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entertainmentandempathy · 4 years

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Semiotic Analysis of The Man by Taylor Swift Music Video

Video Source: Swift, Taylor. “The Man”. Youtube. Director of Photography: Rodrigo Prieto, produced by Jil Hardin, Edited by Chancler Haynes, Production Design by Ethan Tobman, 1st AD: Joe "Oz" Osborne, David Lebensfeld and Grant Miller for Ingenuity Studios, Production by SuperPrime Films, Executive Production by Rebecca Skinner, Feb. 22nd, 2020. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AqAJLh9wuZ0

Log The Man Music Video: Timecode and Caption

0:00-0:05 (Phones ringing, background dialogue)

0:06-0:07 I would be complex

0:08-0:09 I would be cool

0:10-0:13 They’d say I played the ﬁeld before I found someone to commit to

0:14-0:16 And that would be ok

0:17-0:18 For me to do

0:19-0:23 Every conquest I had made would make me more of a boss to you

0:24-0:26 I’d be a fearless leader

0:27-0:28 I’d be an alpha type

0:29-0:31 When everyone believes ya

0:32 What’s that like?

0:33-0:36 I’m so sick of running as fast I can

0:37-0:41 Wondering if I’d get there quicker if I was a man

0:42-0:44 And I’m so sick of them coming at me again

0:45-0:47 ‘Cause if I was a man...

0:48-0:49 Then I’d be the man

0:50-1:07 I’d be the man

I’d be the man

1:08 They’d say I hustled

1:09-1:10 Put in the work

1:11-1:15 They wouldn’t shake their heads and question how much of this I deserve

1:16-1:17 What I was wearing

1:18-1:19 If I was rude

1:20-1:25 Could all be separated from my good ideas and power moves

1:26-1:27 And they would toast to me, oh

1:28-1:29 Let the players play

1:30-1:32 I’d be just like Leo

1:33 In Saint-Tropez

1:34-1:37 I’m so sick of running as fast I can

1:38-1:42 Wondering if I’d get there quicker If I was a man

1:43-1:45 And I’m so sick of them coming at me again

1:46-1:48‘Cause if I was a man...

1:49-1:50 Then I’d be the man

1:51-2:07 I’d be the man

I’d be the man

2:08-2:10 What’s it like to brag about Raking in dollars

2:11-2:12 And getting bitches and models

2:13-2:14 And it’s all good if you’re bad

2:15-2:18 And it’s okay if you’re mad If I was out ﬂashing my dollars

2:19-2:20 I’d be a bitch, not a baller

2:21-2:23 They paint me out to be bad

2:24-2:25 So it’s okay that I’m mad

2:26-2:29 I’m so sick of running as fast I can

2:30-2:33 Wondering if I’d get there quicker If I was a man

2:34-2:39 (You know that) I’m so sick of them coming at me again (coming at me again)

2:40-2:41 ‘Cause if I was a man… (if I was a man)

2:42-2:43 Then I’d be the man (I’d be the man)

2:44-2:48 I’m so sick of running as fast I can (as fast as I can)

2:49-2:51 Wondering if I’d get there quicker If I was a man

2:52-2:55 And I’m so sick of them coming at me again

2:56- 2:58 ‘Cause if I was a man…(if I was a man)

2:59-3:00 Then I’d be the man

3:01-3:18 I’d be the man

I’d be the man

3:19-3:22 If I was a man

3:23-3:24 (Woman’s voice) “and cut” (bell sounds)

3:25-3:27 I’d be the man

3:28-3:33 (movement)

3:34-3:38 (actor)“Eh, just checking was that last take more what you had in mind”

3:39-3:42 (Taylor as director) “Pretty good, ah could you try to be sexier? Maybe more likable this time”

3:43-3:46 (actor) “ok, ok no problem”

3:47-3:50 (Taylor as director) “By the way excellent work over there Lauren that was astonishing”

3:50 (Lauren) “Thanks”

3:51-4:14 (movement)

Visual Descriptions

Opens on a man standing in an office looking out big windows at the city skyline

“The Man” is visible in big white block letters

The man is wearing a suit and tie, has a beard and his hair is styled

The man walks into an open concept room where others are working and is handed some paperwork

The man crumples paperwork and throws it behind him

Women scramble to catch the crumpled paper

The man only acknowledges other men in the workplace

The man outstretches his arms after giving a speech and employees stand up in applause

A woman nods agreeably and raises a toast to the man using a white mug that reads “I’d be the man”

An employee holds his keyboard above his head while cheering

Other employees boast

The man winks at the camera

The man is sitting on a crowded subway car with his legs spread wide taking up an excessive amount of room

Other patrons look visible upset by his behaviour

One patron is wearing Taylor Swifts “Miss Americana and the Heartbreak Prince” merchandise

