You were Romeo, I was a Scarlet Letter. This week we’re covering an oldie but goodie–Taylor Swift’s “Love Story”, from Fearless (Taylor’s Version). In this very narrative-driven song, we get a chance to explore who the protagonists are and what they’re trying to say about their love “story.  We explore why Taylor Swift references high school favorites “Romeo and Juliet” and “Scarlet Letter,” and what those metaphors may mean. The “Scarlet Letter” reference makes us look at this song from a whole new lens, forcing us to look at pronouns, verb tenses, and points of view–we promise you’ll never hear this song the same way again. 
 
Mentioned in this episode: 
Love Story, Fearless (Taylor’s Version) 
Romeo and Juliet
Titanic
The Notebook 
Tarzan of the Apes
Tim McGraw
Enchanted
Pride and Prejudice 
Cinderella
How I Met Your Mother
Scarlet Letter
Easy A
I Did Something Bad
Jane Eyre
Emma
& Juliet 
Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead
Don’t Matter, Akon
 
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Libro.fm - Looking for an audiobook? Check out our Libro.fm playlist and use code APTS30 for 30% off books found here tinyurl.com/aptslibro
 
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Episode Highlights: 
[1:30] How we do a deep dive
[08:19] “You’ll be the prince and I’ll be the princess” The fairytale references
[14:50] “I was a Scarlet Letter” What this reference may mean
[20:32] “All that’s left to do is run” Where it all takes a turn
[28:42] “When I met you on the outside of town” We approach the bridge
[41:11] What we think the purpose of “Love Story” really is




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This podcast is neither related to nor endorsed by Taylor Swift, her companies, or record labels. All opinions are our own. Intro music produced by Scott Zadig aka Scotty Z.