Track Two: Elizabeth Taylor

This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at JMU chapter and does not reflect the views of Her Campus.

Most of us recognize the name Elizabeth Taylor, but don’t really know who she was and why Taylor Swift would write a song about her. So I turned on The Life of a Showgirl and opened up my computer to start my research. 

Here are the basics. Elizabeth Rosemond Taylor, also known as Liz Taylor, was born on February 27th, 1932 in London. Due to World War II, her family moved to the United States. Her career started in the 1940s as a child actor, and she made her debut in the 1942 movie There’s One Born Every Minute. Her fame only grew as she got older, and she is perhaps best known for her role as Cleopatra in the 1963 film Cleopatra where she starred with one of her husbands, Richard Burton. 

Now, as for why Taylor Swift would write a song about her, let’s unpack it. Swift first made a reference to Elizabeth Taylor in her 2014 music video for her song “Wildest Dreams.” The romance depicted in the music video is reportedly inspired by that of Elizabeth Taylor and her on-and-off-again husband, Richard Burton. Then, only three years later, came the second reference, in the 2017 song “…Ready For It?” There is a lyric, “And he can be my jailer / Burton to this Taylor” which is clearly a reference to the relationship between the two. 

This leads us to the song itself. It isn’t unlike Taylor Swift to name drop iconic women of the past or even name songs after them — we all remember “Clara Bow.” While both of these songs are a commentary on the industry and how it affects women, I feel like “Elizabeth Taylor” is more upbeat, but that could just be me. The song makes multiple references to the late actress’s life that was filled with love, loss, and drama. Taylor Swift isn’t unlike Elizabeth Taylor — both are insanely famous women who have been put in the spotlight due to multiple things, a main one being their romantic lives. While Swift has been berated for her many boyfriends, Taylor also faced criticism for her many husbands, seven to be exact (Taylor Jenkins Reid also drew inspiration from the late actress in her 2017 novel The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo). 

So why did Swift write this song? I think it’s because she sees parts of Elizabeth Taylor in herself. She relates to fame and the pain that comes along with it but she also has faith in love and has followed her heart no matter the amount of hate she gets for it. With this, I leave you my favorite line from the song —

“Babe, I would trade the Cartier for someone to trust (just kidding).”