i love how she uses a “house of stone” as a metaphor for their love. it’s her house of stone and her lovers ivy grows all over it. she says that her husband is going to “burn this house to the ground” but both stone and ivy are fire resistant so even his rage couldn’t destroy their love 😭😭😭

Taylor Swift’s discography should be taught in schools

I’m a sucker for lyrics like I can’t listen to a song if I don’t know and understand the lyrics and your analysis just took my breath away, you are pure magic

Ivy is actually one of my all time favorite songs. It spans years and is an absolute masterpiece. The fact that there are so many incredible layers to this song and the way Taylor wrote this…she is just a pure genius.

Isn't it interesting that the song begins with a glow and ends with a blazing fire? Also, it starts in winter I guess (cold, freezing hands) and ends in spring. Pd: Another interesting thing is that ivy is fire resistant...

In my head I connected these two lines: "Your touch brought forth an incandescent glow " "It's a god damn blaze in the dark and you started it" Incandescent glow is quite reminiscent of a burning lantern or something. The little glow that her lover brought in the beginning has now turned into a blaze and since the narrator doesn't know how to conclude their love, she blames it on the other almost as if she's foreshadowing how they shouldn't have done that because something bad has now happened.

"crescent moon, the coast is clear, spring breaks loose, but so doea fear" in my opinion means that the protagonist is sneaking out and secretly meeting with the love interest at nights. Together, they experience being in spring or being revived

verse 5, in my opinion, the "so tell me to run" alludes to a break up of the protag and her soulmate kind of cutting things off between them before their relationship keeps growing deeper and the emotions continue to become more intense, as it would all amount to nothing once she gets married. the longer they hold onto each other the more painful this inevitable breakup would be. she asks her soulmate to say it to her, as she's too deeply in love and doesn't have it in her to break it off herself unprovoked. i didn't really get running away *together* but more so the protag running off from this soulmate to protect herself since this marriage to me has no way to be stopped and the longer her and the soulmate keep trying the more fatal the hurting would be in the end. but IDK that's just my thoughts on this line sooo ..yeah :)

you know taylor's writing is that amazing when she doesn't even mention the time period and background context but we can conclude that it's a convenient marriage of the old days. thanks for your analysis. i'm always waiting for your next folklore/evermore videos 💚 also can you maybe do coney island? that song is a bop but it's too abstract for my brain lol. only if you want to ofc 🥰

I love the depths of this and how much detail I was able to absorb from your analysis. Thank you. Because, for me its often a challenge in understanding metaphors and symbols. This is my favourite Taylor song, so much angst, ugh I just can't. We don't know if she wrote this about Emily Dickinson and Sue Gilbert but every line and word fits whats known about their 19th century real life relationship, along with the scenes snippets from the show "Dickinson". The song was played at the end of one of the most important scenes in the show's 3 seadons. Taylor released this album on Emily's birthday and titled it Evermore, the last word of Emily's most passionate poem written to Sue, her brother's finance (later his wife). Too many feels! T.T

I've been waiting for this! Thank you, this is my favourite song on the album and like you said songs can be interpreted in many different ways but your analysis fits so well with the theory that is about Emily Dickinson.

I always enjoy watching your analysis - they are always so well done. It took me a long time to appreciate Ivy but now it is one of my favourites, it is so beautifully well crafted. As you said, the house of stone is the protagonist's tomb. She died in the fire her husband started when he discovered the affaire. Her lover is the ivy that grows over the tomb and put down roots all around her tomb. To me, the old widow is the woman her lover married after the protagonist died. This affaire happened a while ago as the woman is old and the ivy covers the entire tomb (I don't know who fast ivy grows but for me, this affaire took place a long time ago but the protagonist still remembers). The old woman goes to her dead husband's tomb every day but the tomb of the protagonist is forgotten, she is forgotten as no one keeps the tomb clean. The association of spring to fear and war is because in the old days, winter used to mark the suspension of war as the weather conditions were bad. Often spring for soldiers meant going back to the battlefied, hence the fear. The protagonist knew the infidelity would be discovered one day but she was prepared to take the risk (I'd live and die for moments we stole). What makes this song even more poignant is that she still remembers her lover but we don't know if he remembers her. The ivy covering her tomb just shows that she is totally forgotten.

