Harvard University arguably appears in popular culture more often than any other academic institution in the world.
In ‘Gilmore Girls’, it was the school Rory Gilmore first wanted to attend.
Elle Woods is a fashionable sorority girl turned Harvard law student in ‘Legally Blonde’.
David Fincher’s film, ‘The Social Network’, tells the story of how Mark Zuckerberg co-founded Facebook with his Harvard roommates.
The institution is also responsible for educating some of the most notable female minds in history – Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Helen Keller, and Michelle Obama, to name but a few.
So, when you combine these two elements, what do you get?
The perfect place for a university course on a modern pop culture icon, a woman who is one of the most streamed artists on Spotify, winner of 14 Grammy’s, and the biggest-selling global recording artist in 2023.
Harvard English Professor Stephanie Burt is teaching the course “Taylor Swift and Her World”.
The class asks Harvard students to take a deep dive into Swift’s work and influence while studying the work of authors that Professor Burt considers relevant to understanding her catalogue.
Online interest in the course spiked after Harvard student Mary Catherine Hanafee LaPlante posted a video attending the class on her TikTok account. At the time of writing this article, it had 1.1 million views.
Ms Hanafee LaPlante is keen to push back against critics of the module, stating they are “mischaracterising what the class is.”
“Yes, we are learning about Taylor Swift, but we are also learning about poets and writers like Alexander Pope, Willa Cather, Sappho, James Weldon Johnson, and so many more.
“So, this really is an English class, and it is an English class at Harvard University. It is a very difficult course,” she said.
Ms Hanafee LaPlante believes the course has educational value, stating that Swift has not merely impacted the music industry, but also women.
“One of the reasons I think this is because she discusses relationships from a vulnerable, deep point of view and a woman’s point of view at that.
“Previously, in society, women were not often valued for the emotions that they had or the feelings that they had, and so I think that having somebody like Taylor Swift, who a lot of girls can look up to in validating their feelings as they grow up is so important, especially from an anthropological standpoint.”
The class is held twice a week.
Students are given weekly writing assignments and must submit three longer-form essays throughout the course.
A typical class requires students to take a few of Swift’s songs and compare them to the work of other literary figures throughout history.
Ms Hanafee LaPlante explained how the class took the song ‘Teardrops on My Guitar’ from the musician’s debut album and discussed how it delves into many of the same themes, around love and attraction, that ancient Greek poet Sappho tackled.
“Class is so engaging and educational, at the same time, that we cannot help but pay attention to the entire course.
“And that is something that I think is really, really amazing about this class is we get to have fun, and we get to enjoy Taylor Swift’s music along with learning about new literary figures and enjoying their works as well.”
The class of roughly 300 students usually starts with pupils singing and playing Taylor Swift songs on the piano before the study session kicks off.
Ms Hanafee LaPlante added that she is a “Swiftie,” but admires the songwriter for so much more than her music.
“When I think about Taylor beyond her clear talent, I think first and foremost about her determination and her grit, and she has shown physical, professional and mental resilience throughout her entire career, and that is one of the things that I most admire about her.
“When I’m listening to her music, I’m not only enjoying high-quality music and lyrics, but I’m also tapping into that dogged determination that she showcases in her life and her work.
“Somebody like Taylor Swift is not often studied in an academic lens until years after they have already reached their peak fame.”
But Harvard is not the first University to offer a class on the artist.
New York University, the University of Texas at Austin, and Arizona State University have all dipped into the world of Taylor Swift to educate their scholars.
Ms Hanafee LaPlante believes that more universities would benefit from adopting similar modules that put modern artists and cultural figures into an academic context.
“Because one of the ways that you can teach new topics is by using familiar points of reference, this is one of the most effective learning strategies.
“If a university aims to introduce students to new topics or subjects incorporating modern artists and cultural figures into the curriculum can be profoundly beneficial, and this is something that I have experienced myself in the Taylor Swift class.
“There are artists and poets and books that I would not have learned about or read if I had not taken this class, and it is all because I was interested initially in learning more about Taylor Swift.”
