The technical literary masterpiece that is “champagne problems” by Taylor Swift.
Every time I listen to this song I’m amazed by how genius it is and then I remember it’s a TS song and I’m like oh yeah, duh, that’s why. She’s a pop Shakespeare which is why I broke this shit into couplets for y’all!!!
[Verse 1]
You booked the night train for a reason / So you could sit there in this hurt
Foreshadowing: Here, the narrator is hinting that one of the main characters has gone through something painful and likely fresh because he needs time to process it, but we don’t know what that painful moment is. This builds suspense and grabs the attention of the listener.
Nonlinear narrative: This is actually the end of the story chronologically but the end is where Taylor chose to begin the song. Thus, the entire song is a flashback for both the narrator (the woman who rejected the proposal) and the man on the train who is processing that rejection.
[CHORUS]
Because I dropped your hand while dancing / Left you out there standing
Here, the narrator is simultaneously established (we know that the narrator is the man on the trains dancing partner that left him, thus, his romantic partner) and serves to answer the questions the foreshadowing/flashback posed by using the word “because”: as in, the main character is going through this pain “because I dropped your hand while dancing...” etc. This is expert placement because it doesn’t leave the listener in suspense for too long and also hits them right in the heart, right away.
Champagne problems
Double entendre: Ah, Taylor loves these because they are so frequently used in her songs. “Champagne problems” as a colloquial phrase refers to problems that are relatively minuscule as compared to grave issues like being in poverty, having a life-threatening health condition, etc. Think of the phrase, “that’s a good problem to have” or “could be worse”. “Champagne” refers to the good in having the problem because champagne is a luxury item served at celebrations. The champagne problems here are a failed/rejected engagement, and the fact that is not the worst problem you could have. It also could be a cynical take of the town looking at the main characters problems and downplaying the heartbreak (“Your hometown skeptics called it / Champagne problems”). The words “champagne problems” also are being used as literal imagery as in this story there is literal champagne and relationship problems. This also serves as a contrasting device between the relationship that could have been (scenario if she had said “yes” which is represented in the word “champagne”, associated with celebration) ans the reality (scenario when she said “no” which is represented in the word “problem”).
Your heart was glass, I dropped it / Champagne problems
Literal Imagery/Metaphor: Again, Taylor uses the literal imagery of the party with dropping of a champagne glass and compares it here to the feeling of rejection after proposing. Proposing marriage is vulnerable, Swift metaphorically compares it to having a heart of glass being put in the proposee’s hands, and the feeling of rejection being shattering.
[Verse 2]
You told your family for a reason / You couldn't keep it in
Your sister splashed out on the bottle / Now no one's celebrating
[Chorus]
Dom Pérignon, you brought it / No crowd of friends applauded
Your hometown skeptics called it / Champagne problems
You had a speech, you're speechless
Juxtaposition: I spoke about the “hometown skeptics” line earlier. The rest of this section juxtaposes the positive expectation of the proposal and the disappointing reality of the situation. The positive expectations are shown by: certainty that she will say yes (“you told your family for a reason”); excitement (“you couldn’t keep it in”); and preparation (“Don Pérignon, you bought it”, “you had a speech”). The disappointing reality is shown by the liter imagery of the scene (the sister “splashed out on the bottle” shows the classic trope of popping champagne before the announcement and then announcement doesn’t come and “now no one’s celebrating” and that everyone, including the man who proposed is “speechless”). My personal favorite line is “no crowd of friends applauded” because it combines both the expectation and the reality - there is juxtaposition WITHIN the line. Amazing.
[Bridge]
Your Midas touch on the Chevy door /November flush and your flannel cure
"This dorm was once a madhouse" / I made a joke, "Well, it's made for me"
How evergreen, our group of friends / Don't think we'll say that word again
And soon they'll have the nerve to deck the halls /That we once walked through
One for the money, two for the show / I never was ready so I watch you go
Sometimes you just don't know the answer / 'Til someone's on their knees and asks you
"She would've made such a lovely bride / What a shame she's fucked in the head," they said
But you'll find the real thing instead / She'll patch up your tapestry that I shred
Embedded narrative / nested story: Like Taylor said in her Apple Music interview, she tells the entire love story of this young couple in the bridge of the song. Except, this part of their love story is different than the present story as this is the narrator reflecting on their past up until this point by flashing back to good memories. Because the present story is a flashback to the proposal, this is a flashback within a flashback or a story within a story. This device also brings closure to the story because she reflects on the past good memories (“November flush”; “this dorm was once a mad house”; “how evergreen our groups of friends”), the current dilemma (“sometimes you just don’t know the answer til someone’s on their knees and asks you”) and the answer to the reason why she couldn’t say yes (“you’ll find the real thing instead”, meaning she wasn’t in deep marriage-ready love with him), and the future hope of a new love (“she’ll patch up your tapestry that I shred”).
That’s all I got folks. Can you tell I love TS? Lol. @taylorswift @taylornation