When the idea of cheating was addressed the lyrics “Like you were a trophy or a champion ring/ And there was one prize I'd cheat to win” from “Willow” came to mind. When she's “grieving for the living” she's grieving for her and her lover because they hurt so much by not being a couple. It's like their souls are dying. The lyrics “Oh, I can't/ Stop you putting roots in my dreamland/ My house of stone, your ivy grows/ And now I'm covered in you” mean that he is making her wish for him more and more. What I mean is that in her fantasy world where she is happy he is planting his roots so the idea of them in that fantasy world is becoming stronger and stronger and she can't stop it even tho she tries to. The house of stone is her trying to stop what she's feeling and keeping him at a distance, stone being cold, but his ivy grows, his love grows making it's way and it covers her in the end. She ends up covered, surrounded in his love. It also links to the following lyrics “I wish to know/ The fatal flaw that makes you long to be/ Magnificently cursed” because she wants to know what makes him strive so much to be with her even tho it hurts and she was cold and tried to keep him at a distance. We all know that the “fatal flaw” is his faithfulness hence the term “magnificent” used to describe him. He is magnificent for his faithfulness and cursed because he's holding on to her like ivy even tho it will hurt. “It's a goddamn blaze in the dark” means that she can't contain her feelings for him anymore. Just like a blaze in the dark is extremely visible so are her feelings. And it ties with the last chorus emphasizing that even tho this is happening she can't stop herself from wanting him more and more and him surrounding him with his faithful love. This is what I got from these lyrics maybe a bit different than what you explained. Hope I was coherent, if not I will gladly clarify. ☺️

this is such a good analysis!!! i feel like im learning literature in class but better because it’s taylor swift! ❤️

"Grieving for the living", "My pain fits in the palm of your freezing hand" and the entire bridge hits like nothing else It was so wonderful to hear your in depth analysis of my favourite song off of the evermore album ❤️🍂

wedding season begins at the end of spring

The “fatal flaw” in a tragedy is the quality of the hero that can be positive but is taken to extremes and becomes their downfall.

I imagine this song being about a woman who’s husband died and she falls in love with someone else but is guilty to act on it because she promised her husband she’d love him forever and almost interprets it as a betrayal.

Hi! I just found your channel and really loved this analysis. I feel like you've made me see things in a new light and made me understand some parts of the song better/more in depth. Your interpretation fits so well, but I thought I'd share mine in case you'd enjoy it ;) To me, Ivy is written from the same person's perspective as Tolerate It. It's the next step in that story. The protagonist feels like her husband doesn't love her anymore and just tolerates the love she gives him instead of reciprocating that love. Then, in Ivy, she is beginning to break free from that loveless marriage and she meets someone else and has an affair. I think the first two verses refer to the situation in Tolerate It (loveless marriage ~ faih forgotten land, tarnished glow). The protagonist feels like a widow because she is grieving her husband's love ("grieving for the living"). Plus, "I just sit here and wait" is a call back to "I sit and watch you". But now she's just waiting for this marriage that she's essentially already grieving to be over. Then, her new love interest/soulmate comes in and revives her love/passion/soul/spirit, whatever you want to call it ("brought forth an incandescent glow", "where the spirit meets the bones"), and soothes her pain ("my pain fits in the palm of your freezing hand"). I feel like the references to winter and spring are more of a metaphor than a reference to a specific event. The winter is the state she is in in her current marriage (plus we know that Taylor loves "frozen love" metaphors). The spring is the state she finds herself in thanks to her affair (warmth, new love, passion), until she finally feels ready to break free from her husband ("Spring breaks loose, the time is near"). It's almost like she wants her husband to find them out, like she's ready to go through that fire/war/fight and be set free, even though it is scary. And then Coney Island would the husband's response after the divorce, realizing his mistakes and asking if she'll ever forgive him. And Happiness would be the protagonist's response to that saying that she will eventually give him forgiveness and recognizing that she hurt him too (through having an affair). Of course all those songs have other meanings and different sources of inspiration and can be interpreted in many different ways, but I like that there's a some form of continuity thematically throughout them. I love Evermore so much as an album, because I see storylines develop across multiple songs. For example, in my imagination, Willow and Cowboy like me tell the same story (same characters) and Evermore is from the guy from Champagne problems' perspective (a few months later). Oops sorry for the novel

I'm not really a fan of Taylor but damn those lyrics😭 so beautifully written I've heard ivy for the first time on Dickinson and after watching your analysis i think it fits perfectly Also really loved the way you analyze things especially metaphors🖤

Okay, now i found another great reactor, haha i feel like i need to sit down watching this.

Omg!!!! Im waiting for this😍😍😍

♡ TIMESTAMPS ♡ 0:00​ intro 1:00​ song title 2:02​ ivy symbolism 2:21​ song's subject matter 2:54​ verse 1 10:04​ verse 2 12:14​ chorus 18:09​ verse 3 21:22​ opal symbolism 24:29​ rest of verse 3 24:40​ verse 4 27:18​ crescent moon symbolism 28:28​ rest of verse 4 28:45​ !!! 32:03​ verse 5 34:20​ bridge 38:04​ last verse

finally!!💗✨

I'm obsessed with the way u explain things

because of you i now know that meaning of diction and connotation thank you

SS, another great eval, I haven't done much indepth look at the lyrics on this album as I'm still recouping from Folklore lol.... but this song has great lyrics and expression of someone caught in a unpleasant situation. Look forward to your future TS evals. Also look forward to your eval of all the songs on Folklore album as a whole.

