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67 afleveringen, van nieuw naar oud
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The Cinematic Imagery of Father Figure
30 oktober 2025 · 1 uur 6 min
Step into our office and leave it with us. We protect the family! Join us as we walk through Father Figure from The Life of a Showgirl. Uncle Jerry gives his theories on the inspiration for the song, including many different movies, and Angela works out where she thinks the narrator changes mid-track. Lees meer
Pour yourself some brown liquor and you won’t be sleeping with the fishes.
Works Cited:
A Star is Born – All Versions Ranked
All About Eve (1950)
Goodfellas (1990)
The Godfather (1972)
The Freshman (1990)
Ragged Dick: The 1868 Classic Rags to Riches Tale – Horatio Alger – Affiliate Link
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The Reinterpretation of The Fate of Ophelia
23 oktober 2025 · 1 uur 19 min
We have officially entered our Showgirl era, and we’re kicking it off with The Fate of Ophelia. Uncle Jerry teaches us all about Ophelia’s role in Hamlet, one of the Ophelia paintings Taylor may have drawn inspiration from, and a couple of feminist critics’ takes on Ophelia. Lees meer
We then get into the song, Angela weaves in a few nuggets of Tay-lore, and they round it out by discussing the feminist issues with the track, watching the music video and listening to the voice memo of the writing of the song.
Works Cited:
Hamlet – William Shakespeare – Affiliate Link
What are Foil Characters?
Representing Ophelia: Women, Madness, and the Responsibilities of Feminist Criticism – Elaine Showalter
Hearing Ophelia: Gender and Tragic Discourse in "Hamlet" – Sandra K. Fischer
Desolation Row – Bob Dylan
The Story of Ophelia – The Tate
Pre-Raphaelite Women – Jan Marsh
Dante Gabriel Rossetti – Ash Russell
The Essential Pre-Raphaelites – Lucinda Hawksley – Aff Link
The Language of Flowers – Margaret Pickston – Aff Link
The Country Diary of an Edwardian Lady – Edith Holden – Aff Link
The King’s Two Bodies – Ernst Kantorowicz – Aff Link
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The Sensory Imagery of Maroon
16 oktober 2025 · 53 min
We are wiping the incense dust off the shelf and picking ourselves up off the floor with Maroon this week. This Midnights track from 2022 is full of imagery, senses, colors, and so much more. Uncle Jerry also surprises us all with an interpretation from left field, which allows Angela the space to explain a specific sect of swifties. Lees meer
Enjoy!
Works Cited:
Richard Wright – Black American novelist
Parallelism in Literature
Robert Frost – The Road Not Taken
Robert Frost – Stopping By Woods on a Snowy Evening
Lawrence Ferlinghetti – American Beat poet
Gregory Corso – American Beat poet
Jack Kerouac – American Beat poet
On The Road – Jack Kerouac
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The Growth and Healing of Clean
9 oktober 2025 · 48 min
We’re coming down from our Showgirl high, and taking it back to 1989 this week. Uncle Jerry takes us through Clean, and breaks down the metaphors and themes found in the poem, including addiction, healing, personal growth, and personal agency. Lees meer
He also asks Angela who this song was inspired by, and admits that he’s now wondering about that in all of these songs. :)
There are links below to (most of!) the recommended literature from the episode. Some links are affiliate links, which means if you click and purchase, we will make a small commission at no cost to you.
Works Cited:
Metaphors We Live By – George Lakoff and Mark Johnson
The Great War and Modern Memory – Paul Fussell
Not Waving but Drowning – Stevie Smith
Afterwards – Sara Teasdale
After Love – Sara Teasdale
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BONUS: The Release Party of A Showgirl Recap
7 oktober 2025 · 28 min
The Swiftie and The Scholar took a field trip to the movie theater this weekend to hang out with Taylor and the Swifties! This was Uncle Jerry's first in-person swiftie experience, and he gives us his thoughts, along with his first impressions of a few of the new tracks. Lees meer
Angela gives her first impressions on the album and discusses which songs the podcast will cover first.
