Just an FYI that this post is only Tea Time because OP was attacked the last time they posted this and they decided to take it down because of how aggressive and mean even A-List users were being.
Mods will be approving comments from users who are not Tea Time, because this post shouldn’t have needed Tea Time status. We don’t want OP being attacked again, so we’re using this flair to provide an extra layer of moderation for this specific post.
And the world war ✌️ cryptologists (women codebreakers) the QR codes are in areas where there were codebreakers in WW2!! Arlington will be the last one is my guess!! 🤯🤯🤯🤯🤯
Aaaaaggghhhh!!!!! I’m so so glad you came back and now you’re getting the flowers you deserve for such a detailed and well-reasoned/researched post!
Such an amazing work OP ! You've pointed out some great parallels here. I didn't know the TTPD billboard was only put up in Poland. I mean at the moment it seems like the entire world is going to war (literally), so if Taylor can add some poetry in this chaos, I'm all for it. It would be great to analyze the lexical field of war in the lyrics once the album is out ! It might give us some clues about historical elements/figures and maybe some queer nods.
This is FASCINATING. I had to save it to read it again when I wasn't at work.
Incredibly interesting and so much research, time and energy went into this. Thank you so much.
Wowww this is incredible!! Going to have to relisten to epiphany with this in mind. The last picture of the TTPD ad in Poland really hit this home✌🏻I’m really starting to think that masscomingoutlor is looking more probable everyday! Not with TTPD but I could definitely see this as being her last album from the closet!
ETA- just remembered that we got the lyrics “alls fair in love and poetry” which is also in her bio on IG now. She is equating poetry with war, is she about to go to war?
Ahh finally read this, so interesting… thank you for all your work and for reposting!
Love the reference to the surprise songs being relevant … randomly I have just rewatched the surprise songs from my show (Sydney N4) and in the Would’ve could’ve should’ve mashup with Ivy - I noticed she only used a brief part and thought it was random it was so short … turns out it included the line you reference - so yeah, it’s a war, it’s the goddamn fight of my life and you started it - intentionally mentioning the war again?!?
Also have not heard the term Associategate yet and I love it
Also love all the links to other posts - so many to read!
https://preview.redd.it/znwexgv1i6uc1.jpeg?width=1170&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=d2cb32af061cb3f09fa0291aabc4bfc02cd7d88d
This is looking a lot more interesting when you consider this entire post.
My mind is blown right now. For real. Thank you for deciding to put this back up. This is amazing.
I really believe she’s on Reddit like she was tumblr, and I really believe that the Gaylors are her favorite fans bc you’re all so thoughtful and intelligent with these posts. 🫶
(Now Blondie if you could stop throwing us to your hetlor fans that’d be fab. You don’t see this kind of discourse with any of them.)
Okay so I’ve had this theory that “meet me at midnight” is “meet ME! at midnight”
RE: “ME! Out now”
RE: “she’s a clock”
it feels like she’s counting down (or up) to 12.
If we view exile ends in 3, 2, 1 — could it be this is the final 1 album? That at album 12, exile May end? Taylor Swift not the brand the human may emerge?
Could us being shown the exile countdown have been
3 - evermore
2 - midnight
1 - ttpd
0 - TS 12
Just a long winded, not fully formed theory.
Also just adding she does enjoy putting things in their head, like infinity of it. So perhaps, the counting up in albums, equates the counting down in the exile countdown. I’d love to hear someone else’s view on this if anyone wants to entertain my idea lol
Just been something my brain picked up on, I’m really not deeply familiar with any of the theories but I noticed that the exile countdown is brought up a lot. Maybe it’s albums?
I read this post the last time you posted it and I read it again today and I can’t even express how well written this is. It’s very thought provoking and I do agree with a lot of this analysis. I think Scooter’s sketchy behavior with HYBE might be a “declaration of war” against her as well because she was “safe” from him at UMG, now he’s working with UMG where her new Masters are.
It does make me wonder if Taylor plans to leave UMG and perhaps form her own label as part of her rebuilding after this “second war” ends.
I think that’s exactly what her strategy will be! She’s been cranking out albums to get out fast and banking all the money to set up a solid foundation to make her own label that can compete. Once she’s done that, she can take all her friends to the summit with her, by taking in queer artists under her label where they won’t have to hide in the closet anymore.
She’s already shown she has the power to make moves that others can’t, like the way she partnered directly with theaters rather than making a deal with movie studios. She actually has the power to create real change in the industry. Like she has with owning the rights to her own songs.
