Taylor Swift
University takes on the songs of the singer
Taylor Swift’s songs will soon be scrutinized at a university.
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At a university in Texas, students will be able to take a special course starting in the fall. Subject: Taylor Swift’s songwriting.
At a Texas university, fans of Taylor Swift (32) will soon be able to “study” the singer – or treat her songwriting in a literature course. As the University of Texas at Austin (UTA) announced, The Taylor Swift Songbook course will be available this fall. This means that the students will analyze the pop star’s songs alongside the lyrics of other literary greats such as William Shakespeare (1564-1616) or Robert Frost (1874-1963).
Taylor Swift as a research subject
“Students will explore issues such as gender, authenticity and authorship of a writer’s writing, but also the ways in which readers and fans influence the work and creation of artists and writers,” the description reads. According to professor and course leader Elizabeth Scala, it is important to “connect the curriculum to the present”. She wants to show her students “how Swift draws on rich literary traditions in her songwriting”.
The UTA follows in the footsteps of New York University (NYU). At the Clive Davis Institute, which belongs to NYU, students were able to learn more about the singer in the course from early 2022. At the beginning of the year, the 32-year-old also received an honorary doctorate there.