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Answering Your Questions - Volume 1
2 oktober 2025 · 58 min
In this episode, Uncle Jerry and Angela get caught up on the latest Swiftie news, including the engagement and The Release Party of a Showgirl, and then they get into answering your questions from Instagram and TikTok. We cover poetry curriculum, how to get into scholarly pursuits, how Angela convinced Uncle Jerry to do the podcast, and how we select which songs we cover. Lees meer
There are links below to (most of!) the recommended literature from the episode. Some links are affiliate links, which means if you click and purchase, we will make a small commission at no cost to you.
Works Cited:
i carry your heart with me – e.e. cummings
Epithalamion – Edmund Spenser
The Hornblower Series – C.S. Forester
Mr. Midshipman Hornblower (Book 1) – C.S. Forester
African Queen – C.S. Forester
The Good Shepherd – C.S. Forester
2001: A Space Odyssey – Arthur C. Clarke
Stranger in a Strange Land Paperback – Robert A. Heinlein
The Little Prince – Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
The Oxford Book of Modern Verse – W.B. Yeats
The Oxford Book of English Verse – Christopher Ricks
The Norton Anthology of American Literature – Robert S. Levine
E. E. Cummings: Complete Poems, 1904–1962
The Collected Poems of Wallace Stevens: The Corrected Edition
Leaves of Grass – Walt Whitman
Metaphors We Live By – George Lakoff and Mark Johnson
Twenty Love Poems and a Song of Despair – Pablo Neruda
The Poet and His Book: The Collected Poems of Edna St. Vincent Millay
The Complete Poems of Emily Dickinson
The Complete Poems: Anne Sexton
The Penguin Anthology of Twentieth-Century American Poetry Paperback – Rita Dove
American Poetry: The Twentieth Century, Volume 1: Henry Adams to Dorothy Parker – Robert Hass
The Oxford Book of American Short Stories – Joyce Carol Oates
A Cool Million Paperback – Nathanael West
Lucky Jim Paperback – Kingsley Amis
Cold Comfort Farm Paperback – Stella Gibbons
Bleak House – Charles Dickens
The Old Curiosity Shop – Charles Dickens
Nicholas Nickleby – Charles Dic…
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The Many Literary Themes of All Too Well
25 september 2025 · 1 uur 51 min
Come walk through the door with us, cause the air is getting cooooold. Our 10th episode is here, and we were hoping you had 10 minutes to spare for this one. Lees meer
We are digging deep into the All Too Well universe, and Uncle Jerry compares both the original version and the 10 minute version, what he thinks about the lyrics that were redacted for the edited version, and Taylor Swift’s masterful use of metaphor and other literary devices in every line of this song.
Works Cited:
The Prelude – William Wordsworth – Affiliate Link
Orality and Literacy – Walter J. Ong – Aff Link
Birches – Robert Frost
Mending Wall – Robert Frost
Metaphors We Live By – George Lakoff and Mark Johnson – Aff Link
In Just – Spring – e.e. Cummings
Poetry – Nikki Giovanni
Let me not to the marriage of true minds (Sonnet 116) – William Shakespeare
A Rose for Emily – William Faulkner
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The Rhythmic Power of Champagne Problems
18 september 2025 · 46 min
Dom Perignon, did you bring it? Lees meer
Today we’re toasting to Champagne Problems from Taylor Swift’s 2020 album, evermore. Uncle Jerry discusses the different meter used throughout the lyrics, and also wonders if there’s a deeper meaning with society’s expectations and the narrator’s autonomy throughout the story.
Angela brings up the Swiftie discussion about which word they’ll never say again, and they also tell the story of Uncle Jerry officiating Angela’s wedding.
Works Cited:
Night Train – Jimmy Forrest
Take the A Train – Duke Ellington
In Medias Res
Heart of Glass – Blondie
Iambic Pentameter
Trochee
Dactyl
Anapest Disnarration and the Unmentioned in Fact and Fiction – Marina Lambrou – Affiliate Link
Sociological Criticism
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The Self-Reflection of Getaway Car
11 september 2025 · 48 min
Today we’re putting the money in the bag and stealing the keys, and discussing Taylor Swift’s Getaway Car from 2017. This cult Swiftie fave is our first track from Reputation, and Angela chose it because she knew Uncle Jerry would love the Dickens reference in the first line. Lees meer
Watch as the duo dissects each line, and Uncle Jerry picks up on the self-reflection Taylor wrote into the song.