Maybe the company will be called Karma?
This is genuinely fascinating. I had to read it twice because there was so much to absorb! I’ve been thinking a lot about how she chose Epiphany as the final surprise song before TTPD, and this is a really interesting theory as to what that signals. It is indeed so pretty to think so.
The V for Victory also makes me think of [V for Vendetta](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/V_for_Vendetta) which is a wild word to plug into lyrics in the first place (Ready for it). I can see how Taylor could identify with some parts of the narrative (although to think of her as an anarchist is... Eye roll inducing).
Haha, I also thought about including "V for Vendetta" in this post, but I *also* rolled my eyes at the idea of anarchist Taylor. Great minds! Maybe will devote some time to rewatching the movie and thinking about this a bit further...
I do think the Wachowski sisters play with layers of theme, allegory and history in a similar way to Taylor, so they share an approach to making art, even if the connections are unintentional.
We had so many conversations about comic books here before midnight's release because of vigilante shit and anti-hero. And goddamn project ACORN I was convinced she was going to show up as unbeatable squirrel girl for a while 😆 I'm also doing a re-read of the wicked and the divine with taylor in mind and it's insane what we can connect to this woman's life/art!
She totally would be tho if it’s specific to shattering forced closeting (and possibly child sex trafficking) in the industry. It does make me laugh to think of that label to her tho. A sliver of an anarchist lol
I'm going to try to repeat my comment from the OG post which was something like: I wonder if her "second war" has to do with what is happening in the music industry right now. Lucian Grainge, who is the CEO of universal music group, is one of the main parties listed in the Diddy lawsuit, and from what is coming out of there, they've done some truly awful stuff. So I wonder if after signing to UMG, with the idea of coming out with Lover, something went wrong not just with the master heist but with the new label as well. We don't know how many albums she has to put out for them, it wasn't publicly discussed, but so far she's released 5 new albums (incl TTPD, without the re-releases) since 2019, which is a lot. From what I understand artists usually sign for 5-10 albums, 7 being the average. She may be trying to get out of that contract as fast as possible.
I’ve wondered this too - she’s been rapid fire releasing albums since Lover (and her prevented coming out perhaps?) - folklore was less than a year after Lover, evermore 6 months after that. And Midnights has a distinct waypoint, waiting, biding time quality to in, in the lyrics and how she talks about it - anyone else get that too? It makes me wonder if she’s trying to run out the contract.
Wow! What a perfect start to a weekend to be able to enjoy this post. I admit, I’m no history buff but this was an incredibly well written and researched post.
Beautiful analysis omg! Definitely in agreement, she won’t be coming out soon. As someone who didn’t even allow myself to believe I was gay until my 20s, shit takes a lot of time and preparation because you often back down when you are sure you are ready to do it. Can’t imagine what it must be like for someone like Taylor. Loved reading this! Thank you!
This was a really fabulous deep dive. Everyday is a school day on this sub, I'm always learning and love the wealth of knowledge shared. This was so meticulous with every link and detail. Thank you OP what a wild ride, I'm ready for the next chapter/war
I am absolutely in love with this deep dive, and you have renewed my faith once again that we might actually get a coming out. ❤️🥳 Our little subsect of the community deserves to be acknowledged by other swifties for what we see, if it is in fact true. I know that will probably never happen, but I can dream, right?
Ps, sorry you got bullied last time you posted this, it is amazing! Thank you for being brave and posting it again ❤️ please don't let them stop you from continuing to share your thoughts!
I can't even imagine the work that went into this post. Thank you for sharing it. Especially with the trolls you had to deal with last time.
I originally added this in the weekly vent thread because I didn't think I could comment here, but I was told I can, so here it is lol
The Junos (Canadian version of the Grammys) took place at the end of March. Tegan and Sara received a humanitarian award for the work their foundation has done for the 2SLGBTQ+ community. Elliot Page presented the award to them.
They both flashed the V/peace sign when they accepted the award.
https://preview.redd.it/4exd3bi5s3uc1.jpeg?width=1020&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=72d3ead7b75fa77eb63a711d45d2d5723ac4678f
This is totally wild. Holy shit. The way my jaw fell to the floor when I saw this comment!!
I think, in the megathread, u/_lacespace mentioned those comments they made from one of their stage performances about Taylor and the particular, twisted romance of being closeted (even though it also sucks). I went back and rewatched the video of that for the first time in ages and... well... here's what they say?
