As students sporting friendship bracelets and Taylor Swift merchandise filter into a Stevenson Hall classroom the album folklore plays softly in the background. This isn’t a Taylor Swift fan club meeting—at least not officially. It’s an Honors Exploration course about Taylor Swift’s lyricism. Are you ready for it?*
Co-taught by sophomore Gracyn Cordes and Department of English Instructional Assistant Professor Heidi Bowman, The Eras of Taylor Swift course focuses on analyzing the different eras of Taylor Swift’s extensive music career.
Taylor Swift has become one of the most successful artists of all time. She recently made history as the first performer to win the Grammy Award for album of the year four times, and was named Time Magazine’s 2023 Person of the Year. Her Eras Tour has boosted economies in each place she’s visited, and she’s cemented her position in history as a master storyteller through her lyrics and performances.
Honors Exploration courses are one of the Honors Learning Experiences options available to students in the Honors Program. These courses are five weeks and focus on niche topics. In the past, there have been courses about making coffee, horror movies, social justice, and more.
Inspired by this love* of Taylor Swift, Cordes was the mastermind* behind this course. She originally came up with the concept in her freshman Honors English class taught by Bowman.
“I saw other colleges starting to come out with classes about Taylor Swift, so I decided to make my own as the final project for my class,” said Cordes. “It was originally a 16-week course with a full syllabus, quizzes, and activities all about Taylor Swift. After the semester ended, Professor Bowman reached out and suggested we propose it as topic for an Honors Exploration course. We submitted a proposal, and it was accepted!”
It’s safe to say there was a lot of excitement about The Eras of Taylor Swift course amongst Honors students. Swift consistently ranks as the most popular artist among incoming Redbirds, and over 100 students marked the course as their top choice for an Honors Exploration course. So, you could say it’s been a long time coming.*
The final class roster of 25 students is a mix of “mega-Swifties” who have listened to Taylor Swift since they were kids, and “Swifties-in-training” who have recently started listening to her music or only listened to the popular songs.
Self-identified “mega-Swiftie” Emily Mepham was so excited when the Honors Exploration topics were announced that she was the first person to submit her interest form. She never thought in her wildest dreams* that Illinois State would have a class like this one. Her excitement hasn’t waned since the class began.
“I like to pick my bracelets and my outfit based on what album we’re going over that day,” said Mepham. “It’s fun to dress up and get excited about the albums we’re discussing.”
Not only does Mepham come to class in style,* she also films TikToks for each class that explain how her outfit ties into the albums the class is discussing and the class activities.
The energy in the classroom is encouraging, and you won’t find anyone telling a classmate “you need to calm down.”* Mepham is enchanted* by the class discussions and getting to hear other perspectives and interpretations of songs.
“We talk more than a regular class because everyone interprets her songs a different way, and everyone wants to talk about their favorite lyric or song,” said Mepham. “We’re all passionate about this topic, so the dynamic is really fun. I always end up talking to someone after class, just about something random that Taylor did that week or our favorite songs.”
Class discussions often go beyond discussing personal takes on the song. During one class, the students broke up into groups for a scavenger hunt activity in search of metaphors, references to literature, use of imagery, and more.
For junior marketing major Lisa Stromberger, navigating this labyrinth* of an activity was her favorite moment in the class so far.
“It was fun to work in groups to look at all the songs on those albums because everyone had different ideas,” said Stromberger. “There were so many different lyrics that could apply to each clue, like the question that asked us to find a historical reference, so it was really cool to see all the lyrics my group members thought of that I had never connected. It gave me a lot more insight into lyrics that I didn’t notice before.”
As co-teachers, Cordes and Bowman’s backgrounds complement each other in the classroom.
“Gracyn has the Taylor Swift knowledge and I have the classroom knowledge,” said Bowman. “My role is to get everybody involved with classroom activities, sending out relevant articles, and posting discussions. Gracyn has the song knowledge and helps everyone understand what is being said in discussions. I’m in awe of how much she knows.”
Delaney Ryan, a junior English education major, saw sparks fly* during class discussions and was inspired to use a similar approach in her future career as a teacher.
“There’s so much that you can pull from music in general, not even just Taylor Swift,” said Ryan. “There’s so much to learn, especially from a literary standpoint, and it brings a whole new meaning to engaging in the classroom. It’s made me think forward to when I’m a high school English teacher, because this could be a cool way to get kids to interact in class and engaged in what they’re learning.”
As the five-week class wraps up, Bowman hopes that students are fearless* in pursuing their passions.
“Taylor has always said that she would still do songwriting even if she wasn’t famous or getting all these awards because it’s her passion,” said Bowman. “I’m hoping that students will continue to pursue their own passions, like Taylor does. We might not all be super famous pop stars, but there is something to be said for following your heart and doing what you love.”
This article was written by a “mega-Swiftie” who incorporated song titles and lyrics throughout indicated by an asterisk.* Did you notice them? All you had to do was stay* through the end to get them all!