Works Cited:
A Tale of Two Cities – Charles Dickens – Affiliate Link
Shades of Gray – Carolyn Reeder – Aff Link
Nicholas Nickleby – Charles Dickens – Aff Link
Lexical Ambiguity
Getaway Car Shirt – Girl Tribe Co.
Writing BTS with Jack
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The Complex Poetics of So Long, London
4 september 2025 · 1 uur 4 min
Let's talk through So Long, London! Lees meer
In this episode of The Swiftie and The Scholar, Uncle Jerry and Angela dissect the poetic lyrics of the fifth track from Taylor Swift's 2024 album, The Tortured Poets Department.
They find tons of literary devices and references, and Uncle Jerry even makes another correct prediction on the song's intro.
Stay until the end to hear Uncle Jerry's grade for the song as a whole.
Works Cited:
Life of Johnson – James Boswell – Affiliate Link
Perrine’s Sound and Sense: An Introduction to Poetry – Aff Link
The Bells — Edgar Allan Poe
Ignis fatuus
Will-o’-the-wisp – Irish Folklore
Odd Man Out – 1947 film
The Bluest Eye – Toni Morrison – Aff Link
Lyric Video
Eras Tour Performance
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The Diction Study of Cold As You
28 augustus 2025 · 48 min
In this episode of The Swiftie and The Scholar, Angela and Uncle Jerry are taking it waaayyy back to 2006 with Taylor Swift’s first ever track 5, Cold As You. It might seem like a weird choice, but Angela wanted to present Uncle Jerry with some of Taylor’s earliest work so he could gain context around her growth as an artist over her entire career. Lees meer
Uncle Jerry finds a few redeeming qualities in the song, and together they explore other break-up poetry from the greats.
Works Cited:
Percy Bysshe Shelley
Modern Love: I – George Meredith Sonnet
It’s Not You, It’s Me – Jerry Williams – Affiliate Link
The Research Society for Victorian Periodicals
Rosemary VanArsdel Prize
Her Kind – Ann Sexton
Heavy – Mary Oliver
A Broken Appointment – Thomas Hardy
The Complete Poems of Emily Dickinson – Aff Link
Heart! We will forget him! – Emily Dickinson
I held a Jewel in my fingers – Emily Dickinson
Eras Tour Surprise Song — Houston
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The Indirect Characterization of Death By A Thousand Cuts
21 augustus 2025 · 44 min
In this episode of The Swiftie and The Scholar, Uncle Jerry and Angela analyze Death By A Thousand Cuts from Taylor Swift's 2019 album, Lover. Lees meer
Uncle Jerry finds literary devices aplenty in the lyrics, and discusses how she uses those devices to deftly handle the storytelling in the poem via indirect characterization.
They also discuss the roundabout inspiration of this song and the Swiftie tradition of friendship bracelets.
Works Cited:
A Midsummer Night’s Dream – Shakespeare – Affiliate Link
Lingchi
Death By A Thousand Cuts – Timothy Brook, Jérôme Bourgon, Gregory Blue – Aff Link
Mandarin Squares
Great Expectations — Charles Dickens – Aff Link
Kyn You Believe It — IDK Traffic Light
Anaphora
Indirect Characterization
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BONUS: Ramblings on The Life of A Showgirl
17 augustus 2025 · 29 min
In this bonus episode, Uncle Jerry and Angela discuss the excitement of the last week, including the cryptic Taylor Nation and New Heights posts, the countdowns, the new album announcement, and the two hour podcast episode heard 'round the world. Lees meer
Uncle Jerry teaches us a little bit about Ophelia and Hamlet to give some context around the album's opening track title, The Fate of Ophelia, and they discuss how Uncle Jerry got just a lilllll excited about the news.
