Full Lyrical Analysis of “The Albatross” Song Meaning, Line by Line

One of the most lyrically and symbolically complex songs on all of The Tortured Poets Department is Taylor Swift’s The Albatross. 

The lyrics use the central metaphor of an “albatross around my neck” to describe the narrator’s chaotic world, where she’s misunderstood and perceived as a bad omen. 

But, as we’ll learn in my lyrical analysis, the albatross was not a bad omen at all: it was those who tried to kill it that cursed the ship. 

Here’s my full English teacher analysis of The Albatross song meaning, line by line and reference by reference. 

The Albatross by Taylor Swift

  • Title: The Albatross
  • Written by: Taylor Swift, Aaron Dessner
  • Track: 19, The Tortured Poets Department: The Anthology 
  • Pen: Quill
  • Lyrics from Genius

The Albatross Narrative Summary

  • Setting: In the present, using allegories of the past to narrate several different morality tales. 
  • Characters: Narrator (Taylor, likely as herself), various subjects (it changes throughout the lyrics) 
  • Mood: Karmic, fatalistic.
  • Conflict: “The Albatross” is perceived as a threat, when it’s really a blessing. 
  • Inciting Incident: “They tried to warn him about her”: she gained a reputation as a bad omen. 
  • Quest: Describe her side of the story, as “The Albatross” who isn’t really a “bad omen” at all. 
  • Symbolism, Similes, Metaphors & Deeper Meanings: “The Albatross,” “wise men,” “wild winds are death to the candle,” “rose by any other name is a scandal,” “shooting the messengers,” “cross your thoughtless heart,” “liquor anoints you,” “here to destroy you,” “one bad seed kills the garden, “temptress,” “dagger to sharpen,” “locked me up in towers,” “visit you in your dreams,” “devils that you know,” “death you chose,” “terrible danger,” “sky rains fire,” “persona non grata,” “been there too,” “none of it matters,” “fake news,” “jackals raised their hackles,” “sleeping soundly,” “dragged you from your bed,” “spread my wings like a parachute,” “an angel,” “life you chose.” 
  • Lesson: Be careful who you mess with. 

What is The Albatross About? 

The Albatross sees Taylor comparing herself to both a burden and a savior. The central metaphor of the albatross stems from the colloquial “albatross around my neck,” originally from The Rime of the Ancient Mariner. 

The lyrics detail how she’s perceived as a bad omen or curse, like the bird in the epic poem, but in reality is a savior or blessing. 

The themes of regret, original sin, repentance, and misconceptions are prominent in this track.  

Who is The Albatross About? 

This song is likely about Taylor herself and her reputation. She compares herself to the albatross of the classic Coleridge poem: slain in vain, then coming back to curse her killers. 

One or two of Taylor’s central “deaths” likely inspired this narrative: Snakegate, or the masters heist. Both “scandals” tried to tear her down, but she came back from both to exact her revenge. 

The Albatross and “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner” 

Romantic poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge inspired the colloquialism “albatross around my neck” in his 1798 Rime of the Ancient Mariner. 

To summarize that epically long poem, a “wise man” takes aside a wedding guest to relate a tale of morality. The narrator was a sailor who shot an albatross at sea because he thought it was a bad omen. 

It wasn’t. Shooting the albatross inflicted a curse upon the ship, and set the scene for the rest of his horrific tale. 

The sailor has to wear the dead albatross around his neck to repent, and the bird comes to symbolize his burden: a hasty decision that causes long-lasting consequences. 

The Albatross Lyrics Explained: Line by Line

Annotated lyrics to Taylor Swift's "The Albatross," analyzed line by line. English teacher's notes in the margins explain hidden meanings, literary devices, references, and alternate interpretations. The first verse and chorus read: "Wise men once said "Wild winds are death to the candle" A rose by any other name is a scandal Cautions issued, he stood Shooting the messengers They tried to warn him about her Cross your thoughtless heart Only liquor anoints you She's the albatross She is here to destroy you"

“Wise men once said,” she begins in the first verse, “’Wild winds are death to the candle’.” This line firmly places us in allegory territory: she’s about to give us a morality tale. Her “wise men” are here to teach us lessons. 

