Taylor Swift’s ‘The Tortured Poets Department' is here. Is it poetry? This is what experts say
by Maria Sherman
Apr 20, 2024
4 minutes
Taylor Swift has released her 11th studio album, “The Tortured Poets Department.”
But just how poetic is it? Is it even possible to close read lyrics like poems, divorced from their source material?
The Associated Press spoke to four experts to assess how Swift's latest album stacks up to poetry.
IS TAYLOR SWIFT A POET?
Allison Adair, a professor who teaches poetry and other literary forms at Boston College, says yes.
“My personal opinion is that if someone writes poems and considers themself a poet, then they’re a poet," she says. “And Swift has demonstrated that she takes it pretty seriously. She's mentioned (Pablo) Neruda in her as one of her influences.”
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