'Love Story' and Shakepeare

 

The meaning of Taylor Swift's 'Love Story' is pretty straightforward, but I couldn't help analyzing it. It is one of my favourite songs and it is the one that made me fall in love with Taylor's music. 

modern-day

This song talks about a modern day Romeo and Juliet, two forbidden lovers, meeting in secret. The song starts with Taylor, adopting Juliet's character, reminiscing about the first time she saw her 'Romeo.' She tells us that they were young when they both met, just like in Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, who were 16 and 13 when they met. She recalls that they met in the summer when she was leaning over the balcony. 

She then refers to the Capulet's masked ball. She says she remembers the party where they met. She remembers the lights and the ball gowns. She says that 'Romeo' came up to her. She however didn't know that this boy would become her true love. She tells us that her father wanted them to stay away from each other. 

She begs her 'Romeo' to take her away. She says that she will be waiting for him and they can run away together. She says that she would be his princess and he would be her prince. Here, Taylor deviates from Shakepeare's work. In his work, Romeo and Juliet weren't descended from royal blood. 

In the bridge of the song, Taylor sings about how she got tired of waiting. She almost lost faith in her Romeo. She is unsure of where their relationship stands until 'Romeo' gets down on his knee and proposes to her. He tells Juliet that he smoothed things over with her father and he asks her to marry him. 

The main difference between Taylor's Love Story and Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet is the ending. Shakespeare ends his story in a tragedy, where both Romeo and Juliet die. Taylor however ends her story with the couple uniting against all odds.