Intertextuality Love Story Analysis

"Love Story"   

We were both young when I first saw you. 
I close my eyes and the flashback starts: 
I'm standing there on a balcony in summer air.  

See the lights, see the party, the ball gowns. 
See you make your way through the crowd 
And say, "Hello, "  Little did I know...  

That you were Romeo, you were throwing pebbles, 
And my daddy said, "Stay away from Juliet" 
And I was crying on the staircase 
Begging you, "Please don't go" 
And I said...  

Romeo, take me somewhere we can be alone. 
 I'll be waiting; all that's left to do is run. 
You'll be the prince and I'll be the princess, 
It's a love story, baby, just say, "Yes".  


So I sneak out to the garden to see you. 
We keep quiet 'cause we're dead if they knew 
So close your eyes... escape this town for a little while. 
Oh, oh.  


'Cause you were Romeo - I was a scarlet letter, 
And my daddy said, "Stay away from Juliet" 
But you were everything to me, 
I was begging you, "Please don't go" 
And I said...  

Romeo, take me somewhere we can be alone. 
I'll be waiting; all that's left to do is run. 
You'll be the prince and I'll be the princess. 
It's a love story, baby, just say, "Yes".  

Romeo, save me, they're trying to tell me how to feel. 
This love is difficult but it's real. 
Don't be afraid, we'll make it out of this mess. 
It's a love story, baby, just say, "Yes".  


 Oh, oh, oh.  


I got tired of waiting 
Wondering if you were ever coming around. 
My faith in you was fading 
When I met you on the outskirts of town. 
And I said...  

Romeo, save me, I've been feeling so alone. 
I keep waiting for you but you never come. 
Is this in my head? I don't know what to think. 
He knelt to the ground and pulled out a ring and said...  


Marry me, Juliet, you'll never have to be alone. 
I love you, and that's all I really know. 
I talked to your dad - go pick out a white dress 
It's a love story, baby, just say, "Yes".  

Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh.  


 'Cause we were both young when I first saw you 

In Taylor Swift's 'Love Story' the Shakespearean play of Romeo and Juliet is referred to throughout, through the video and vocals. It is titled 'Love Story' which relates to the play being known as the greatest love story ever told and being the most well-known love story in history. The video is done in a typical renaissance style, a common way of depicting Romeo and Juliet and correlates to the time period it is set in; this style can be shown through the use of mise-en-scene with large ball gowns and intricate stone architecture as the setting. The video references a well renown scene in the play called the 'Balcony Scene' where Juliet is stood on the balcony calling down to Romeo; having Taylor, the singer, on the balcony looking down upon a male love interest.

The famous balcony scene from 'Romeo and Juliet'

Taylor Swift on a balcony in 'Love Story'

The vocals also mentions parts of the story when Taylor states at the beginning of the song 'We were both young when I first saw you' this is alluding to the idea that Juliet was said to be 13, a young influential age, and Romeo's age was never mentioned however he is often referred to as 'Young Romeo', following the story of Romeo and Juliet. She also refers to the ball gowns, possibly linking to the Capulet Ball where Romeo and Juliet first meet and fall in love, the ball is also where the lovers meet in 'Love Story'. She also directly mentions the names Romeo and Juliet and how her father told him to 'stay away from Juliet' hinting to the feud between the Capulets and the Montagues and how any breach of the peace had dire consequences. In the play Romeo and Juliet ran away to get married together and in the song a recurring lyric is 'Romeo, take me somewhere we can be alone' and how 'all that's left to do is run' suggesting that they want to run away to live their lives together.

Taylor Swift and Male love interest at a ball, resembling the Capulet Ball from Romeo and Juliet where they first meet.

Taylor sings the line 'so I sneak out to the garden to see you' applying to the fact that Romeo and Juliet often met up secretively in order to be together against the wishes of their feuding families and how the breaking of the treaty could result in death ''cause we're dead if they knew'. She then goes on to sing 'Romeo, save me' and how the love is 'difficult but it's real' suggestive of the scene where the two families find out about the forbidden love between the two protagonists and go on to exile Romeo from Verona with the penalty of death upon return. Due to this exile Juliet is overcome with grief and loneliness, inspiring the lyrics 'I got tired of waiting' and 'when I met you on the outskirts of town' telling the story of Juliet's loneliness and grief and referring to Romeo's exile and how Taylor and her love interest met on the outskirts of town in order for the character of Romeo to be safe, also saying 'I've been feeling so alone, I keep waiting for you but you never come'.  

Taylor Swift in renaissance style costume, said to be the era Romeo and Juliet is set in.

 

The song ends mentioning the marriage of the two protagonists 'marry me, Juliet', 'go pick out a white dress' and 'baby, just say, "Yes"'; hinting at the marriage between the two characters in the play, however the play is also known to be a tragedy and none of the tragic scenes are mentioned in the song, catering to Taylor's younger audience and merely states that the undying love and marriage between the two characters in the song was enough to gain acceptance from her father but in the play the two 'star cross'd lovers' died resulting in peace between the two feuding families. 

Overall I think Taylor Swift is creating a homage to Romeo and Juliet as it is all very serious and has no comedy in it to make fun of the play, I think the storyline of the famous play has been followed very closely and accurately with many references between them.