![]() ![]() In "Timeless," Swift sings about a special kind of love, "the kind you don't put down." She describes Emma in the same terms: "She's the kind of book that you can't put down." "When Emma Falls In Love" also contains a lyrical connection to "Timeless," a barefaced love song that also remained in the vault until Swift rerecorded "Speak Now." It's the classic "do I want to be her or be with her?" dilemma faced by many queer women, whether it's born from naivete, denial, or fear.Īmong many compliments, Swift describes Emma as "so New York." The city appears many times throughout Swift's catalog, usually to represent a feeling of freedom and individuality, as in her song "Welcome to New York" ("Everybody here was someone else before / And you can want who you want / Boys and boys and girls and girls").Įmma's New York attitude is juxtaposed with Los Angeles, which Swift seems to associate with pageants and pretense, as in "'Tis the Damn Season" ("So I'll go back to LA / And the so-called friends who'll write books about me if I ever make it"). ![]() ![]() The palpable awe and affection in Swift's observations about Emma ("All the bad boys would be good boys / If they only had a chance to love her") suggest there may be a deeper layer to their relationship.Īlthough platonic love between friends can be extremely powerful, this can also be read as sapphic yearning that's been sublimated into envy (it's a very short leap from "I wish I was hers" to "I wish I was her"). Rather, it centers the intimacy shared by two women. "When Emma Falls In Love" is the 18th track on "Speak Now (Taylor's Version)."Īs the title suggests, "When Emma Falls In Love"is a song about watching a friend fall in love with someone else.Ĭuriously, however, the song does not focus on Emma's male love interest (the "boy with eyes like a man" isn't even mentioned until the third verse). Notably, those fathers are mentioned in the first two verses but absent in the final chorus, when Swift recounts Mary's wedding. Their relationship is defined by fate, but also by disbelief: "Our daddies used to joke about the two of us / They never believed we'd really fall in love." This could point to attraction that breaks with convention, or a fantasy tinged with the fear of familial rejection. Swift seems to narrate the story from Mary's perspective, opening with a female pronoun: "She said, I was 7 and you were 9 / I looked at you like the stars that shined."īecause the other half of the couple is neither named nor gendered in the lyrics, Swift seems to fill the role herself, as if she and Mary share these intimate memories ("Our very first fight," "Our favorite spot in town"). "Mary's Song (Oh My My My)" was apparently inspired by a couple who lived next door to Swift's family while she was growing up. "Mary's Song (Oh My My My)" is the 10th track on "Taylor Swift." Account icon An icon in the shape of a person's head and shoulders. ![]()
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