I just found your channel and really like the way you analyzed the song.

This is so good!! I cant stop watching!

evermore is her best work at lyrical writing... i mean i love folklore but i'm a sucker for evermore. good video! great analysis

Love this!!!

so excited for you analyzing this song, my favorite on evermore!

What an incredible song analysis, I am truly impressed. And I am so excited I found you channel because I've been wanting for one to exist for a while. Thank you for your amazing analysis!!

omgg i always love ur lyrical analysis ! ivy is one of my evermore favorites 🌿 also, i recommend u analyze AURORA's songs (gentle earthquakes, soft universe, churchyard, etc.) too

Wow! I'm glad i found your channel! 😊 I really like your analysis. IVY is one of my favorite in her Evermore album. Liked and subscribed. 😉

Thank you fot this video. Just brilliant ! I loved your analysis about the link of the stone (Verse 2) and the walls made of stones referring then to death ! I really liked the symbolism of the crescent moon , it's a cool way to think of it but, for me, when I hear the line "Crescent moon, coast is clear" I picture the protagonist thinking of running away. It's the night, "the coast is clear" so nobody can see them ... Moreover, there's the line "so tell me to run" ... I just better like thinking of it that way :) PS : sorry if my english isn't perfect, I'm French :)

My new favorite channel! Keep up the amazing work💖💖💖💖

aaaah i love this!! please do Cherry Wine by Hozier, it's beautifully depressing.

Omg just found your channel 🥺 love your analysis ❤️❤️❤️

Thank you so much for this🥰 I suck at analyzing lyrics🙄 and that's why I'm very grateful for you for making this video 🙏💛

Maybe crescent moon, coast is clear represents night time, less light, sneaking away at night so no one can see her/them

i love how it ends with repeated lyrics "im covered in you" to me it means that however this ends, if my husband is gonna burn this house, you are with me.. we are in this together.. 💚

For me, Taylor are doing reference the a dead person that she not forgotten yet "opala eyes, freezing hands, old widow"

this is wonderful thanks. I wonder if Taylor delves so deeply into her own lyrics or do they just flow through her?

"where the spirit meets the bones" I imagine a grave :> both are the remains of the dead, only bones are physical. I think with the meaning of soul meeting body she would've used a poetic version of the word body (I can't think of any rn) instead of "bones". And they meet at a grave because they are doing it in secret and there's not much happening around a grave But I like your way of understanding it as well

very nice ❤❤

about the epiphany that you got... "burn this house" suggests the destruction of the protagonist's "house of stone" right, then you say it implies freedom because she won't be living within the walls of death. This means that not being able to be with her true love won't be a source of sadness anymore since she doesn't live with this idea anymore. But it still doesn't change the fact that she has to marry this guy. So I guess she is cursed to be sad no matter what the reason is... PS I just found out about your channel a few hours ago and right now it's 5:40am in my time zone. I literally do not have self-control and stayed up till this late to watch all of your videos. I'm getting so many inspirations right now. I hope my little theory makes sense with your epiphany. (edit: as I continue the video, I have more to add) I think for the part where you say she needs someone to tell her to run - I feel like it's also a response to how history has shaped women - that women should behave well so the protagonist is hoping for someone to ask her to or force her to escape because she doesn't have the bravery and the urge. And I think given that the song is written by Taylor, she might have infused personal emotions in this aspect of the song since she has been publicly criticised by sexist judgments and publicly defended herself. WOW - at this point, a taylor swift song is WAY more than just words accompanied by melodies. I am also thinking about the word choice of "dreamland". It is sort of saying how the idea of being able to be with your true love is too good to be true, therefore, it's a DREAMland. Its surreal and it won't ever happen in real life. another edit: I have been reading a lot about this song after I've watched this video and found out that this song may be inspired by the love life of Emily Dickinson. This is an extract from an article I read: One of the most interesting elements of Dickinson's life concerns her relationship with her sister-in-law and close friend, Sue Gilbert, who was a “central source of inspiration, love, and intellectual and poetic discourse” for Dickinson (Hart and Smith). A popular conclusion made about their writing to and about each is that Dickinson was in love with Sue at one point in her life, but any possible romance between them was cursed: Sue was married to Dickinson’s brother, and romantic relationships between women were not socially accepted at the time.

If he’s burning the house ( her) and we are assuming this is ye olden days could mean that he’ll call her a witch for cheating and have her burned

COWBOY LIKE ME PLEASE!!!!

Can you analyse Snow on the beach by Taylor Swift and Lana?

you should analyze Hozier lyrics! He has some of the best lyricism I've ever heard

HOLY SHIT IM FLOORED

Every time I hear this song I think of Rose from Titanic for some reason 😏

These awkwardly reminds me of Titanic :(((

You didn't know that a tree is a plant? Then what was it? A human? An animal? Tf. Less youtube, more education.