'm just going to say what everyone is thinking here. "Love Story". ''RomeoAndJuliet''. The FridgeLogic of the song when one actually thinks of [[ItWasHisSled what happens in the end of the play]].

*** Love Story always came off as a parody to me, since both RomeoAndJuliet and TheScarletLetter are constantly misunderstood as romance stories, or their plots are used and altered to make romance stories. You see it all the time with fanfiction and pretty much any other version of the story that isn't word-for-word from the stories themselves, though R&J is especially guilty of this. I thought Taylor was mocking the people who think of them that way. Almost every R&J story you see subverts the DownerEnding to make them live happily ever after.
** TheNostalgiaChick couldn't put it better:
--> ''"It's at this point that you start to wonder if Taylor Swift even knows how RomeoAndJuliet '''[[DownerEnding ends]]!'''"''

** FridgeBrilliance: The song is written as though Taylor Swift didn't know how the play ends... neither did Juliet. For all we know, they both die after the song ends. I [[YourMileageMayVary think]] it works better that way.

*** Her father inflicted her with some crippling mental disorder like Super OCD so she's careful and a weirdo?

-> ''"It's at this point that you start to wonder if Taylor Swift even knows how RomeoAndJuliet '''[[DownerEnding ends]]!'''"''
* Her song "The Way I Loved You" bugs me. The message in this song is basically: Nice guys that respect you are boring, the best relationships are the ones that keep you up all night crying and cursing the other person. That's just a terrible message in general, but it's even worse when you consider that her biggest fans are teen girls.
** Hey, at least she hasn't totally crossed the MoralEventHorizon yet, a la MileyCyrus!
** (And I mean this in the most noncommittal way possible) This song struck me as a bit of a [[{{Literature/Twilight}} Edward <= Bella <= Jacob]] kind of deal, with the heart-pounding kind of love on one side, and the calm, perfect love on the other.

** Yeah, [[{{Tropers/Spinosegnosaurus7}} I]] do not get that either.

* Okay I'm not a hater or anything but am I the only one who thinks that all the HateDumb is ridiculous? I mean Taylor was already living a dream and {{Beyonce}} [[CrowningMomentOfHeartwarming did let Taylor come give her speech]]. After that things got even better for Taylor. Poor KanyeWest was compared to ChrisBrown and even physcially threatened (wtf). Even the president criticized Kanye (not cool Obama not cool). Now I'm not saying what Kanye did was right or okay but the treatment he got afterwards was completely extreme and dispraportionate.
** Obama's "criticism" of Kanye just amounted to, "He's a jackass. Why do something like that?" Hardly all that extreme. As for the others, people will get "extreme" and such over everything. I've seen death threats and angry rants because of [[TheyChangedItNowItSucks an adaptation changing a character's hair color]]. There's also the fact that this is hardly an isolated incident; he's been a jackass in the past, and he'll no doubt be a jackass in the future. This was just the most obvious, recent case, and his target was particularly [[AcceptableTargets unacceptable]].\\\
To many, it was one thing to hijack a telethon to say "George Bush doesn't care about black people,"; Bush's approval rating was way down, and he was an acceptable target (though it must be pointed out Kanye's comment was a CriticalResearchFailure). Taylor Swift, however, was/is a popular performer who, really, had done no wrong and didn't at all deserve to have her big moment ruined.
** Also, she was only 19! He may as well have grabbed a lollipop out of a seven year old's hands while he was at it.
** I had the same thought in the fallout. Also, Jay Leno asked him how his (then recently deceased) mother would feel about what happened...
** May [[{{Tropers/Spinosegnosaurus77}} I]] add that Kanye received [++DEATH THREATS!?!++]
* Is it just me, or was the whole Kanye West VMA thing blown way out of proportion even while it was happening? If I'm trying to give a speech and some random jackass incoherently insults me in the middle of it, I think I'd be more inclined to shrug it off and keep going than make a big deal of it.
** Even if it happens on Live TV? OR not live. I don't know if that was taped.
*** Well I'm pretty sure Taylor shrugged it off. In fact I think it was other people who made a big deal of it.
*** By "shrugged it off," do you mean "was starting to cry and clearly too shocked and hurt to finish her speech"? Keep in mind, before this happened, Taylor probably thought pretty highly of Kanye--I think in an interview after, she said she was initially excited to see him coming, and probably thought he was going to congratulate her or something. Seeing someone you think highly of (if for no other reason than he's a big celebrity) instead steal your big moment to tell you how you shouldn't have won is going to hit you pretty hard.
**** Taylor was initially (understandably) very upset about it - you could tell she was totally humiliated - but seemed to bounce back from it pretty quickly. The fact that everyone but a few very loyal Kanye fans were clearly on her side (even if they thought the whole thing was blown out of proportion) probably helped.
*** The VMAs aren't a major awards ceremony like the Emmys (as an example). They aren't big enough that they can extend the show as long as they want. Taylor started her speech, Kanye jumped onstage, made an ass of himself, and left...and before she could even react, she was played off. There was no time for her to "shrug it off."
* Why would anyone want to date her? They know they're going to be slandered in the first song after they break up.
** Optimism, maybe?
** Not if they don't act like a dick they won't be. She writes songs about relationships that ended badly. If the relationship ends on good terms, there's nothing to write about.
*** Except we only have her word to go on about that. Some poor schlub could have broken up with her because he thinks she's immature, they're just not compatible, or just doesn't want to deal with the drama of dating a musician (who admitedly can be a very tempermental group), and may have even been very nice and sensitive as to how he went about it and still gets a song written about how much of a dick he is and how she's so much better than a loser like him.
** Still makes her seem vindictive, though. That's one trait I try to avoid.
*** [[CaptainObvious Then don't date her.]]