“Wild winds are death to the candle” means that a fragile flame is no match for mother nature. But, as we learned in Mastermind, Taylor is the “wild wind” (“I’m the wind in your free-flowing sails”). 

If she’s the wind, she can feed or extinguish any flame of love that she desires. She’s as powerful as mother nature, and can go in any direction she pleases. 

“A rose by any other name is a scandal” takes the classic line from Romeo & Juliet and twists it into a new context. In the Shakespearean tragedy, “a rose by any other name would smell as sweet,” meaning that it doesn’t matter what you call a rose: it’s still a rose. 

Here, Taylor means that you can call a “scandal” anything you want. It’s still a scandal, and it’s still terribly damaging to everyone involved. So what’s the “scandal”? 

In this context, it’s the extinguishing of the candle: the death of a romance. She’s likely alluding to a breakup that causes a scandal, whether she wants it to or not. 

“Cautions issued, he stood,” she says of her former flame, “Shooting the messengers.” He tries to ignore the people who “tried to warn him about her.” 

They said he would end up this way – in scandal – if he got involved with her. But he ignored their warnings, and has ended up in a bad way because of it. 

“Cross your thoughtless heart,” she says to this former flame. “Cross your heart and hope to die” is the common phrase, which means to promise or make a vow, no matter the consequences. 

But here, she says it more like “bless your heart,” a sardonic and infantilizing Southern phrase. He was too “thoughtless” in the beginning, and ignored all the warnings about her. Now he pays the price. 

“Only liquor anoints you” means that this is unholy, or can’t be soothed by praying to any god. Only liquor helps, maybe to numb his heartbreak and blur the edges of pain. 

“She’s the albatross,” she says, pulling in the central metaphor, “She is here to destroy you.” 

In The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, the albatross is at first seen as a bad omen. But after the sailor shoots it, it turns out that shooting the creature is the real bad omen. He brings a curse upon his own ship that will nearly destroy them all. 

Taylor comparing herself to the albatross means that she’s perceived as a bad omen. And in the first chorus, she kind of is a bad omen. 

They all warned him that she was dangerous, but in wounding her, he enacted her wrath. It will come back to destroy him. 

Verse 2: “Locked Me Up in Towers”

Annotated lyrics to Taylor Swift's "The Albatross," analyzed line by line. English teacher's notes in the margins explain hidden meanings, literary devices, references, and alternate interpretations. The second verse reads: "Wise men once said "One bad seed kills the garden" "One less temptress, one less dagger to sharpen" Locked me up in towers But I'd visit in your dreams And they tried to warn you about me"

“Wise men once said,” she repeats in the second verse, opening another allegorical tale, “’One bad seed kills the garden’.” 

Unlike in the first verse, she’s using “wise men” here sardonically. Like in Miss Americana & The Heartbreak Prince, “where are all the wise men?” These wise men are not actually wise: they’re quite the opposite. 

Since she’s already compared herself to the albatross, we can surmise that Taylor is the “bad seed” that will proliferate and ruin the garden in this lyric. 

But within the religious motifs of the song, this could also allude to original sin and the Garden of Eden. Is she Eve, who will bite the apple and bring “ruin” upon humanity? 

“’One less temptress, one less dagger to sharpen;,” the “wise men” narrate. Eve is banished from the garden, and the “wise men” are happy: she’s one less powerful female to threaten their masculinity. 

“Locked me up in towers,” she says of the “wise men”, expelling her from the garden and locking her away. 

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What else is a tower? Maybe a vault, as in the masters heist? Her “name” – both herself and the Taylor Swift business machine – are metaphorically and physically locked away by Scooter Braun. 

Or is the “tower” where she locked herself away after Snakegate, only reemerging in her reputation era? Or is the “tower” the cage of fame, like she described in Clara Bow? 

Either way, she’s kept tucked away and possibly imprisoned, like in Fresh Out The Slammer and Guilty As Sin? .

“But I’d visit in your dreams,” she says, unable to be contained by simple towers. Like the albatross of the Coleridge poem, she is almost spectral, flying around like a ghost, and haunting your dreams. 

“And they tried to warn you about me,” she says to the subject, but it’s unclear who is being warned in this verse. 