The man’s suitcase is on the floor between his legs

There two advertisements on the subway. One reads “Bo$$ Scotch. Capitalize on the feeling” and depicts a man in a similar position to the man. The other reads “Mother Nature doesn’t stand a chance. Man Vs Disaster” and is a movie poster with a muscular man on in

There is graffiti that reads “Greedy”

The man is smoking a cigar

A woman coughs because of smoke

The man flicks ashes from a cigar on other patrons while checking his shiny gold watch

The man opens a newspaper that includes taglines like “For men with real thirst” and “It’s men against boys with no ladies around”

The man drops parts of his paper on the woman sitting next to him

The man walks up to a wall in the subway station, sets his suitcase on the ground, and proceeds to urinate on the wall

The sign reads “13th street station”

Graffiti reads “1989”, “Fearless”, “Speak Now”, “Reputation”, “Red” and “Karma”

There are two posters. One is an ad for a documentary and the other reads “Missing: if found return to Taylor Swift”

The is a no scooters graphic sign

The man walks away revealing dripping blue glitter writing out “The Man”

The man is now on a yacht in the ocean. He is wearing a black, gold, and orange pattern shirt, white pants, yellow shoes, and sunglasses

He is talking aggressively on his phone while walking past many women sprawled out in yellow bikinis. There are drinks and expensive foods laid out next to them

A waiter brings him a drink and when the waiter lingers, he aggressive shouts in his face dismissing him while still on the phone

In the next scene, the women surround him cheering while he hollers on excited about himself while holding a bottle of champagne

The waiter stands to the side looking uncomfortable

There are multiple shots of the man and all the women dancing and looking seductively at the camera

The man dips his fingers in the champagne and slicks his hair back

The next scene is a bedroom.

The room is minimalist and sleek

The bed has a topless woman lying in it facing away from the camera

The man stands up from sitting on the edge of the bed fully dressed in a suit with a turtleneck and walks to the mirror to look at himself

He slicks back his hair and heads out the door

In the hall, there is a backlit black and white portrait of the man pointing at the camera

The man runs down a white arched hall while yellow, orange, purple, and blue arms reach out to high-five him

The man is shown in a park next to a young girl who is assumed to be his daughter

They are sitting on the edge of a fountain in a green hedged area

He is wearing a brown jacket, grey tee-shirt, jeans, and brown boots

He is checking out other women in the park and paying more attention to them than his child

The man answers his phone and then pats the child on the head

Women fawn over him from a nearby bench

The man picks the child up and throws her in the air to catch her again

Everyone in the park cheers him on and a banner appears behind him reading “Worlds Greatest Dad”

The man is in a bar wearing a suit again and talking with a group of friends at a dimly lit table

He makes hand gestures signifying a woman's hourglass shape and gestures around his chest suggesting breasts while mouthing the words “Bitches and models”

The camera pans past showing him licking paper money and other bar patrons getting into a fight

The man's friend takes a body shot off of a woman lying out on the bar in a pile of money wearing a red sequin bra and skirt set and the man cheers him on while spraying champagne

The women’s eyes we closed but she knowingly opens them and stares into the camera for just a second when the song sings “bitch”

The man takes a shot and they continue cheering

Men’s hands pull away to reveal money with the man’s face on it

The man is shown playing tennis on a blue court wearing a white sweater, white shorts, white shoes, a white headband, and blue wristbands

The man cheers himself on after winning a point

There is a ball girl on the sidelines in a read and navy uniform

The sign reads “Women's Charity”

The man makes another good shot and obnoxiously cheers again. He then breaks into air guitar with the racket

Taylor’s father is shown as the umpire and he gives the man a warning

The man freaks out, gestures middle fingers at the umpire, breaks his racket by smashing it on the ground, throws a ball at the umpire, and then curls up in a ball throwing a fit in the middle of the court

The ball girl looks on disapprovingly and rolls her eyes

The next scene is captioned “58 years later…” and we move past a wedding cake into a chapel hosting a wedding ceremony

A gorgeous young bride is shown and then a much older groom

The old man kisses her on the cheek as she smiles and shows off a huge diamond wedding ring

The two walk down the aisle together as the old man boasts to his guests

The man is shown back in the white arch hall giving fistbumps to the colours arms

An up-close pan of the documentary poster from the subway is shown reading “Directed by Larry Wilson. Official selection 2020 Mandance Film Festival. An original documentary Mr. Americana Tyler Swift” and shows a picture of the man's face on it

He licks money in the bar again

Co-workers cheer for him again in the office

He boasts on the yacht again and the waiter is clearly annoyed

The man shoots finger guns in the park while holding his daughter and others cheer while a girl gestures drawing a heart with her fingers

The man grabs at himself readjusting his crotch while on the subway

The old man smashes cake in the brides face at their wedding and she gets upset

The man aggressively pours out a bag of balls on the tennis court while yelling

The man stops when the director yells cut and walks over revealing Taylor Swift as the director. The ball girl follows and sits in a chair while a crew resets the scene.