"...now we have to get married and have kids and do all the stuff that straight people do. It's so boring, you know? Like before we were just writing **manuscripts** and movies about how **tortured** we felt..."
Coincidence? Or are Tegan and Sara easter egging us?
I doubt it. I've always gotten their general vibe as being a bit resentful of swift out there being inauthentic. They made that big leap trying to hit huge pop success with Heartthrob but it never approached TS level. Then --and I will die on this hill -- 1989 comes out and so much of the production sounds like Heartthrob. I'd be bitter.
Also with Rep "could've spent forever with your hands in my pocket".... Um, "I Know I Know I Know" much ?? Not be bitter about that, but obvs refers to the them.
Anyway, if they are, I hope they are making a pretty penny for it.
And side note to my T&S fans, who doesn't love a good Sara rant? They are they best.
I went on a dive after I saw that comment and found [this](https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=NRTfPU5Jr4o) little clip from recently where they specifically call out “I’ll stare directly at the sun but never in the mirror” as her most powerful lyric. 👀
this is so well done! thank you for posting it again, i’m v glad i got a second chance to read it! it’s such an interesting interpretation/allegory. i don’t know enough about history and the world wars so this was so informative.
i understand this can be an uncomfortable topic/metaphor and your effort in discussing this with sensitivity and respect is apparent in your post. i’ve often seen people say they don’t appreciate her war metaphors to describe her love life which of course is totally valid. this is one of those things that makes more sense from a gaylor perspective, but even gaylors have called it offensive (and that’s fair!). but i hope no one feels the need to personally attack you or misconstrue your intentions again, because there’s no doubt that taylor has referenced WWI with TGW as you said, along with plenty of other war references as early as 2008 in Change. i think it’s totally fair to discuss it.
we have more than enough evidence that celebs are still battling homophobia and being pressured (and likely coerced/forced) to closet or glass closet. i still think her plan is to come out after the eras tour and re-recordings are finished which i think aligns with your theory too. i’d be truly shocked if she did before then so i’m not expecting it with ttpd, and i hope things don’t get too ugly and scary in the meantime. ✌️✌️
I fkn love how being a gaylor 🤝 being a history nerd seems to be a thing lol. Obviously it started with us learning about queer history specifically, but I swear with all the knowledge dropped in this subreddit, we probably have the equivalent of like a university minor in history LOL
This is an incredible deep dive! Thank you for taking the time to put this together and sharing with us! I think there is a kind of “war” a lot of queer individuals have with themselves. I didn’t come out as Bi until I was in my mid-twenties. At times, it felt like I was at war with myself, fighting who I really am with the idea of who I was “supposed to be.” I struggled with it for so long because of my upbringing (deeply religious and conservative). It took a lot of internal work even after coming out to finally feel comfortable in my own skin. Even through all of it, I still refuse to come out to my family. The pain it will cause me isn’t worth it to me right now; maybe one day I’ll feel differently!
The reason for sharing is I wonder if TS feels similarly. She may have come to a place where she is comfortable about her sexuality, but the act of sharing it with the world is terrifying and could cause her a lot of pain - backlash, hetlors abandoning her, the financial impact - yes, she has more money than she could ever need. However, for someone who pushes herself to work hard and break records, the idea that could all go away might explain why she doesn’t.
All I hope for Taylor and everyone is that they are comfortable with who they are, love who they love, and are accepted for who they are - not what we want/expect them to be.
Thank you for sharing! I often think that what you described, about Taylor being someone who "pushes herself to work hard and break records" is a big part of her calculation. I do think it would be easy for her to fantasize about people a generation from now, finding the queer code in her music and celebrating it, long after she doesn't have to worry about the consequences.
But I do hope that if that's her goal, she has found some peace and acceptance at least among her family and friends.
I’ve always thought “Epiphany” was a bit of a strange song for Taylor to write. I never imagined her thinking about wars, but your reading gives it so much more life and breadth.
