An Analysis of Figurative Language on The Taylor Swift's The Tortured Poets Department Album

Husen, Mohammad Daffa Maulana (2026) An Analysis of Figurative Language on The Taylor Swift's The Tortured Poets Department Album. Undergraduate (S1) thesis, UIN Syekh Wasil Kediri.

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Abstract

Figurative language is often used in song lyrics to convey deeper meanings and emotions beyond literal interpretations. This helps listeners understand the message in a more imaginative and expressive way. Taylor Swift uses various types of figurative language to make their lyrics more meaningful and interesting. Therefore, analyzing figurative language in songs is important to understand the implied meaning behind the lyrics. The purpose of this study is to identify the types of figurative language and explain their meanings found on The Tortured Poets Department Album by Taylor Swift. This study uses a qualitative descriptive method. The data in this study were taken from selected song lyrics. The researcher collected data by listening to 16 songs, reading the lyrics carefully, and identifying figurative expressions found in the lyrics. After that, the data was classified into several types of figurative language and analyzed to interpret its meaning. The analysis was carried out by describing figurative expressions and explaining their contextual meaning based on figurative language theory. The results of this study indicate that there are several types of figurative language on The Tortured Poets Department album. The total figurative language found 152, such as metaphors and hyperboles appears 31 as the most frequently used types of figurative language in this album. Irony ranks second with 27 occurrences, followed by symbolism with 24 occurrences. Similes appear 12 times, while paradoxes are identified in 10 cases. Personification is found in 8 cases, and metonymy appears 5 times. In addition, allusion is recorded in 3 cases, and apostrophe appears only once. Meanwhile, allegory, synecdoche, and litotes are not found at all in the data. Based on these findings, it can be concluded that the use of figurative language in the album serves to convey emotional complexity, inner conflict, loss, self reflection, and identity reconstruction. Through metaphors, irony, paradoxes, and symbolism, Taylor Swift expresses the contradictions between public image and personal suffering, love and pain, hope and disappointment. Figurative language helps transform personal experiences into poetic expressions that deepen the emotional impact of the songs.

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