You & Your Temper: Complete “Tell Me Why” Song Analysis
Tell Me Why, track 8 on Fearless (TV), has an upbeat tempo and that early Taylor country/pop mashup sound.
The lyrics, however, paint a much darker picture: a frustrated Taylor is being emotionally abused by someone who is supposed to love her.
What’s really going on in this song, and how can we interpret Taylor’s Version differently vs. the original?
Here’s my complete English teacher analysis of Taylor’s Tell Me Why meaning, line by line and red flag by red flag.
Tell Me Why (Taylor’s Version) by Taylor Swift
- Title: Tell Me Why (Taylor’s Version)
- Track: 8, Fearless (Taylor’s Version)
- Written By: Taylor Swift, Liz Rose
- Pen: Fountain
- Secret Message: “Guess I was fooled by your smile.”
- Lyrics via Genius
Tell Me Why Narrative Summary
- Setting: Inside an emotionally abusive relationship.
- Characters: Narrator (Taylor), Subject (“you”, a bully)
- Mood: Angry, frustrated & confused.
- Conflict: He is an abusive person, and she is hurt and confused.
- Inciting Incident: His temper & two-faced behavior.
- Quest: Figure out why this person is behaving this way, and explain why she left.
- Symbols & Metaphors: Fighting & violence (shot, swing, cut), “need you like a heartbeat”, “cut me down,” “push me around.”
- Theme: Emotional abuse.
- Imagery: “Bulletproof,” “run for cover,” “down here from the ground.”
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What was the Secret Message in Tell Me Why?
The secret message in the original Fearless liner notes for Tell Me Why was: “Guess I was fooled by your smile.”
This fits in the theme with the two-faced subject of the song, and conjures up images of the Cheshire Cat – his smile drew her in, but it was really a smirk.
The Cheshire Cat from Alice in Wonderland is a confusing character who gaslights Alice and frustrates her to no end, much like the subject of Tell Me Why.
What is Tell Me Why About?
Tell Me Why describes an emotionally abusive relationship, where a boy seems to use Taylor as his punching bag. He’s portrayed as a two-faced character, who says one thing then does another, at the expense of Taylor’s wellbeing and self-esteem.
Who is Tell Me Why About?
Taylor said that Tell Me Why was inspired by a confusing and frustrating relationship:
“I’d been talking to a guy I’ve never “officially” dated. Sometimes it’s the hardest thing when you have all these dreams of dating them, and you’re getting close, but it doesn’t work out. He would say things that would make me go, “Did you just say that?” It bothered me so much because he would say one thing and do another, do one thing and say another. Because he didn’t know what he wanted, he would just play all these mind games.
So I went over to write with Liz and was just ranting and raving about how this guy is such a flake and such a jerk sometimes, and so cool other times. I was like, “Liz, I don’t know what’s up with this guy!” So I just started playing the beginning, “I took a chance, I took a shot. And you might think I’m bulletproof, but I’m not.”
-Taylor Swift, old post from Big Machine’s former website
Tell Me Why Song Meaning: Line By Line
“I took a chance, I took a shot,” she opens in the first verse. She took a risk to be with this person, knowing that they might not be perfect from the beginning. She “took a shot” at making it work, but as we’ll see later on, he’s the one who will end up “taking shots” at her.
“And you might think I’m bulletproof, but I’m not,” she says. To be “bulletproof” is to be invincible, mentally and emotionally. She’s not immune to having her feelings hurt, but this person seems to think she is.
“You took a swing, I took it hard,” she says of his hurtful words. He metaphorically takes a swing at her to try to hurt her (at least I hope this is all metaphorical), and Taylor “takes” it hard. He shoots to kill, and she gets hit with his verbal bullets.
“And down here from the ground,” she says, looking up from her metaphorical low point, “I see who you are.” This moment has given her clarity: she sees his real personality shine through, and sees through all his bullshit.
Chorus: “Need You Like a Heartbeat”
“I’m sick and tired of your attitude,” she says in the chorus, “I’m feelin’ like I don’t know you.” He’s cryptic and confusing, with an attitude that’s hard to be around.
What happened to the person she used to like? It seems like that person isn’t in the room anymore, and he’s been replaced with a jerk.
“You tell me that you love me, then cut me down,” she says of his two-faced, Jekyll & Hyde nature. He says one thing and goes another.
“And I need you like a heartbeat,” she says, confused as to why she “needs” this person so badly, when he treats her like garbage. (Hint: she doesn’t need him at all – this is what an abuser wants you to think).
“But you know you got a mean streak,” she says, red flags waving all over the place.