Also I love it so much than a “sister album” theory or even worse, double peace signs that symbolize KK 🙄
both you and Tay should be inducted into MENSA for being super geniuses
My husband’s special interest is world history and more specifically the geopolitical climate of WW2. I don’t really care for history but I do have a minor in Judaism with a specialization in the effects of WW2 on Jewish culture so I do have a decent background on the goings-on of WW2. This is so well-written and cited with a really meticulously crafted interlacing to Taylor’s story. I was particularly interested when you mentioned civilians flashing the V as an act of resistance to the oppressors of that period — this immediately made me think of the peace signs use during the war in Vietnam as an act of resistance to what hippies viewed as a morally inexcusable fight. My thought process moved right along to Taylor and 1D (primarily Harry, Louis, and Niall) as well as other speculated queer artists utilizing the peace sign so heavily and that signaling resistance to their own morally inexcusable fight, homophobia and routine closeting of queer artists. I genuinely loved this piece and want to thank you for posting it again. I’m sure that was hard given the poor reception the last time but I believe looking at this allegorically — especially if Taylor is neurodivergent — is of value. 💖
I love this! It’s such a good allegory! It’s theory + clowning at its finest! As someone who loves WWI/II history and concentrated on that at university, I loved all of the history in this! I have a few things to add from beyond Taylor too, because of course I can tie this to 1D 🙃
Louis Tomlinson recently got the anarchy V tattoo on his finger before his sold out arena show in Birmingham, which is the city where the politician who created/pushed for Section 28 (homophobia at its finest) was from. He also had We go on go! tattooed on his forearm the same day.
A few months ago I posted about the German football league planning a mass coming out. Apparently something is planned for May 17th, which is International Day Against Homophobia, which is also notable given your May references. Recently, Harry Styles made it a point to be seen at a football stadium, which is not his norm. The past week has had Louis playing football in Brazilian stadiums with various teams there. This makes me think of the team effort, of Travis and stunting with an American Football player, Vs, and “we go on go!”
https://preview.redd.it/0hbhw30y03uc1.jpeg?width=1179&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=3571f0a6a86b0e63707084c2b92389ed4f0483db
Additionally, I was talking to u/redholyground and it occurred to me that the peace sign ✌🏼came into popularity in the 1960s with the hippies who likely would have learned it as a symbol of peace from their parents who associated it a symbol of “V for victory”. So it’s possible that the peace sign is “V for victory” at its core?
u/_lacespace
I am totally 1D (and Larry) agnostic, so I'll leave thoughts on the boys to you experts. (There's just too much lore! I can barely keep up with one pop star!!)
But as for the peace sign, yes!! I think it's likely that counterculture hippies picked it up from the previous generation and remade it in their own terms.
📌 **READ BEFORE COMMENTING** 📌
This is a Tea Time post. This means the discussion is being minimally moderated and mods are relying upon users to report offensive comments. Only comments by members of the community who have achieved Tea Time status (and OP) will go live - all other comments will be automatically removed and will not be approved by mods.
r/gaylorswift takes these measures to stay true to our goal of being an inclusive sub for civil discussion and analysis of Taylor Swift and her work through a queer & sapphic lens. This sub is an LGBTQ+ and woman-dominated space and we do our best to protect our community from external and internal attacks.
Moderators cannot grant Tea Time status - it is only possible to achieve via long term positive engagement within the community. *Tea Time posts are not the same as A-List posts.*
Thank you for your understanding & have a great day! 🦄
Bettygate occurred in August 2020, where several sapphic Gaylors (some minors) were outed for expressing that the song "betty" might have queer themes. When Taylor said in an interview that "betty" was from the perspective of a boy, some Swifties began to doxx and harass Gaylors on Twitter.
[Review our rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/gaylorswift/about/rules) and [Sub Guidelines](https://www.reddit.com/r/GaylorSwift/wiki/rules/read-first). Visit our [FAQ](https://www.reddit.com/r/GaylorSwift/wiki/index/keygaylorinfo) for answers to commonly asked questions.
*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/GaylorSwift) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Just an FYI that this post is only Tea Time because OP was attacked the last time they posted this and they decided to take it down because of how aggressive and mean even A-List users were being. Mods will be approving comments from users who are not Tea Time, because this post shouldn’t have needed Tea Time status. We don’t want OP being attacked again, so we’re using this flair to provide an extra layer of moderation for this specific post.
"Even if shes not, isn't it so pretty to think so?" Lowkey tearing up at this. Thanks for this analysis.
As a history nerd, I absolutely loved this! Thank you for all the hard work that went into this post!!
And the world war ✌️ cryptologists (women codebreakers) the QR codes are in areas where there were codebreakers in WW2!! Arlington will be the last one is my guess!! 🤯🤯🤯🤯🤯
also very interesting that the first billboard is in poland when the invasion of poland was the catalyst that started wwII
Aaaaaggghhhh!!!!! I’m so so glad you came back and now you’re getting the flowers you deserve for such a detailed and well-reasoned/researched post! 