Previously it was a lover or ex-lover, but here, it could be directed at the people who metaphorically “locked me up in towers,” like Scooter Braun and Scott Borchetta. 

2nd Chorus: “Devils That You Know”

Annotated lyrics to Taylor Swift's "The Albatross," analyzed line by line. English teacher's notes in the margins explain hidden meanings, literary devices, references, and alternate interpretations. The second chorus reads: "Cross your thoughtless heart Only liquor anoints you She's the albatross She is here to destroy you Devils that you know Raise worse hell than a stranger She's the death you chose You're in terrible danger"

The first part of the chorus repeats, but the difference is that the subject has changed. 

“Your thoughtless heart” is not her lover or ex-lover’s heart anymore: it’s the hearts of the people who “locked me up in towers”.

“Devils that you know,” she warns, “Raise worse hell than a stranger.” This is a play on the colloquial phrase “better the devil you know than the devil you don’t.” 

This is usually used when debating a choice: do you stick with the shitty thing that you’re familiar with, or take a chance on something that could be better, but could turn out to be even shittier? 

So who are the “devils that you know?” Within the context of the previous verse, it seems like the devils she knows are her former label, who sold her masters out from under her. 

“She’s the death you chose,” she says to her former business partners, “You’re in terrible danger.” They knew what they were getting into when they messed with her. 

Like “pick your poison, I’m poison either way” from the previous track imgonnagetyouback, no matter what we choose, we’re in “terrible danger.” 

Taylor is the “terrible danger,” as she’ll come back with re-records – Taylor’s Versions – that will make her masters catalog obsolete and worthless. 

Bridge: “When The Sky Rains Fire On You”

Annotated lyrics to Taylor Swift's "The Albatross," analyzed line by line. English teacher's notes in the margins explain hidden meanings, literary devices, references, and alternate interpretations. The bridge reads: "And when that sky rains fire on you And you're persona non grata I'll tell you how I've been there too And that none of it matters"

In the bridge, the “terrible danger” finally hits. 

“And when that sky rains fire on you,” she says, alluding to the biblical “end of days,”
“And you’re persona non grata.” 

If we’re still speaking about the “devils that you know” – her former business partners who betrayed her – the raining fire is her re-records. 

When your world collapses and your reputation is ruined, she tells them, you’ll be no one and have no one. ‘No one will touch you with a ten-foot pole when I’m done with you,’ she warns. 

“I’ll tell you how I’ve been there too,” she smiles sardonically. Her name and her reputation were at stake before (Snakegate), and she’s learned important lessons in her comeback. 

Will she relay this crucial information on to her enemies, to help them out of the hole they’ve dug for themselves? No. 

“None of it matters,” she says, which is basically like saying, ‘you’re done, you’re ruined – accept it.’  

Her name and reputation do very much matter to her, and she fought tooth and nail to get them back. But she won’t give this crucial advice to the people who tried to tear her down in the first place. 

The theme of fatalism that’s prominent on TTPD emerges again here. She’s kind of shrugging, ‘well, shit happens.’ But she is the shit that happens. 

Verse 3: “Jackals Raised Their Hackles”

Annotated lyrics to Taylor Swift's "The Albatross," analyzed line by line. English teacher's notes in the margins explain hidden meanings, literary devices, references, and alternate interpretations. The 3rd verse reads: "Wise men once read fake news And they believed it Jackals raised their hackles You couldn't conceive it You were sleeping soundly When they dragged you from your bed And I tried to warn you about them"

“Wise men once read fake news,” the narrator says in the third verse, “And they believed it.” 

“Fake news” is usually used in the context of Donald Trump and right-wing voters, but here, it could mean any tabloid fodder or any rumor mill. 

“Jackals raised their hackles” is similar to “Sarahs and Hannahs in their Sunday best, clutching their pearls saying ‘what a mess’,” or “vipers dressed in empath’s clothing.” 

These insignificant, inconsequential people get mad over “fake news”, and raise a stink, feigning morality. 

“You couldn’t conceive it,” she says to her subject, who is baffled at this strange turn of events.

“You were sleeping soundly,” she says to this person, “When they dragged you from your bed.” The subject was in a peaceful, quiet existence, but was suddenly “dragged” into the “fake news” cycle by the “jackals.” 