If he’s mean emotionally, he’ll soon be mean physically. Taylor, girl, let me hold your hand while I say this…
This. Is. Emotional. Abuse. GET OUT.
His “mean streak” will make her “run for cover when you’re around,” which is just another huge red flag. She’s metaphorically running for cover, but if she stays in this relationship, she’ll soon be physically running for cover.
“Here’s to you and your temper,” she says with a sarcastic raising of her glass to this terrible person, “Yes, I remember what you said last night.” She won’t be gaslit, but he’s sure trying. She recalls everything perfectly.
“And I know that you see what you’re doing to me,” she says of her abuser, “Tell me why.”
Here’s the rub: abuse never makes sense. There is nothing anyone does to deserve it. Some people are just garbage, and no one should ever have to tolerate it.
If you’re reading this, and the narrative of Taylor’s lyrics sounds too familiar to you, get out now. Don’t wait for answers. Don’t try to understand, because you never will. Just leave. Now.
Verse 2: “You Could Write the Book On”
“You could write a book on how to ruin someone’s perfect day,” she says in the second verse.
To “write the book on” is a common saying meaning that a person is an expert at something, and in this case, it’s putting others down. He’s an expert at ruining lives: he’s a prolific liar and manipulator.
Taylor is totally frustrated and baffled by this behavior.”I get so confused and frustrated,” she says, that she’ll “forget what I’m trying to say.”
This is classic emotional and mental abuse, wherein the abuser gaslights in an attempt to confuse and mislead their victim. They hope to get their victim so frustrated that they’ll give up and surrender.
2nd Chorus: “Here’s to You and Your Temper”
“I’m sick and tired of your reasons,” she says of his excuses. But there is no excuse for this type of behavior, ever.
“I got no one to believe in,” she says. She can’t believe in him, because he’s not a genuine person. And she’s slowly losing confidence in herself, because his abuse has been so effective.
“You tell me that you want me, then push me around,” she says. I’m hoping once again that this is a metaphor for messing with her head, and playing at power struggles. But as I said before, if someone is emotionally abusive, they will soon be physically abusive.
“And I need you like a heartbeat,” she repeats again, and at this point, we just have to ask: why? Is there anything redeeming or charming about this person, or are they just really, really good at messing with her head?
The rest of the chorus repeats, then she closes with “tell me why” again. She wants to know what she did to deserve this, or why he’s acting this way. But she’ll never get those answers. She just needs to get out.
Bridge & Outro: “I’m Not Bulletproof”
“Why do you have to make me feel small,” she asks in the bridge, “So you can feel whole inside?” He has no self esteem, so he puts all his energy into tearing down hers. This is classic abuse.
“Why do you have to put down my dreams,” she asks of his baffling behavior, “So you’re the only thing on my mind?” He is trying to tear down her confidence piece by piece, and targeting her career is one way to do that.
He tries to isolate her, and remove every piece of her life that doesn’t revolve around him. He’s been partially successful, as “you’re the only thing on my mind.”
At this point, every red flag is waving frantically, trying to warn her away from this guy. But soon we get some reassurances.
“I take a step back, I let you go,” she says in the outro, and we breathe a sigh of relief. She steps back and looks at the whole picture, and finally sees what’s happening. She walks away.
“I told you I’m not bulletproof, now you know,” she says, but she’s already taken many, many bullets from this man. Luckily, she got out before it was too late.
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Tell Me Why Song Meaning: Final Thoughts
Today in 2024, we can see these lyrics for the dangerous situation they portray. But when the song was first released in 2008, the conversation around manipulation and gaslighting wasn’t as public as it is now.
Now, we can look back at every red flag, and see that Taylor (thankfully) got out in time. She walks through every stage of abuse in this short song, illustrating the classic way that abusers manipulate their victims.
If the narrative of Tell Me Why sounds familiar to you, please get help. You’re in a dangerous position, and it will only get worse, never better.
More Songs from Fearless (Taylor’s Version)
- Fearless & Fearless TV Prologues
- Fearless
- Fifteen
- Love Story
- Hey Stephen
- White Horse
- You Belong With Me
- Breathe
- Tell Me Why
- You’re Not Sorry
- The Way I Loved You
- Forever & Always
- The Best Day
- Change
- Jump Then Fall
- Untouchable
- Come in With the Rain
- Superstar
- The Other Side of the Door
- Today Was a Fairytale
- You All Over Me [From the Vault]
- Mr Perfectly Fine [From the Vault]
- We Were Happy [From the Vault]
- That’s When (ft. Keith Urban) [From the Vault]
- Don’t You [From the Vault]
- Bye Bye Baby [From the Vault]