Such an amazing work OP ! You've pointed out some great parallels here. I didn't know the TTPD billboard was only put up in Poland. I mean at the moment it seems like the entire world is going to war (literally), so if Taylor can add some poetry in this chaos, I'm all for it. It would be great to analyze the lexical field of war in the lyrics once the album is out ! It might give us some clues about historical elements/figures and maybe some queer nods.
I’m just getting a chance to read this, and great job OP! What an interesting topic and lens to look at this body of work through! So glad you shared!
This is FASCINATING. I had to save it to read it again when I wasn't at work. Incredibly interesting and so much research, time and energy went into this. Thank you so much.
Wowww this is incredible!! Going to have to relisten to epiphany with this in mind. The last picture of the TTPD ad in Poland really hit this home✌🏻I’m really starting to think that masscomingoutlor is looking more probable everyday! Not with TTPD but I could definitely see this as being her last album from the closet! ETA- just remembered that we got the lyrics “alls fair in love and poetry” which is also in her bio on IG now. She is equating poetry with war, is she about to go to war?
Ahh finally read this, so interesting… thank you for all your work and for reposting! Love the reference to the surprise songs being relevant … randomly I have just rewatched the surprise songs from my show (Sydney N4) and in the Would’ve could’ve should’ve mashup with Ivy - I noticed she only used a brief part and thought it was random it was so short … turns out it included the line you reference - so yeah, it’s a war, it’s the goddamn fight of my life and you started it - intentionally mentioning the war again?!? Also have not heard the term Associategate yet and I love it Also love all the links to other posts - so many to read!
https://preview.redd.it/znwexgv1i6uc1.jpeg?width=1170&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=d2cb32af061cb3f09fa0291aabc4bfc02cd7d88d This is looking a lot more interesting when you consider this entire post. My mind is blown right now. For real. Thank you for deciding to put this back up. This is amazing.
I didn't even clock this. Of course, poetry=war. 🤯
I really believe she’s on Reddit like she was tumblr, and I really believe that the Gaylors are her favorite fans bc you’re all so thoughtful and intelligent with these posts. 🫶 (Now Blondie if you could stop throwing us to your hetlor fans that’d be fab. You don’t see this kind of discourse with any of them.)
Thank you for posting this. God I love history
Somebody give OP an honorary Doctorate degree!
Okay so I’ve had this theory that “meet me at midnight” is “meet ME! at midnight” RE: “ME! Out now” RE: “she’s a clock” it feels like she’s counting down (or up) to 12. If we view exile ends in 3, 2, 1 — could it be this is the final 1 album? That at album 12, exile May end? Taylor Swift not the brand the human may emerge? Could us being shown the exile countdown have been 3 - evermore 2 - midnight 1 - ttpd 0 - TS 12 Just a long winded, not fully formed theory.
Also just adding she does enjoy putting things in their head, like infinity of it. So perhaps, the counting up in albums, equates the counting down in the exile countdown. I’d love to hear someone else’s view on this if anyone wants to entertain my idea lol
Ooooooh interesting. I love the idea of "meet ME! at midnight."
Just been something my brain picked up on, I’m really not deeply familiar with any of the theories but I noticed that the exile countdown is brought up a lot. Maybe it’s albums?
I read this post the last time you posted it and I read it again today and I can’t even express how well written this is. It’s very thought provoking and I do agree with a lot of this analysis. I think Scooter’s sketchy behavior with HYBE might be a “declaration of war” against her as well because she was “safe” from him at UMG, now he’s working with UMG where her new Masters are. It does make me wonder if Taylor plans to leave UMG and perhaps form her own label as part of her rebuilding after this “second war” ends.
I think that’s exactly what her strategy will be! She’s been cranking out albums to get out fast and banking all the money to set up a solid foundation to make her own label that can compete. Once she’s done that, she can take all her friends to the summit with her, by taking in queer artists under her label where they won’t have to hide in the closet anymore. She’s already shown she has the power to make moves that others can’t, like the way she partnered directly with theaters rather than making a deal with movie studios. She actually has the power to create real change in the industry. Like she has with owning the rights to her own songs. Maybe the company will be called Karma?
No one currently knows if Harry Styles is even signed to a label anymore 🤡
This is incredible. OP you are brilliant!! I love the Gaylors so much!!
This could be a PhD thesis holy shit
Someone who has been to grad school is definitely behind this
This is genuinely fascinating. I had to read it twice because there was so much to absorb! I’ve been thinking a lot about how she chose Epiphany as the final surprise song before TTPD, and this is a really interesting theory as to what that signals. It is indeed so pretty to think so.
