Breaking Down Taylor Swift's Song "FORTNIGHT"

After weeks of listening to The Tortured Poets Department and analyzing Taylor Swift's choice for the album opener, I understand "Fortnight" as a song so much more. I wanted to sit down and do a deep dive into the song, with the historical and symbolic context in mind. Doing a lyrical analysis is such a good way to find that deeper meaning and there are so many metaphors and timelines to pick up on. Was the cheating a metaphor? Were they actually neighbors? Was it a literal two weeks or could some fortnights be bigger than other fortnights? Plus, I use images from the music video to fill in any gaps that we may have. I also touch on the concept of braided poetry and how various muses or emotions could be intertwined into many different songs on this album.
Of course, literature is so subjective and these are just my thoughts and ideas as I work to understand this song. The more information and context I have, the more the music resonates with me. So, my hope is that these videos can bring you more clarity when it comes to Taylor's music as well.
Thanks so much for watching! Let me know in the comments what you think of this video. I try to post every week so feel free to subscribe and join the fam! ♡♡♡
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[@ThePoeticApothecary]

How do you guys interpret this song!? I would love to know if we are on the same page here ☺

[@lygourd]

A lot of the stuff in your breakdown was really interesting, and I especially jibe with the braided poetry idea--I've been thinking that about Fortnight, The Black Dog, and some other TTPD songs since I first heard them! But for me one of the biggest themes in Fortnight (especially when the video is considered) is the fraught relationship between art and real life, especially for artists like Taylor Swift (and Clara Bow, who is visually referenced in the video and has a whole song on the album). To me, it seems like TS is grappling with the blurry line between the fictionalized versions of her life (whether media portrayals or her own music) and the way she experiences reality--the way they bleed into each other. In Clara Bow's case, she was thought to literally have gone insane over love. And I think a lot of Taylor's lyrics and visuals reference the fact that idealized or fantasy images of love sometimes have real effects on our relationships, either after the fact or even in the middle of them. The very title of the album seems to be about this issue: are we poets because we're tortured, or are we tortured because we're poets?

[@tiffanysd925]

❤❤❤❤❤❤

[@gerarddowd318]

So passionate, I hope people who have been skipping “Fortnight” will see your breakdown and revisit it! The song deserves it and so do you.

[@ThePoeticApothecary]

Awww thank you so much! I love this song so much more now that I understand it better. I hope this little deep dive can help others relate to it as well :)

[@ytuser392]

47:00 what if she is using the phrase "I love you" in a general sense, like all these "I love you" that I've said and that I've heard and the fact that I'm always in love with someone is ruining my life? Just a thought although I feel that the one you mentioned about her referencing the poem Matty posted might be pretty spot on! Also I think that the "there we were together" combined with "comment on my sweater" is a reference to the 1975 song When we are together, I don't know if you've listened to it! 🤍

[@ThePoeticApothecary]

I haven’t listened to much 1975 but I know they have a song called “she’s American” and this song is supposedly the death of the American dream and talks about another fortnight lost in America! Could be a connection there too!!

[@ytuser392]

@@ThePoeticApothecary I didn't know about that one! I have to go listen 🙂

[@loribrown9204]

I think this song is about Clara Bow