Taylor Swift Fans Can Now Take An Official Course On The Singer At A Top University
New York University is known for offering one of the most unique course selections around the globe (via College Magazine). In addition to its wildly popular "The Science of Happiness" course, "Love Actually" class, and "Food Photography" elective, the university recently introduced a course focused on a musical icon. According to Variety, NYU's Clive Davis Institute launched a Taylor Swift class on January 26th. The class will run through March 9th and will use the Grammy wiinner's impressive career and public discourse surrounding her artistry and celebrity to explore a wide array of topics.
The course description explains, "Through readings, lectures and more, the class delves into analyses of the culture and politics of teen girlhood in pop music, fandom, media studies, whiteness and power as it relates to her image and the images of those who have both preceded and succeeded her." Per the course objectives, by the end of the session students will have a deep understanding of Swift as an entrepreneur, how girlhood is often exploited in the music industry, the discussion around "prodigies" in pop music, and more.
Taylor Swift 101 is in session
Former New York University Clive Davis Institute student and current Rolling Stone staff writer Brittany Spanos had the brilliant idea for the Taylor Swift course. In an interview with Variety, the Clive Davis chair, Jason King, explained he's excited to have Spanos teach the course. He said, "She's a Taylor fan but she also understands how to contextualize her culturally, and get students to think more deeply about her and her music through the lens of gender, feminism, race, and class, and other categories related to identity, and that deeper thinking is what this program is all about."
The journalist shared that she's always dreamed of teaching at the place that helped launch her career. After writing about Swift for over a decade and following the artist for even longer, Spanos is ready to utilize her knowledge. She said, "It's such an honor to be able to share my Swiftie expertise with a sharp group of students. I hope to help them rethink how to engage with one of the things world's biggest and sometimes divisive stars, in the same way Clive professors like Jason King, Vivien Goldman and Joe Levy did for me when I took their courses."