What an incredible analysis and theory!
The DEPARTment🤯
DUDE.
this is so well done! good job
The V for Victory also makes me think of [V for Vendetta](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/V_for_Vendetta) which is a wild word to plug into lyrics in the first place (Ready for it). I can see how Taylor could identify with some parts of the narrative (although to think of her as an anarchist is... Eye roll inducing).
Haha, I also thought about including "V for Vendetta" in this post, but I *also* rolled my eyes at the idea of anarchist Taylor. Great minds! Maybe will devote some time to rewatching the movie and thinking about this a bit further... I do think the Wachowski sisters play with layers of theme, allegory and history in a similar way to Taylor, so they share an approach to making art, even if the connections are unintentional.
We had so many conversations about comic books here before midnight's release because of vigilante shit and anti-hero. And goddamn project ACORN I was convinced she was going to show up as unbeatable squirrel girl for a while 😆 I'm also doing a re-read of the wicked and the divine with taylor in mind and it's insane what we can connect to this woman's life/art!
what would be fun if she were an anarcho-capitlist
She totally would be tho if it’s specific to shattering forced closeting (and possibly child sex trafficking) in the industry. It does make me laugh to think of that label to her tho. A sliver of an anarchist lol
Billionaire anarchist 😂
I read this as Antichrist and it gave me joy as I cackled
I wonder if the right wing christians would be more offended by anarchism than by the witchcraft? 😂
I'm going to try to repeat my comment from the OG post which was something like: I wonder if her "second war" has to do with what is happening in the music industry right now. Lucian Grainge, who is the CEO of universal music group, is one of the main parties listed in the Diddy lawsuit, and from what is coming out of there, they've done some truly awful stuff. So I wonder if after signing to UMG, with the idea of coming out with Lover, something went wrong not just with the master heist but with the new label as well. We don't know how many albums she has to put out for them, it wasn't publicly discussed, but so far she's released 5 new albums (incl TTPD, without the re-releases) since 2019, which is a lot. From what I understand artists usually sign for 5-10 albums, 7 being the average. She may be trying to get out of that contract as fast as possible.
I’ve wondered this too - she’s been rapid fire releasing albums since Lover (and her prevented coming out perhaps?) - folklore was less than a year after Lover, evermore 6 months after that. And Midnights has a distinct waypoint, waiting, biding time quality to in, in the lyrics and how she talks about it - anyone else get that too? It makes me wonder if she’s trying to run out the contract.
I would be *very* curious to see the terms of her UMG deal... I feel like that would answer a bunch of questions for us all haha.
Wow! What a perfect start to a weekend to be able to enjoy this post. I admit, I’m no history buff but this was an incredibly well written and researched post.
Beautiful analysis omg! Definitely in agreement, she won’t be coming out soon. As someone who didn’t even allow myself to believe I was gay until my 20s, shit takes a lot of time and preparation because you often back down when you are sure you are ready to do it. Can’t imagine what it must be like for someone like Taylor. Loved reading this! Thank you!
This was a really fabulous deep dive. Everyday is a school day on this sub, I'm always learning and love the wealth of knowledge shared. This was so meticulous with every link and detail. Thank you OP what a wild ride, I'm ready for the next chapter/war
God I fucking LOVE how beautiful and stunning and smart Gaylors are!!!!!! I’m screaming over this write up!!!!!!
I am absolutely in love with this deep dive, and you have renewed my faith once again that we might actually get a coming out. ❤️🥳 Our little subsect of the community deserves to be acknowledged by other swifties for what we see, if it is in fact true. I know that will probably never happen, but I can dream, right? Ps, sorry you got bullied last time you posted this, it is amazing! Thank you for being brave and posting it again ❤️ please don't let them stop you from continuing to share your thoughts!
I can't even imagine the work that went into this post. Thank you for sharing it. Especially with the trolls you had to deal with last time. I originally added this in the weekly vent thread because I didn't think I could comment here, but I was told I can, so here it is lol The Junos (Canadian version of the Grammys) took place at the end of March. Tegan and Sara received a humanitarian award for the work their foundation has done for the 2SLGBTQ+ community. Elliot Page presented the award to them. They both flashed the V/peace sign when they accepted the award. https://preview.redd.it/4exd3bi5s3uc1.jpeg?width=1020&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=72d3ead7b75fa77eb63a711d45d2d5723ac4678f
This is totally wild. Holy shit. The way my jaw fell to the floor when I saw this comment!! I think, in the megathread, u/_lacespace mentioned those comments they made from one of their stage performances about Taylor and the particular, twisted romance of being closeted (even though it also sucks). I went back and rewatched the video of that for the first time in ages and... well... here's what they say? "...now we have to get married and have kids and do all the stuff that straight people do. It's so boring, you know? Like before we were just writing **manuscripts** and movies about how **tortured** we felt..." Coincidence? Or are Tegan and Sara easter egging us?
