Taylor Swift: Today's Pop Culture Poet

"Clean" by Taylor Swift appears on the multiplatinum Grammy Album of the Year 1989. Despite the image that the media and general public have crafted for her, and the constant belittling and patronizing attitude towards her and her work, Swift is a brilliant and incomparable songwriter, and her six albums, the first two of which were written in high school, at our same age or younger, have been the poetry books to my life, and the lives of so many others, for the past nine years.

Clean utilizes two main extended metaphors throughout its lyrics - water and alcohol, both conveyed in the title alone.

The drought was the very worst
When the flowers that we'd grown together died of thirst
It was months and months of back and forth
You're still all over me like a wine-stained dress I can't wear anymore
Hung my head as I lost the war
And the sky turned black like a perfect storm

The abundant metaphors and similes in the first verse alone paint a vivid picture for listeners or readers. The drought is a metaphor for the downfall of her relationship, and the flowers signify their good relationship, which was failing because it wasn't being taken care of or fueled. This introduces the water metaphor that will continue throughout the song. The wine-stained dress image begins the alcohol metaphor. She can't get rid of him, and he's still stuck in her mind even though their relationship is over and there's nothing to be done about it. Losing the war means losing both the relationship she fought for and the voice inside her pushing her to hold on, no matter how bad the relationship was. A perfect storm is a rare circumstance that produces drastic change - letting go changed her drastically. In just the first six lines, the audience develops such a strong visceral reaction to the feelings she's describing through her imagery.

Then, the chorus hits.

Rain came pouring down
When I was drowning, that's when I could finally breathe
And by morning, gone was any trace of you
I think I am finally clean

The rain and water imagery/metaphor is now in full force. Water is cleansing, and refreshing after the drought Swift previously described. In the midst of letting go of her past, she felt strong emotions (the rain/drowning) but they helped get a toxic ex out of her system and wash her clean.
Just when you thought it couldn't get any better, here comes verse two:

There was nothing left to do
When the butterflies turned to dust, they covered my whole room
So I punched a hole in the roof
Let the flood carry away all my pictures of you
The water filled my lungs
I screamed so loud, but no one heard a thing

The butterflies refer to the giddy, nervous excitement you feel in the beginning, honeymoon phase of a relationship, but for Swift, the butterflies are now gone. They're merely dust or fragile broken remnants that are consuming her life.  Punching a hole in the roof is a metaphor and hyperbole of an outburst of anger, leading to freedom. The water metaphor continues with the flood. Washing away the pictures signifies Swift finally being cleansed of painful memories and refusing to cling to the long gone good times. The water filling her lungs and screaming so loud lines could mean she was crying for help but it was going unnoticed, or it could mean that through all of the pain, she kept it together and maintained her cool in the face of endless publicity and media attention - the world, with a constant eye on her, couldn't even tell she was suffering.

And then the bridge comes at us, like a punch to the gut:

Ten months sober, I must admit
Just because you're clean don't mean you don't miss it
Ten months older, I won't give in
Now that I'm clean, I'm never gonna risk it

This bridge to end all bridges (it's even more incredible if you just listen to the song) ties up the alcohol metaphor perfectly, discussing the literal aches and withdrawals that come from becoming sober, but also meaning the aches and withdrawals that come from losing a relationship and moving on without it. Ten months has gone by since she let go of this person, and despite the withdrawals that she sometimes feels, she's not going to relapse. This entire song is showing us through vivid images and comparisons what grieving a lost love is like. There is no telling, nothing is straightforward or easy, but gets the point across so effectively. I feel the tightening in my lungs and the freedom of fresh air every time I listen to it.

Say what you want about Taylor Swift, but I could analyze any one of her songs like I just did, and I guarantee you will see how it's poetry. This song saved my life. It was exactly what I needed when I was going through the worst period of my life, and I honestly believe that I would not be the person I am today if I hadn't screamed the words to the song with 50,000 others at Soldier Field, tears streaming down my face. If you have a minute and want your heart to be broken and put back together all at the same time, watch the Clean tour speech. She gave a version of this speech at every show on her 1989 tour, and the iconic Clean speech is a Swiftie staple. I will cry every time.

I bet nobody read this far, but like, your loss.