58 min
E33: Show and Tell - Animal Studies AP Taylor Swift
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- Music Commentary
Now it’s too late for you and your white horse. What do white horses, foxes, vultures, and wolves all have in common? They all show up in our favorite Taylor Swift songs! This week, we’re looking to understand how Taylor Swift uses animals in her lyrics, through the lens of animal studies! Jenn takes us back to medieval times to help us understand the origins of the white horse and what that means for “White Horse” (Fearless, 2008). Then Jodi talks to us about the many connotations associated with foxes and vultures, which are referenced in “I know places,” (1989, 2014). And finally, Maansi talks us through the song “Daylight” (Lover, 2014) where there are implications of the animalistic concept of hibernation, and also references to wolves.
Mentioned in this episode:
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by J.K. Rowling
The Hobbit & Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkein
The Silmarillion by J.R.R. Tolkein
Rapunzel by the Brothers Grimm
Mythology by Edith Hamilton
Hercules the Disney film
Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (the film)
BBC’s In Our Time - Chivalry episode
BBC’s You’re Dead to Me
Shakespeare’s Sonnets
Ivanhoe by Sir Walter Scott
Le Morte D’Artur by Sir Thomas Malory
Lancelot: The Knight of the Cart by Chretien de Troyes
The Templar Knights by Dan Jones
Alison Weir Books
Zootopia
Mary Poppins
Brer Rabbit
Disney’s Robin Hood
The Dark Knight
Spiderman
Beowulf
The Wolf of Wall Street
Twilight
Once Upon a Time
Little Red Riding Hood by the Brothers Grimm
The Three Little Pigs
Looking for an audio book? Check out our Libro.fm playlist https://tidd.ly/47uhRVI
***
Episode Highlights:
[01:12] Introduction to Animal Studies
[03:36] White horses in “White Horse,” Fearless, 2008
[23:05] Foxes & vultures in “I know places,” 1989, 2014
[38:19] Wolves in “Daylight,” Lover, 2019
Subscribe to get new episode updates: aptaylorswift.substack.com/subscribe
Follow us on social!
TikTok → tiktok.com/@APTaylorSwift
Instagram → instagram.com/APTaylorSwift
YouTube → youtube.com/@APTaylorSwift
Link Tree →linktr.ee/aptaylorswift
Bookshop.org → bookshop.org/shop/apts
Libro.fm → https://tidd.ly/47uhRVI
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.
Now it’s too late for you and your white horse. What do white horses, foxes, vultures, and wolves all have in common? They all show up in our favorite Taylor Swift songs! This week, we’re looking to understand how Taylor Swift uses animals in her lyrics, through the lens of animal studies! Jenn takes us back to medieval times to help us understand the origins of the white horse and what that means for “White Horse” (Fearless, 2008). Then Jodi talks to us about the many connotations associated with foxes and vultures, which are referenced in “I know places,” (1989, 2014). And finally, Maansi talks us through the song “Daylight” (Lover, 2014) where there are implications of the animalistic concept of hibernation, and also references to wolves.
Mentioned in this episode:
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by J.K. Rowling
The Hobbit & Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkein
The Silmarillion by J.R.R. Tolkein
Rapunzel by the Brothers Grimm
Mythology by Edith Hamilton
Hercules the Disney film
Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (the film)
BBC’s In Our Time - Chivalry episode
BBC’s You’re Dead to Me
Shakespeare’s Sonnets
Ivanhoe by Sir Walter Scott
Le Morte D’Artur by Sir Thomas Malory
Lancelot: The Knight of the Cart by Chretien de Troyes
The Templar Knights by Dan Jones
Alison Weir Books
Zootopia
Mary Poppins
Brer Rabbit
Disney’s Robin Hood
The Dark Knight
Spiderman
Beowulf
The Wolf of Wall Street
Twilight
Once Upon a Time
Little Red Riding Hood by the Brothers Grimm
The Three Little Pigs
Looking for an audio book? Check out our Libro.fm playlist https://tidd.ly/47uhRVI
***
Episode Highlights:
[01:12] Introduction to Animal Studies
[03:36] White horses in “White Horse,” Fearless, 2008
[23:05] Foxes & vultures in “I know places,” 1989, 2014
[38:19] Wolves in “Daylight,” Lover, 2019
Subscribe to get new episode updates: aptaylorswift.substack.com/subscribe
Follow us on social!
TikTok → tiktok.com/@APTaylorSwift
Instagram → instagram.com/APTaylorSwift
YouTube → youtube.com/@APTaylorSwift
Link Tree →linktr.ee/aptaylorswift
Bookshop.org → bookshop.org/shop/apts
Libro.fm → https://tidd.ly/47uhRVI
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.
58 min