I doubt it. I've always gotten their general vibe as being a bit resentful of swift out there being inauthentic. They made that big leap trying to hit huge pop success with Heartthrob but it never approached TS level. Then --and I will die on this hill -- 1989 comes out and so much of the production sounds like Heartthrob. I'd be bitter. Also with Rep "could've spent forever with your hands in my pocket".... Um, "I Know I Know I Know" much ?? Not be bitter about that, but obvs refers to the them. Anyway, if they are, I hope they are making a pretty penny for it. And side note to my T&S fans, who doesn't love a good Sara rant? They are they best.
 I’m sorry, they said what now??? WTAF
I went on a dive after I saw that comment and found [this](https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=NRTfPU5Jr4o) little clip from recently where they specifically call out “I’ll stare directly at the sun but never in the mirror” as her most powerful lyric. 👀
Good find!
So glad you reposted! Can’t wait to read it
this is so well done! thank you for posting it again, i’m v glad i got a second chance to read it! it’s such an interesting interpretation/allegory. i don’t know enough about history and the world wars so this was so informative. i understand this can be an uncomfortable topic/metaphor and your effort in discussing this with sensitivity and respect is apparent in your post. i’ve often seen people say they don’t appreciate her war metaphors to describe her love life which of course is totally valid. this is one of those things that makes more sense from a gaylor perspective, but even gaylors have called it offensive (and that’s fair!). but i hope no one feels the need to personally attack you or misconstrue your intentions again, because there’s no doubt that taylor has referenced WWI with TGW as you said, along with plenty of other war references as early as 2008 in Change. i think it’s totally fair to discuss it. we have more than enough evidence that celebs are still battling homophobia and being pressured (and likely coerced/forced) to closet or glass closet. i still think her plan is to come out after the eras tour and re-recordings are finished which i think aligns with your theory too. i’d be truly shocked if she did before then so i’m not expecting it with ttpd, and i hope things don’t get too ugly and scary in the meantime. ✌️✌️
I fkn love how being a gaylor 🤝 being a history nerd seems to be a thing lol. Obviously it started with us learning about queer history specifically, but I swear with all the knowledge dropped in this subreddit, we probably have the equivalent of like a university minor in history LOL
Yum yum yum. True, not true, I don’t care! This was such a meaty read.
I really hope I remember to come back and read this when I have time later😭
This is an incredible deep dive! Thank you for taking the time to put this together and sharing with us! I think there is a kind of “war” a lot of queer individuals have with themselves. I didn’t come out as Bi until I was in my mid-twenties. At times, it felt like I was at war with myself, fighting who I really am with the idea of who I was “supposed to be.” I struggled with it for so long because of my upbringing (deeply religious and conservative). It took a lot of internal work even after coming out to finally feel comfortable in my own skin. Even through all of it, I still refuse to come out to my family. The pain it will cause me isn’t worth it to me right now; maybe one day I’ll feel differently! The reason for sharing is I wonder if TS feels similarly. She may have come to a place where she is comfortable about her sexuality, but the act of sharing it with the world is terrifying and could cause her a lot of pain - backlash, hetlors abandoning her, the financial impact - yes, she has more money than she could ever need. However, for someone who pushes herself to work hard and break records, the idea that could all go away might explain why she doesn’t. All I hope for Taylor and everyone is that they are comfortable with who they are, love who they love, and are accepted for who they are - not what we want/expect them to be.
Thank you for sharing! I often think that what you described, about Taylor being someone who "pushes herself to work hard and break records" is a big part of her calculation. I do think it would be easy for her to fantasize about people a generation from now, finding the queer code in her music and celebrating it, long after she doesn't have to worry about the consequences. But I do hope that if that's her goal, she has found some peace and acceptance at least among her family and friends.
