Taking a look at Taylor Swift’s discography, it’s very clear that she loves The Great Gatsby, and can you blame her? The Great Gatsby takes a look at one of the most interesting and exciting eras in American History, the Jazz Age, as F. Scott Fitzgerald himself puts it. But, it’s more commonly referred to as the Roaring ’20s, a time of wild parties, romanticism, flashy cars, and controversy, at least for the disgustingly rich. Even today, a century later, the excitement of the Roaring ’20s captivates audiences. Many of the themes still resonate today, particularly in celebrity culture. Taylor Swift, besides being disgustingly rich, captures the spirit of The Great Gatsby wonderfully. She has a reputation larger than herself, an ambition geared towards the pursuit of romance, and has been known to throw some pretty cool parties.
There are honestly so many Taylor Swift songs that could relate to this novel (some intentional and some not), but the song that truly stuck out to me is “mirrorball,” possibly because I, myself, am a “mirrorball” girl through and through.
Anyways, here’s a few lyrics that come to mind.
I want you to know I’m a mirrorball. I can change everything about me to fit in.
mirrorball, folklore (2020)
Besides the obvious connection, the use of mirrorballs typically being at parties and Gatsby’s parties being one of the main settings for the novel, I also want to think about the metaphor of the mirrorball itself. The mirrorball represents individuals who mirror others in order to be liked by them.
An important aspect of The Great Gatsby is Jay Gatsby, the concept versus James Gatz, the person. Similar to this lyric, Jay Gatsby did, in fact, change everything about himself to be accepted by his affluent peers, but more importantly, he did this in hopes of winning back the love of Daisy, the love of his life.
Shining just for you.
mirrorball, folklore (2020)
What I love about this song is that despite how simple it may seem on the surface, there is just so much truth and layers to the experience she’s capturing. This idea of “shining” for one person may be considered a cliche, but again, we have to focus on the mirrorball, the key metaphor. A mirrorball technically shines for the enjoyment of everyone present, so by calling herself a mirrorball, she is saying that she’s aware of her glamourous nature as the Taylor Swift, but for her, it’s all for the hope of being noticed, even if just for a moment and even if just superficially, by the love interest, and this is pretty much what The Great Gatsby is about.
Whether you consider it romantic heroism or selfish obsessiveness, Jay Gatsby buys the mansion across the bay and throws the extravagant parties, not so that he can watch Daisy, but in hopes that Daisy may someday watch him. This revelation is shocking on your first read because of the magnitude of the “great” Jay Gatsby, and it’s almost a little sad to discover that lengths he would go to be seen. Still, we, the reader, can relate to this just as we can relate to mirrorball; it’s sad but kinda real when you think about it.
And I’m still a believer, but I don’t know why. I’ve never been a natural; all I do is try try try.
mirrorball, folklore (2020)
Finally, I think the connection between Jay Gatsby as a character and the song “mirrorball” ties nicely together with this lyric. Again, whether romanitc or creepy, Jay Gatsby pined after Daisy for years with the belief that he would have her love someday. Jay Gatsby was far from a natural, crafting this persona and lifestyle out of a desire to be more than James Gatz could ever be. When he fell for Daisy, he took this even further, trying and trying again to be someone she could want. The painful reality is that even though it’s true he captured her attention for a moment, the way we may look up and notice a mirrorball for a moment, it wasn’t enough for a true and meaningful relationship. (Also, she literally was married and had a child lol).
And when Jay Gatsby stops throwing the parties and being the perfect image of 1920s high American society, the thing everyone expect him to be, he loses everyone else as well.
So…yeah! RIP James Gatz, you would’ve loved Taylor Swift!