If we know anything about Taylor Swift, we know that her song Fortnight is not about the video game. So we fall on the other popular meaning, which means two weeks. Fortnight is the first single off Taylor Swift’s 11th studio album, “The Tortured Poets Department.”

Taylor Swift’s song Fortnite is more about a short lived love where the love cut deeper than it should. There are several elements of breakup that was explored in this song. Let’s delve into some of the gut-wrenching lyrics of the song.

In the first verse of Taylor Swift’s song Fortnite, she describes how the love completely ruined her mentally. (I was supposed to be sent away but they forgot to come and get me, I was a functioning alcoholic ’til nobody noticed my new aesthetic).

She proceeds to blame the man for her suffering. She used a phrase “quiet treason” which means his silence was a betrayal and that kills her.

In the next verse, she throws more light on their current situation. She revealed that they are now neighbors and her former lover is married. She talks about her loath for his wife and his desire to kill her.

She also talks about how she will run back to her former lover if she gets the chance. But what can she do now? They are now “good neighbor”.

She goes on to reveal that she is also married to a cheat and she will want to get rid of him.

The song has some really dramatic and sad lines and the most profound one is “And I love you, it’s ruining my life (I love you, it’s ruining my life”.

The song can generally be described as a once passionate love turned unrequited within a short period. The lady is stuck in a two week love affair that the man considers fleeting. That can be shown in how silent he is and his nonchalance about the entire situation. This is perfectly captured in the line “I’m calling you, but you won’t be called?”.

The music video tells a bit of a different story. Probably because it is trying to tie together the concept of entire album. Let’s explore a bit more about the track and music video.

One thing that caught everyone’s attention was how Post Malone’s tattoos transferred to Taylor at one point and we got to see Post with facial tattoos. Knowing Taylor, this must have a big symbolism but what is it?

Let’s look at the possible symbolism. Our first theory is that the tattoos represent her reality. You would realize that she got the tattoos after she took the “forget him” pill. And then in the scene where she and post are lying down seems to be in her mind. As the scene gets zoomed in, you would see the structure of her face in there. This represents her fantasy and you will notice that both her and Post Malone have no tattoos.

With our second theory, the tattoos represent the trauma she got from the relationship. Despite taking the pills, the trauma is still there. She still lives in a fantasy world on some days but in the end, their short lived romance still haunts her.
Which theory seems to fit the scenario for you? Is there a theory you would love to share?

More Subtle yet not so Subtle Details about the Taylor Swift’s Song Fortnite Music Video

• The music video for Taylor Swift’s song Fortnite is predominantly in black and white and features Swift and Post Malone as lovers in a mental institution.
• The video features Easter eggs, including similarities between what Swift wore in the video and at the Grammys this year.
• Here are some more Easter eggs from the music video for “Fortnight”:
• Mental Health Symbolism: The mental institution setting is a metaphor for the struggles with mental health that Taylor Swift has been open about in the past.
• Grammy Nods: Taylor Swift’s outfit in the video is similar to what she wore at the 2023 Grammy Awards, where she won Album of the Year for “Midnights”.
• Eras Tour, Midnight Era: She also wore a garter which reminds of the garter from the midnights costume from the Eras Tour. This is even more symbolic since the Midnights is the immediate last album. We can say this signifies a transition from Midnights to The Tortured Poets Department.
• Dead Poet’s Society: The music video features cameos from actors Ethan Hawke and Josh Charles, who starred in the 1989 movie “Dead Poets Society”. The two men wore white lab coats with the last names of their characters from “Dead Poets Society.” Hawke’s says Anderson while Charles’ says Overstreet.
• Clara Bow: Another song on the album is titled “Clara Bow,” after the original Hollywood “It Girl” who rose to prominence in the 1920s during the silent film era. Bow often wore her eyebrows in thin lines and Swift’s look seems to echo that influence. Her hair also screamed Clara Bow.
• The typewriter: In one scene, Swift’s typewriter is missing the No. 1. Many people assumed that it could possibly be an ode to her song “The One” from her album “Folklore.” However, it may not even be an easter egg or reference since very old typewriters didn’t have the number 1. They used the small letter ‘l’ as the number one. This simply tells us more about how meticulous they were in ensuring consistency with the period and setting they chose for the music video.
• Book of “US”: In one of the scenes of the video, Swift and Malone are resting on the ground on top of white papers arranged in a giant silhouette of Swift’s head. He’s looking at her while she reads from a book labeled “US.” This can easily be a reference to Taylor Swift’s song, ‘The Story of Us’.
• Large silhouette of Swift’s head: The giant silhouette of Swift’s head made out of papers seems to reference the music video for her song “Style” off the “1989” album. It also tells us that the happy scenes after the silhouette were figments of her imagination.
• “The Black Dog”: One of the songs on Swift’s new album is titled “The Black Dog,” presumably after a bar in London. However, there’s a literal black dog in the scene where Swift’s character is electrocuted.
• Forget him pills: Also in the beginning of the video, Swift is only allowed to be unchained from the bed if she takes a pill from an orderly. Zooming in on the label of the pills, you can see they’re labeled “FORGET HIM,” and have both her birthday and the album release date (Dec 13, 1989 to April 4, 2024) as the prescription number. She is saying goodbye to all the painful relationships and closing that chapter of her life.
• Phone booth: At one point, Malone calls someone in the rain from an old telephone booth. It’s unclear where he is meant to be located but the telephone booth could be another reference to London’s iconic red ones.
• Transition from Midnights to The Tortured Poets Department: The lyrics from the last song on midnights “Hits Different” is an opener for the first song “Fortnight” on the TTPD. Hit Different says “is that your key in the door? Is it okay? Or have they come to take me away?” and Fortnight says “I was supposed to be sent away, but they forgot to come and get me”. Both talking about being taken into a mental institution.

Honorable Mention: This is not exactly an easter egg but we cannot talk about the music video without mentioning it. The chemistry between Taylor Swift and Post Malone was too good to miss. That hug, the face caress, and back hug depicted the intensity of the love described in the song.

Did we miss any easter egg? Let us know in the comments.