** May [[{{Tropers/Spinosegnosaurus77}} I]] add that Kanye received [++death threats?++]

*** [[FridgeLogic Then don't date her.]]

* ''Why'' does she constantly insist she's unattractive?
** Because a ''lot'' of girls have body image issues, no matter how pretty they are. Being considered attractive by others is no guarantee that you yourself feel attractive.
** Reverse psychology.
*** Yes!! The above theory is MadeOfWin!
** If you mean in her songs, as opposed to in say interviews, because she's not just writing for her self. She's going with the assumption that her fanbase isn't also made entirely of very hot singers.
* Okay I'm not a hater or anything but am I the only one who thinks that all the HateDumb is ridiculous. I mean Taylor was already living a dream and {{Beyonce}} [[CrowningMomentOfHeartwarming did let Taylor come give her speech]]. After that things got even better for Taylor. Poor KanyeWest was compared to [[CompleteMonster Chris Brown]] and even physcially threatened (wtf). Even the president criticized Kanye (not cool Obama not cool). Now I'm not saying what Kanye did was right or okay but the treatment he got afterwards was completely extreme and dispraportionate.

* Am I the only one bothered by all of Taylor Swift's revenge songs? They just seem so petty. Whatever happened to turning the other cheek? I'd be curious to see how people would react if Taylor Swift was a man writing revenge songs about past women who hurt him.
** Taylor Swift is/was a teenage girl singing for an audience consisting mainly of teenage girls. "Petty revenge" songs are sort of a wish-fulfillment fantasy.
*** I agree that it is pretty petty, but judging by "Speak Now" she's getting better. Other than "Better than Revenge" and "Dear John" the break-up songs are more about missing the guy in question or being hurt than being mad at him, and in "Back to December" she admits she was wrong and apologizes (presumably to Taylor Lautner) for causing the break-up. (Not that you would know any of this from the promotional material, which made the new album sound like one big revenge fest.) Overall the album is a bit more thoughtful ... so it's probably a question of maturity.
** Also Taylor's primary genre is still country and there is much less of a double standard about male revenge songs in country than in pop. The only revenge pop song sung by a man that comes readily to mind is "Gives You Hell" by the All-American Rejects but country has "Here's a Quarter, Call Someone Who Cares" by Travis Tritt "I'll Take You Back" by Brad Paisley "Kiss This" by Aaron Tippin (the target of that is a man, but it's sung ''very'' gleefully by the new boyfriend of the woman doing the telling off) by Aaron Tippin and "I'll Pray for You," by Jaron and the Long Road to Love, all of which are pretty spiteful. And that's just a handful. So, annoyingly, while JustinBieber would probably be called on the carpet for writing a spiteful revenge song about a girl who hurt him, a young male country singer could write the same song and probably wouldn't raise any eyebrows.
** I think it's really petty of her to make it pretty obvious as to who she's writing each song about. I keep thinking, "what a little asshole" every time someone brings that album up. "You're So Vain" and other songs are a hit because they are vague and thus everyone relates to them, they aren't pointing large arrows at one specific person. Ugh.
*** That's exactly how I felt when she sang "White Horse" at the...[=AMAs=] I think?...and ''pointed at Joe Jonas near the end of it.'' Stay classy, Taylor.

* Everything she does his just so ''high school''. I kind of expect a little more from someone who's won as many awards and critical praise as she has.
** Probably because she wrote most of those songs while in high school, about being in high school.
** Also, she writes to relate to her audience.

* Taylor isn't a bad singer or anything, but her songs? Yeesh. Can she write about anything other than guys and petty revenge fantasies? I mean, I know her image is all about dealing with the drama and experiences of the life of a typical teenage/young adult girl, but there's far more to those things than boys. It kind of creates some UnfortunateImplications if you see it as implying that romantic relationships are the only important things in life...
** Yes, she can. There's 'The Best Day' and 'Never Grow Up', one of which is about her mother and the other is reminding you to cherish your childhood before you grow up and lose it all.
** As well as 'Change' and 'Long Live', which both focus on [[TrueCompanions her band]]--the former on their early struggles working with a relatively small label, and the latter on their successes together.

