New Philosophy Course at BYU Focuses on Taylor Swift

Taylor Swift course offered at BYU 

Brigham Young University is offering a philosophy course on Taylor Swift. There is currently no room to add the class as it has proved to be very popular. BYU is not the only University to offer a course on Swift as Stanford, UC Berkeley, NYU, and the University of Florida also teach classes according to KSL.  

The class is POLI 360, titled “Miss Americana: Taylor Swift, Ethics, and Political Society.” The course teaches students advanced research skills, writing, political theory, and the philosophy of Swift herself.   

The course is taught by Ryan Davis who admits to being a fan of Taylor Swift. He is an associate professor in the political science department at the University. He finds Swift’s lyrics to be thoughtful and probing about relationships. 

According to Davis, many of Swift’s songs are autobiographical and, when a listener listens closely to the lyrics, they realize she cares about relationships because she has been thinking about what the right ways and wrong ways to treat others are. 

What do you think? Would you take a course to understand the philosophy and ethics behind Taylor Swift’s songs? If any space opens up, you could audit the course. 

I did have an opportunity to interview Taylor Swift in Nashville with my brother. I found her kind and accommodating. She didn’t come off as fake or too busy even though she obviously has a lot going on. She was present and answered our questions honestly. 

It seems funny to have a college course on Taylor Swift and her lyrics, but I’m actually kind of interested in it. Maybe I’m a "Swiftie".