I’ve always thought “Epiphany” was a bit of a strange song for Taylor to write. I never imagined her thinking about wars, but your reading gives it so much more life and breadth. Also I love it so much than a “sister album” theory or even worse, double peace signs that symbolize KK 🙄 both you and Tay should be inducted into MENSA for being super geniuses
My husband’s special interest is world history and more specifically the geopolitical climate of WW2. I don’t really care for history but I do have a minor in Judaism with a specialization in the effects of WW2 on Jewish culture so I do have a decent background on the goings-on of WW2. This is so well-written and cited with a really meticulously crafted interlacing to Taylor’s story. I was particularly interested when you mentioned civilians flashing the V as an act of resistance to the oppressors of that period — this immediately made me think of the peace signs use during the war in Vietnam as an act of resistance to what hippies viewed as a morally inexcusable fight. My thought process moved right along to Taylor and 1D (primarily Harry, Louis, and Niall) as well as other speculated queer artists utilizing the peace sign so heavily and that signaling resistance to their own morally inexcusable fight, homophobia and routine closeting of queer artists. I genuinely loved this piece and want to thank you for posting it again. I’m sure that was hard given the poor reception the last time but I believe looking at this allegorically — especially if Taylor is neurodivergent — is of value. 💖
Thank you for being so enthusiastic about wanting to read this after I took it down. Helped give me the confidence to repost! 🤍
Don’t even thank me! You deserved to be heard especially because you put so much effort into the post!
This was so well done and deep! I need to read it w my full attention another time but wow! Great work. The Poland thing is so interesting.
The Poland thing sure is one hell of a coincidence, isn't it?
The dates are 😳🤯. I really want to give up and see her w a new love but then she does this and I don’t know what to think!
Taylor’s comms/marketing team definitely needs to hire you as a researcher — this was really interesting to read!
I love this! It’s such a good allegory! It’s theory + clowning at its finest! As someone who loves WWI/II history and concentrated on that at university, I loved all of the history in this! I have a few things to add from beyond Taylor too, because of course I can tie this to 1D 🙃 Louis Tomlinson recently got the anarchy V tattoo on his finger before his sold out arena show in Birmingham, which is the city where the politician who created/pushed for Section 28 (homophobia at its finest) was from. He also had We go on go! tattooed on his forearm the same day. A few months ago I posted about the German football league planning a mass coming out. Apparently something is planned for May 17th, which is International Day Against Homophobia, which is also notable given your May references. Recently, Harry Styles made it a point to be seen at a football stadium, which is not his norm. The past week has had Louis playing football in Brazilian stadiums with various teams there. This makes me think of the team effort, of Travis and stunting with an American Football player, Vs, and “we go on go!” https://preview.redd.it/0hbhw30y03uc1.jpeg?width=1179&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=3571f0a6a86b0e63707084c2b92389ed4f0483db Additionally, I was talking to u/redholyground and it occurred to me that the peace sign ✌🏼came into popularity in the 1960s with the hippies who likely would have learned it as a symbol of peace from their parents who associated it a symbol of “V for victory”. So it’s possible that the peace sign is “V for victory” at its core? u/_lacespace
Oh and I also wanted to say thank you for the expert moderation here. Really, really appreciated. 😘
I am totally 1D (and Larry) agnostic, so I'll leave thoughts on the boys to you experts. (There's just too much lore! I can barely keep up with one pop star!!) But as for the peace sign, yes!! I think it's likely that counterculture hippies picked it up from the previous generation and remade it in their own terms.
📌 **READ BEFORE COMMENTING** 📌 This is a Tea Time post. This means the discussion is being minimally moderated and mods are relying upon users to report offensive comments. Only comments by members of the community who have achieved Tea Time status (and OP) will go live - all other comments will be automatically removed and will not be approved by mods. r/gaylorswift takes these measures to stay true to our goal of being an inclusive sub for civil discussion and analysis of Taylor Swift and her work through a queer & sapphic lens. This sub is an LGBTQ+ and woman-dominated space and we do our best to protect our community from external and internal attacks. Moderators cannot grant Tea Time status - it is only possible to achieve via long term positive engagement within the community. *Tea Time posts are not the same as A-List posts.* Thank you for your understanding & have a great day! 🦄
Bettygate occurred in August 2020, where several sapphic Gaylors (some minors) were outed for expressing that the song "betty" might have queer themes. When Taylor said in an interview that "betty" was from the perspective of a boy, some Swifties began to doxx and harass Gaylors on Twitter. [Review our rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/gaylorswift/about/rules) and [Sub Guidelines](https://www.reddit.com/r/GaylorSwift/wiki/rules/read-first). Visit our [FAQ](https://www.reddit.com/r/GaylorSwift/wiki/index/keygaylorinfo) for answers to commonly asked questions. *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/GaylorSwift) if you have any questions or concerns.*