LOOK at her FACE.

Okay, I never thought I'd have to use my blog to defend Taylor Swift. Or her songs. Because usually I just dismiss criticisms of them as ridiculous or nitpicky or just plain stupid.

But this argument actually kind of... makes sense. And I hate that it makes sense, so I'm going to try to knock the sense out of it. That is how much I love Taylor Swift.

Someone on Goodreads reviewed a book with 1 star saying it suffered from "Taylor Swift Syndrome," i.e. one girl thinking another girl is out to steal her guy from her, thus making girls hate each other because of guys.

I can see this in exactly three of Taylor Swift's songs. You Belong With Me. Better Than Revenge. Should've Said No. That's right, only three songs. One on each of her albums.

THAT IS ONE OUT OF EVERY THIRTEEN OF HER SONGS. Give the girl a break. And even so, these songs aren't only about girl-bashing. Taylor Swift does not write songs about the way people should feel, she writes them about the way she does feel. Herself. It's not right to criticize someone for the way they feel about things that happened in their own life, or to assume you know anything about it. Maybe those girls really did steal her boyfriends. Maybe she just needs someone besides the ex-boyfriend to blame, because otherwise she'd be blaming herself. And that wouldn't be healthy. "He doesn't want me because I'm not good enough" Syndrome is worse than so-called Taylor Swift Syndrome.

That does not look like animosity to me.

Let's start with "You Belong With Me":

This is not a song in which Taylor Swift sits there and hates this other girl for no reason, thinking that she's purposely attempting to steal a guy from her. She doesn't even have the guy. The song is not about the other girl-- it's about the guy, who is her best friend, who she's in love with, who she thinks deserves someone like her instead of someone who doesn't get his jokes or appreciate him the way she does. Is that so horrible? She's not telling little girls, "That girl who's dating the guy you have a crush on? Yeah, you should hate her just for the fun of it." She's saying that sometimes two people just aren't right together, and if you see it, you shouldn't just sit by and watch one of them destroy the other. It's not fair to anyone. [This could also apply to "Speak Now," now that I think of it]

Now for "Better Than Revenge":

This is the epitome of girl-hate-because-of-a-guy. But this is on the album Speak Now. It's about speaking your mind, and this is what Taylor Swift was thinking about when she wrote the song. She felt betrayed, and hurt, and she couldn't understand why she had been dumped for a girl with an ever-present frown. The song is meant to make you feel what she was feeling. It's not promoting anti-girl sentiments from other girls; it's promoting standing up for yourself when you've been wronged. Calling out the person who wronged you, and telling them not that they're going to regret it, but that they should regret it. Because the kind of person who doesn't regret being the reason for someone else's heartbreak? That's the kind of person who needs a song like this written about them. The song doesn't say that it's not the guy's fault too, and you can't assume that the other girl didn't mean any harm. You weren't there. Taylor Swift was.

Aaaand "Should've Said No":

Honestly, this one isn't even worth explaining. It's Taylor telling the guy who cheated on her that he shouldn't have done it. Not Taylor telling the girl he cheated with that it's all her fault, or that she hates her, or that she doesn't deserve to live. It barely even mentions her.

Another one just popped into my head, which is "Teardrops on My Guitar"/"Invisible" (I suspect they're about the same guy), but puh-lease. She's in love with this guy who doesn't even notice her. This was back when Taylor mainly wrote about high school angst, and this is that all the way. "Teardrops" even says "I'll bet she's beautiful." She compliments the other girl! No girl-hate here.

Now let's focus on what Taylor Swift Syndrome really is.

-Believing in the underdog ("Long Live," "Change," "Mean")

-Expressing/standing up for yourself ("Tell Me Why," "Enchanted," "Dear John," "Mean," "Picture to Burn")

-Heartbreak ("Tim McGraw," "Forever & Always," "Last Kiss," "White Horse")

-Happily ever after ("Love Story," "Mine," )

-Lessons you wish someone had given you ("Fifteen," "Never Grow Up," "The Best Day")

-Forgiveness ("Innocent," "Back to December")

-Not caring what everyone else thinks ("Ours," "Long Live")

-Seeing the good in people ("Stay Beautiful," "Tied Together with a Smile")

-Going after what you want ("Speak Now," "Hey Stephen")

And these are only a few examples. Taylor Swift cannot be boxed into one type of song, because her songs are songs anyone can relate to. Labeling it a Syndrome is just as bad as labeling another girl "enemy" because she stole your guy. You're turning someone else into something they're not, because it's convenient for you, and that's what is not okay.

How about I come up with my own Syndrome, entitled Goodreads Syndrome? People who suffer from Goodreads Syndrome think they can criticize anything and everything in attempt to show how clever they can be in a review, without actually successfully reviewing a book. How about that?