NEW YORK (AP) — 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.
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 work before, she has an allusion to (William) Wordsworth, she cites Emily Dickinson as one of her influences.”
She also said her students told her Swift’s B-sides — not her radio singles — tend to be her most poetic, which is true of poets, too. “Their most well-known poems are the ones that people lock into the most, that are the clearest, and in a way, don’t always have the mystery of poetry.”
Claire Danes carries umbrella for bundled
Tourism market expecting holiday boom
Xinjiang opens its first museum on Great Wall culture
Knockout stage on the horizon at table tennis team worlds
An appeals court dismisses charges against a Michigan election worker who downloaded a voter list
Line Of Duty's Vicky McClure reunites with co
Rihanna showcases her impeccable style in a quirky fur coat as she secures front
Spanish travel industry happy to see China's return as major tourist destination
Knockout stage on the horizon at table tennis team worlds
An appeals court dismisses charges against a Michigan election worker who downloaded a voter list
The WEF’s chairman is still alive and well, despite claims online