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The Dramatic Monologue of Cowboy Like Me
14 augustus 2025 · 1 uur 4 min
In this episode of The Swiftie and The Scholar, Angela asks Uncle Jerry about his favorite music before they dive into cowboy like me from Taylor Swift’s 2020 album evermore. Lees meer
Uncle Jerry teaches us about the dramatic monologue and how Taylor uses this device in the song. They also talk about the use of cliches, indeterminate endings, and they discuss whether they think the couple in the song ends up together or not.
Works Cited:
Blondie
Stardust — Hoagy Carmichael
Georgia on my Mind — Hoagy Carmichael
Cantigas de Santa Maria
Cantiga
Medieval Babes
Pomplamoose
Pokey LaFarge
Gilbert and Sullivan
La Boheme
Tosca
Yeoman of the Guard
Pirates of Penzance
HMS Pinafore
In Medias Res
The Odyssey – Homer
Dramatic Monologue
My Last Duchess – Robert Browning
Porphyria's Lover – Robert Browning
The Most Dangerous Game – Richard Connell
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The Faith Crisis of Would've Could've Should've
7 augustus 2025 · 1 uur 11 min
In this episode of The Swiftie and The Scholar, Uncle Jerry and Angela dissect Would’ve Could’ve Should’ve from Taylor Swift’s 2022 album Midnights. They briefly discuss their own church connections, explore the various religious imagery and references used throughout the song, and come to understand that they relate to the song in similar but different ways. Lees meer
Uncle Jerry grades the song and brings in some poetry by Elizabeth Barrett Browning to round out his thoughts on the sadness of the track.
Works Cited:
Rhetorical Theory and Practice
Immortal Technique – Dance with the Devil
Love Story (1970 film)
Sonnets from the Portuguese – Elizabeth Barrett Browning – Affiliate Link
Les Miserables – Victor Hugo, Christine Donogher – Aff Link
The Legend of Rose Latulipe
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The Monstrous Femininity of Who's Afraid of Little Old Me?
31 juli 2025 · 1 uur 9 min
Uncle Jerry and Angela tackle Taylor Swift’s ‘Who’s Afraid of Little Old Me?’ in the second episode of The Swiftie and The Scholar. Uncle Jerry talks about his journey from hate to appreciation of this track, he introduces the concept of Monstrous Femininity, and they talk about the cultural image of the witch throughout history. Lees meer
Angela gives a (not so) brief look into her role as a Swiftie, and they watch and discuss both the lyric video and the Eras Tour performance of this TTPD track.
Works Cited:
Allen Ginsberg – Howl
Thomas Chatterton
Chatterton – Painting by Henry Wallis
Dylan Thomas – Do Not Go Gentle into That Good Night
Bohemian Coffee
Kurt Vonnegut, Jr.
Snoweylily – Who’s Afraid of Little Old Me?
To Kill a Mockingbird – Harper Lee – Affiliate Link
The Monstrous-Feminine – Barbara Creed – Affiliate Link
Who’s Afraid of Little Old Me? – Official Lyric Video
WAOLOM Performance – Eras Tour – 5/9/2024
Sounds Like a Cult – The Cult of Taylor Swift
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The Folklore Elements of My Tears Ricochet
24 juli 2025 · 52 min
In the debut episode of The Swiftie and The Scholar, Angela McDow, the Swiftie, and her uncle Dr. Jerry Coats, the Scholar, dig into My Tears Ricochet, the fifth track from Taylor Swift's Folklore album. Lees meer
They discuss the different folklore elements that Taylor uses in the song, the prevailing fan theory on the song's inspiration, and Uncle Jerry watches his first Eras Tour performance.
Works Cited:
The White Lady in Folklore
Morphology of the Folktale – V. Propp – Affiliate Link
Motif-Index of Folk-Literature; Volume 6.1 Index (A-K) – Stith Thompson – Aff Link
Motif-Index of Folk-Literature; Volume 6.1 Index (L-Z) - Stith Thompson – Aff Link
From the Beast to The Blonde – Marina Wariner
The Uses of Enchantment – Bruno Bettelheim – Aff Link
Yvonne Jocks - Goodreads
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