“The Man” Lyrics Meaning: Taylor’s Ode to the Patriarchy 

The Man is one of the most unique songs on the Lover album, in that it doesn’t involve a love story at all. Instead, this is Taylor’s version of calling out the patriarchy.

In the lyrics, Taylor narrates fictional scenarios where she could have cruised through life by being born male.

But what do the lyrics really mean, and what is she trying to get the world to pay attention to?

Here’s my full analysis of The Man lyrics meaning, line by line.

The Man by Taylor Swift

• Title: The Man
• Written by: Joel Little, Taylor Swift,
• Track: 4, Lover
• Pen: Glitter gel pen 
• Lyrics from Genius

The Man Lyrics Analysis: Narrative Summary

• Setting: A man’s world. 
• Characters: Narrator (Taylor), Subject (all men), “they” (the wider world, the press, society). 
• Mood: Angry, frustrated. 
• Conflict: Females are stereotyped unfairly. 
• Inciting Incident: Taylor reflecting on her place in the industry and the world. 
• Quest: Show how different her life would be if she were born male. 
• Symbols & Metaphors: men vs. women, contrasting male and female stereotypes and nicknames (“boss”, “player” vs. “bitch” and ‘slut’), emotions (“mad”, “sick of”), “running” and success, “Leo in Saint-Tropez”.
• Theme: Fuck the Patriarchy.  
• Lesson: You should question why men and women hold different places in the public eye. 

The Man Music Video

What is The Man About? 

The Man is Taylor Swift’s illustration of the wildly different roles men and women play in society. 

The lyrics narrate scenarios that would be different if she had been born male, and question why the patriarchy exists in this way. 

She said:

“This is a song that I have wanted to write for a very long time, but never knew exactly how to. I often think about what my career would have been like, and what my headlines about my career would have been like if I had been a man instead of a woman.

Not what would I do differently or anything, but if I had had the same accomplishments, the same mistakes, the same dating history, the same statements — what would have been different?”

–-iHeartRadio Album Release Party

Who is The Man About? 

The Man is about the patriarchy, and about how Taylor’s role as a powerful woman in the music industry would be portrayed differently if she were a man. 

The Man Lyrics Meaning: Line by Line

Verse 1 Synopsis: If I were a man, I wouldn’t be slut-shamed.

Verse one enters Taylor’s hypothetical world, where she imagines what it would be like if she were a man. 

“I would be complex, I would be cool,” she says. Instead, as a woman she’s portrayed as a ‘dumb blonde’ and ‘hysterical’. 

Instead of being slut-shamed and called a “serial dater”, if she were a man, “They’d say I played the field before I found someone to commit to.” No one would even comment on it, for “that would be okay for me to do.” 

If she were a man, “Every conquest I had made would make me more of a boss to you.” As a woman, if she dates or sleeps with people (“conquests”), she’s called a slut instead of “boss.” 

Pre-Chorus & Chorus: “I’d Be a Fearless Leader”

Pre-Chorus & Chorus Synopsis: If I were a man, I wouldn’t have to work as hard and always be attacked by the media and society.

The pre-chorus gives us another hypothetical: “I’d be a fearless leader, I’d be an alpha type.” If she were a man in her same position of power, she’d be labeled “fearless” or “alpha” (dominant). Instead, they question her every move.

“When everyone believes ya, what’s that like?” she asks. It’s a rhetorical question to all men. What’s it like not to be second-guessed and minimized? 

This could be a nod to her sexual assault trial, which still went all the way to a jury even when there was video evidence, photos, and eyewitness testimony of the assault occurring. Why? Because no one believes women. 

The chorus then details more of her frustrations. “I’m so sick of running as fast as I can,” she says, “wonderin’ if I’d get there quicker if I was a man.” 

She’s “running” her own empire – sure – but the marathon is everything up to now. Would she have gotten past the hurdles faster if she were male? 

“And I’m so sick of them comin’ at me again,” she vents. “Comin’ at me” likely refers to media attacks that defined many years of her life, from slut-shaming to the KimYe scandal, to every criticism of her personal life she’s ever received. 

“’Cause if I was a man, then I’d be the man,” she says. If she were male, they wouldn’t attack her dating life, her credibility or her place in the music industry. 

“I’d be the man” is the central metaphor in the song, and it means she’d have it all. She could have her career, her personal life, and never worry about being poked and prodded at by the media. The media and society don’t pick apart men the way they do women. 

The small irony is that Taylor IS the music industry now, so you could say she IS “the man”. Granted, she wasn’t quite yet as powerful when this song was released. 

Verse 2: “They’d Say I Hustled, Put in the Work”

Verse 2 Synopsis: If I were a man, they would praise me for the things that as a woman, they shame me for.