** If you mean in her songs, as opposed to in say interviews, because she's not just writing for her self. She's going with the assumption that her fanbase isn't also made entirely of very hot singers.

** As well as 'Change' and 'Long Live', which both focus on [[TrueCompanions her band]]--the former on their early struggles working with a relatively small label, and the latter on their successes together

** As well as 'Change' and 'Long Live', which both focus on [[Nakama her band]]--the former on their early struggles working with a relatively small label, and the latter on their successes together

* Taylor Swift is/was a teenage girl singing for an audience consisting mainly of teenage girls. "Petty revenge" songs are sort of a wish-fulfillment fantasy.
** I agree that it is pretty petty, but judging by "Speak Now" she's getting better. Other than "Better than Revenge" and "Dear John" the break-up songs are more about missing the guy in question or being hurt than being mad at him, and in "Back to December" she admits she was wrong and apologizes (presumably to Taylor Lautner) for causing the break-up. (Not that you would know any of this from the promotional material, which made the new album sound like one big revenge fest.) Overall the album is a bit more thoughtful ... so it's probably a question of maturity.

*** That's exactly how I felt when she sang "White Horse" at the...AMAs I think?...and ''pointed at Joe Jonas near the end of it.'' Stay classy, Taylor.

* So, it's been what, five years since Taylor became a national superstar? And no one's thought to give her lessons on how to sing live yet?! I can forgive her immaturity in regards to relationships and the lyrical simplicity of her songs, but the fact that she's glaringly off-tune in every live performance I've ever seen her do seems like something that should've been fixed a very long time ago. Especially for an award-winning singer.
** She actually addresses this in her new song "Mean." Turns out legitimate criticism is just jealous people being mean and pathetic.
* Is it just [[{{Tropers/Spinosegnosaurus77}} me]], or is Swift's straight hair gaining ground (and am I the only one who hates it)? Seriously, her {{IMDb}} [[http://www.imdb.com/name/nm2357847/ picture]] uses it!

* Taylor isn't a bad singer or anything, but her songs? Yeesh. Can she write about anything other than guys and petty revenge fantasies? I mean, I know her image is all about dealing with the drama and expiriences of the life of a typical teenage/young adult girl, but there's far more to those things than boys. It kind of creates some UnfortunateImplications if you see it as implying that romantic relationships are the only important things in life...

** TheNostalgiaChick couldn't put it better: -> ''"It's at this point that you start to wonder if Taylor Swift even knows how RomeoAndJuliet '''[[DownerEnding ends]]!'''"''

** TheNostalgiaChick couldn't put it better:-> ''"It's at this point that you start to wonder if Taylor Swift even knows how RomeoAndJuliet '''[[DownerEnding ends]]!'''"''

** TheNostalgiaChick couldn't put it better:
-> ''"It's at this point that you start to wonder if Taylor Swift even knows how RomeoAndJuliet '''[[DownerEnding ends]]!'''"''

** (And I mean this in the most noncommittal way possible) This song struck me as a bit of a {{Twilight Edward <= Bella <= Jacob}} kind of deal, with the heart-pounding kind of love on one side, and the calm, perfect love on the other.

*** Love Story always came off as a parody to me, since both RomeoAndJuliet and ScarletLetter are constantly misunderstood as romance stories, or their plots are used and altered to make romance stories. You see it all the time with fanfiction and pretty much any other version of the story that isn't word-for-word from the stories themselves, though R&J is especially guilty of this. I thought Taylor was mocking the people who think of them that way. Almost every R&J story you see subverts the DownerEnding to make them live happily ever after.

** Also Taylor's primary genre is still country and there is much less of a double standard about male revenge songs in country than in pop. The only revenge pop song sung by a man that comes readily to mind is "Gives You Hell" by the All-American Rejects but country has "Here's a Quarter, Call Someone Who Cares" by Travis Tritt "I'll Take You Back" by Brad Paisley "Kiss This" by Aaron Tippin (the target of that is a man, but it's sung ''very'' gleefully by the new boyfriend of the woman doing the telling off) by Aaron Tippin and "I'll Pray for You," by Jaron and the Long Road to Love, all of which are pretty spiteful. And that's just a handful. So, annoyingly, while Justin Bieber would probably be called on the carpet for writing a spiteful revenge song about a girl who hurt him, a young male country singer could write the same song and probably wouldn't raise any eyebrows.

** What's even worse about that song? The ScarletLetter. Has she read The Scarlet Letter? Has she read the back of The Scarlet Letter? Has she ever heard even the slightest thing about the content of The Scarlet Letter? Why the hell would you want to compare yourself to The Scarlet Letter? It's not romantic. It has nothing to do with Romeo and Juliet. It doesn't even flow well lyrically. It just comes across as her trying to look smart and cultured and failing, badly.