<aside> 💡 Analysis -
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<aside> 👂 Social Media Analysis Relating To This Theme:
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https://x.com/dorothea_pod/status/1777122496250003601?s=46
<aside> 👸 Relevance to Taylor’s Life: “Frozen at the age they get famous—and that’s kinda what happened to me” - Miss Americana Documentary quote
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<aside> 🌈 Queer History: It has been a common homophobic rhetoric to say to a young LGBTQ+ person that they’ll “grow out of it”. This sentiment is rebutted in girl in red’s song “girls” (2018): “no this is not a phase or a coming of age this will never change”. It’s interesting that Taylor uses this phrase on her 2020 record ‘folklore’ in the opening lyrics of ‘peace’: “our coming-of-age has come & gone/suddenly, this summer, it’s clear/I never had the courage of my convictions as long as danger’s near”. Whether Taylor intentionally wanted to nod to GIR here or just use a common phrase, this lyric (and the ones following it) could be interpreted as “I haven’t grown out of my sexuality, it’s clear that this is something that won’t be a phase but that is now part of my adult identity”
Some examples of proof that this is a common homophobic rhetoric are below:
In a guide for parents & caters of “what not to say” to their LGBTQ+ kids - https://thebeyouproject.co.uk/parents-carers-and-friends/
https://derrenbrown.co.uk/curing-gays/comment-page-2/
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<aside> ➕ See also: Her Childhood/Children/Girlhood/Child/Kid/Infant/Baby Frozen/Time Freezes/Stuck in time/Can't Grow/Time Stood Still/Peter Pan
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Oh, darlin', don't you ever grow up Don't you ever grow up Just stay this little Oh, darlin', don't you ever grow up Don't you ever grow up It could stay this simple
Wish I'd never grown up
I wish I'd never grown up
Oh, I don't wanna grow up
Wish I'd never grown up
Could still be little
Oh, I don't wanna grow up
Wish I'd never grown up
It could still be simple
cardigan - when you are young they assume you know nothing
Cardigan - Peter losing Wendy
Peace -
Our coming-of-age has come & gone, (we’re stuck young, haven’t grown up OR we’re not young anymore, we’re supposed to be mature now)
suddenly this summer it’s clear,
I never had the courage of my convictions (if I was brave I’d be able to do the thing that would mean we could grow up/stop being frozen in time, but I can’t?)
as long as danger’s near