Verse two goes back to more hypotheticals. “They’d say I hustled, put in the work,” she says. “They wouldn’t shake their heads and question how much of this I deserve.” 

There was a narrative floating around for a while that questioned how Taylor made it so big so fast. ‘Did she sleep her way to the top?’, they asked. That’s likely what this lyric is pointing out. If she were only male, they’d never question how hard she actually worked to get where she is. 

They also wouldn’t critique “what I was wearing, if I was rude.” This is criticism only reserved for females, even on the biggest red carpets in the world.

Instead, all that “could all be separated from my good ideas and power moves” if she were male. Her looks, personality, and image are completely tied to her career, which isn’t the same for males. 

Male artists are critiqued for their work alone, while female artists are criticized for their looks, bodies, clothing, and personality, in addition to their work.

Pre-Chorus & Chorus: “I’d Be Just Like Leo in Saint-Tropez” 

2nd Pre-Chorus & Chorus Synopsis: If I were a man, they would congratulate me for dating instead of shaming me.

The second pre-chorus brings a little levity with a hilarious name-check. 

If she were a man, “they would toast to me”. The whole attitude would be “let the players play” instead of labeling her a slut or serial heartbreaker. 

“I’d be just like Leo in Saint-Tropez,” she says. She’s referencing Leonardo DiCaprio, who – for decades – has dated women half his age.

There are several paparazzi photos of him over the years with very, very young women on holiday that Taylor is calling out in this lyric. It’s his serial pattern to take his young girlfriends on vacation there. 

But “Leo” has never been shamed for this concerning behavior. His career has never been affected by it. He continues to do it to this day. 

But if Taylor were to date a 20 year-old, you can only imagine the backlash she would receive. 

Bridge: “I’d be a Bitch, Not a Baller”

Bridge Synopsis: What’s it like to have male privilege? 

The bridge poses a series of rhetorical questions to all the powerful men in the world. 

“What’s it like to brag about raking in dollars,” she asks, “and getting bitches and models?” 

She’s saying men can brag about their wealth and it helps them pick up women (“bitches and models”). But for women, having massive wealth is seen as intimidating and undeserved. 

She then highlights the double standards in attitudes. “It’s all good if you’re bad,” if you’re a man, “and it’s okay if you’re mad.” 

Men can be the ‘bad boys’ and it’s attractive, but a ‘bad girl’ is called a ‘slut’. Men can show anger, but if women show anger, they’re a ‘bitch.’ 

She then says the quiet part out loud: “If I was out flashin’ my dollars, I’d be a bitch, not a baller.” Her display of wealth would be seen as in bad taste, but men can do it and be called “ballers.” 

“They’d paint me out to be bad,” she says, “So it’s okay that I’m mad.” She’s justifying her anger, as the press and society would portray her as “bad” if she did this. 

There’s a whole discussion here about how she is a billionaire and how ethical that is. But the point she’s trying to make is that she’s treated wildly differently from the males that are in her same position of power and wealth, which is absolutely accurate.

Outro: “I’d Be the Man”

If I was a man

Then I’d be the man”

-Taylor Swift, “The Man”

“If I was a man, then I’d be the man,” she closes the song with. 

She’s not “the man,” but she is Taylor Swift. Is that enough? Sure. Does she have more than 99.999% of the world? Yes. 

Is she still allowed to point out the discrepancies of how she’s treated as a woman? Also, yes. 

The Man Song Meaning: Final Thoughts 

Is The Man a perfect portrayal of the patriarchy? No, because it’s coming from a woman in a position of tremendous power. I’d argue that the patriarchy doesn’t affect her in the same devastating ways as it does most women. 

We take it less seriously because it’s coming out of her mouth, and because she has loads of privilege that most women – with significantly less resources – don’t have. And that’s not even comparing women of color, which is a whole other dynamic.

But that’s also the point. The ultimate irony is that in writing and performing this song, she’s pointing out the very discrepancies that exist. 

Our reaction is the patriarchy in action, and it should force us to examine that reaction. Why does it matter less coming out of a privileged woman’s mouth? 

Because we assume her life is ours to critique. We assume her work is ours to critique. We assume her message and her experiences are ours to critique. 

But this is her story of the patriarchy, and it’s not ours to tell. 

More Songs From Lover

• Lover Prologue: What It Says vs. What It Means
• I Forgot That You Existed
• Cruel Summer
• Lover
• The Archer
• I Think He Knows
• Miss Americana and The Heartbreak Prince
• Paper Rings
• Cornelia Street
• Death by a Thousand Cuts
• London Boy
• Soon You’ll Get Better
• False God
• You Need to Calm Down
• Afterglow
• It’s Nice to Have a Friend
• Daylight