“And I tried to warn you about them,” she says. This time, the albatross is not the warning: she’s the one doing the warning. 

Final Chorus: “I’m The Albatross / I Swept in At the Rescue”

Annotated lyrics to Taylor Swift's "The Albatross," analyzed line by line. English teacher's notes in the margins explain hidden meanings, literary devices, references, and alternate interpretations. The final chorus reads: "So I crossed my thoughtless heart Spread my wings like a parachute I'm the albatross I swept in at the rescue The devil that you know Looks now more like an angel I'm the life you chose And all this terrible danger (This terrible danger)"

“So I crossed my thoughtless heart,” she says to the unknown subject, “Spread my wings like a parachute.” She has the “thoughtless heart” this time: does it mean she was “thoughtless” in bringing this person into her life, knowing all the devastation that could occur? 

It’s here that we can start to assume that the subject of the third verse is a new love interest.  She readies herself to swoop in for the rescue, because – as we learned in the rest of the song – she’s both the weather and the umbrella. 

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“I’m the albatross,” she says, “I swept in at the rescue.” Here, the albatross metaphor has changed. She’s no longer the albatross around anyone’s neck, only being a burden. She’s the one who can rescue them from their burdens. 

But if she’s really the albatross, she also caused the “bad omen” in the first place. Like in Who’s Afraid of Little Old Me, her fearsome reputation causes a storm. But she’s both the weather and the umbrella: she’ll cause the storm, then shelter herself and her loved ones from it. 

“The devil that you know,” she says of herself, “Looks now more like an angel.” She’s the “devil that we know,” but now, in this light of her swooping rescue, she looks like a savior. She’s not Eve of original sin, but the angel who can save us from sin. 

“I’m the life you chose,” she says, giving us a clue to whom the subject might be, “And all this terrible danger.” Is she speaking to a new lover, who will “choose this cyclone with you,” and weather the storm of “terrible danger?” 

She may be “the albatross,” “here to destroy you,” but she can also save you. This could be a metaphor for Taylor’s celebrity life, which she’s explored a lot on this album. 

Her career and the Taylor Swift machine is “the albatross,” so big and looming that it looks like a bad omen. Does it scare off any potential partners? 

Can she continue this cycle of conjuring the storm, then rescuing everyone who it strands in flooding houses? And if she’s shot down again, who will be there to protect her nearest and dearest? 

Outro: “She is Here to Destroy You”

“So cross your thoughtless heart

She’s the albatross

She is here to destroy you”

-Taylor Swift, “The Albatross”

The outro repeats her central metaphor: “she’s the albatross,” she says, “she is here to destroy you.” 

If Taylor is the albatross, she’s the cause of the problem, but also the solution to the problem. Her reputation is the “bad omen,” flying around the sky of celebrity, and making the villages run and hide. 

But she’s not truly the bad omen; she’s just so bright, shiny, and massive that it’s perceived as threatening. She’s the thing that can destroy you, or the thing that can save you.

Would anyone choose to fly alongside this creature who is in constant danger of assassination? Doesn’t that make them the target, too? 

It all goes back to her central romantic thesis that began with The Archer: “who could ever leave me,” she worries, “but who could stay?” 

Has she finally found a fellow bird who can take to the skies with her, without fear? 

The Albatross Lyrical Analysis: Final Thoughts

There’s three different subjects in The Albatross. The first verse narrates what happened to a past lover, the second verse narrates a betrayal by someone close to her, and the bridge and final verse describes how she’ll shield her new lover from the storm. 

This follows the standard narrative arc: inciting incident, climax, and resolution. 

She learned what her celebrity could do to her loved ones in the inciting incident (first verse & chorus), her entire existence was nearly destroyed in the climax (second verse & chorus), and she uses the lessons she’s learned to protect her new lover in the resolution (bridge and final verse). 

Like her inspiration – The Rime of the Ancient Mariner – she’s taken us on an entire narrative journey, but in a much shorter format. 

So what have we learned from this tale? If you try to shoot the albatross down, she’ll come back to destroy you. But her fearsome reputation also makes finding a mate extremely difficult. 

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