Day 86: Swigorgitation

At her very core Taylor Swift is a lyricist. Her vocals and music are also important parts to her success of course, but I firmly believe that her empire was built on her ability to consistently write compelling songs. Sure, not all of her songs have great writing but there's a lot of nuance if you know where to look. But sometimes the most genius songs are the ones that put words to feelings that everyone knows but usually escape description. If you want to see what I'm talking about, look no further than Gorgeous, a single from Taylor Swift's 2017 album Reputation.

Some languages, most famously German, have words with incredibly specific meanings. The most well known is schadenfreude, or taking pleasure in other people's pain. Others I am a big fan of are kummerspeck (weight loss from stress, especially post-breakup), treppenwitz (coming up with the perfect thing to say long after the conversation is over), and fremdschämen (feeling shame/cringing while seeing someone else make a fool of themselves). I bring up these words because they are, in effect, the exact same as some of Taylor's writing, especially in Gorgeous. They tap into an emotion that everyone knows but struggles to put into words. When you hear them your brain says "yeah, I know that feeling! I'm surprised someone bothered to name it, but I'm glad they did". 

"If you've got a girlfriend, I'm jealous of her
But if you're single that's honestly worse
'Cause you're so gorgeous it actually hurts"

This song has an unmistakably positive tone, yet this may seem strange when reading these lyrics. These lines are among the most relatable from the song, yet they are the ones that mix in the most negative emotion. Rather than being a commentary on the inner sadness we all secretly (or not) harbor, I think these lyrics use this negative imagery to give a much more realistic view of what exhilaration is like. As sad as it is, life rarely contains purely positive moments. This may seem depressing, but remember this is a happy song! Rather than lingering on what could go wrong, it shows that it's possible to have an exciting, fulfilling life full of unique experiences even when things are going wrong. Also that it's okay to cheat on your boyfriend if the guy is really hot.

I'm not saying that Gorgeous is a profound musical masterpiece, it has the same base formula as tons of other pop music. The "live for toady, party tonight, Le Vie Boheme" attitude is a trope as old as time because people have to find hope somewhere right? But the addition of a little nuance to the emotions makes it way more compelling, especially long term.

"You should take it as a compliment
That I'm talking to everyone here but you
And you should think about the consequence
Of you touching my hand in the darkened room"

I think my favorite part of Gorgeous is how Taylor really shoves the blame on the guy here even though all he did was be a hunky hunk. The lyrics here are so childish and petty, and it totally works because it's completely accurate. Blaming your emotions on someone else is obviously unhealthy, but I'm pretty sure Taylor knows what she's doing. She basically says as much in the lyrics.

"You should think about the consequence
Of your magnetic field being a little too strong"

"And I'm so furious
At you for making me feel this way
But what can I say?
You're gorgeous"

This feeling of being mad at someone else for how they make you feel is so specific, so sharp that I think it merits it's own word, German style. I henceforth dub this feeling "Swigorgitation" (adj. swigorgitive) from the combination of Swift, Gorgeous, and Reputation. Is it dumb? Yes, but so is listening to only Taylor Swift for 100 days. That's a self-inflicted sing right there.

See you tomorrow,
-C