Taylor gives the actor criticism and direction for the next take and compliments the ball girl on her work

The credits roll reading

Directed by Taylor Swift

Written by Taylor Swift

Owned by Taylor Swift

Starring Taylor Swift

Voice of the Man by Dwayne Johnson

No men were harmed during the making of this video

Pictures of Taylor are shown during the credits revealing that she was in full makeup, prosthetics, and wigs acting as the man for the duration of the video

Technical Literacy

0:00-0:14 Camera zooms in on the man's back centering him in front of the window then moves back as he moves revealing his face and following him as he exits the office. The light shines on him from the window and this same light has him backlit as he heads towards the door.

0:15-0:23 The shot jumps to the other side of the doorway to watch as he walks into the new work area and keeps him centered as he walks up the middle aisle of desks. There is fluorescent overhead lighting as well as additional camera lighting. The coloring has changed from a warm luxurious office to a stark grey desk room

0:24-0:27 The man is still centered as he raises his arms and there is clear symmetry in the shot with the balance of desks, people, building structural elements, and ceiling light pattern on each side of him.

0:28-0:29 Shot of woman from waist up focused on expressions. Slightly off-center. Overhead lighting. She’s not blocking anyone in the background.

0:29 Shot of man from waist up focused on expressions. Slightly off-center. Overhead lighting. He’s not blocking anyone in the background.

0:30 Pan from left to right of multiple people cheering framed from the waist up focusing on large expressions. Overhead lighting. More depth and movement than previous shots.

0:31 Man walks up to still camera winks directly at the lens and then turns back to the crowd

0:32-0:38 Initial frame has the man sitting next to two women on the subway and they are only shown from the waist up. The camera zooms out to reveal his spread out legs and other squished patrons and provide full-body shots of the situation. The man is centered in the shot and the set is evenly balanced between people, windows, and posters. There is dim overhead fluorescent lighting. Colours are muted due to subway lighting.

0:39-0:40 Woman in the center coughing framed from chest up

0:41-0:45 Man is framed to the right to capture patrons' expressions on the left. All are framed from the waist up

0:46-0:49 Man is framed on the left to capture patrons' expressions on the right. All are framed from the waist up.

0:47-1:07 Camera is still as the man walks out in front of a wall and proceeds to face the wall suggesting urination. Other people walk in front of the camera and it remains steady allowing the audience to see what is on the wall. We zoom in on the back of the man's head as he makes motion, stay fixed on the wall as he moves out of the way, and then pan down to view the writing he has now created which says “The Man”. The scene has very dim lighting and the object is lit from two overhead lights on eight sides of him. Colours are muted

1:08-1:15 Shot is taken from above as the man walks down from the front of a yacht. The light is coming from the sun slightly on the left due to the use of shadows and the light reflecting on the water. The frame is symmetrical between the front point of the boat and the water and remains so as we follow the man down the boat. The colours are vibrant and the bright whites and yellows are a great contrast to the blue water and tan boards. The orange in the man's shirt makes him stand out.

1:16-1:24 Man is slightly off to the left to allow the waiter to enter from the right. Bright light is still cascading in from behind.

1:25-1:27 Man is evenly surrounded by women but off-center to include the waiter to the right. The sun is still entering from the left.

1:28-1:33 Several close up shots in motion to capture the man and the women’s expressions and slow-motion movements.

1:34-1:41 Camera starts at the back of the bedroom to show the whole scope of the room and the woman in the bed and then zooms in as the man gets up to view himself in the mirror. This scene keeps the man on the left so he can move to the right through the door. The light comes from the window on the right and the light is relatively dim. Dark tones are used in this scene.

1:42-1:50 The shot switches to the other side of the doorway framing the man in the center of the hallway and moving back to show him running down the center of the hall. There are many arches in the hall and multiple overhead spotlights that create interesting shadows as he runs down the hall. There is also a great contrast between the stark white walls and the colourful arms.

1:51-1:58 Camera slowly pans from left to right keeping the man and his daughter at the center of the shot and showing the movements of others around them. The bright greens add vibrance and there appears to be a lot of natural light. The man is in the center of the frame and there is a good balance in the shot.

1:59 Women are shot from the waist up and we are focused on their facial expressions

2:00-2:02 Shot moves with the child in slow motion to capture the movement of her being tossed in the air.

2:03-2:04 Guy and girl are shot from the waist up to focus on their reactions

2:05 Women are shot from the waist up and we are focused on their facial expressions

2:05-2:07 Man is in the center again surrounded by people. Wider shot to fit everyone. Symmetrical balance and centered clearly below the banner.

2:08-2:12 Camera is framed around the man and his friends at a table in a bar and zooms in to watch as he gestures and talks. The light is dim but warm. Plenty of black and red are used to set the tone of the location.

2:13-2:16 Camera pans from the right to the left capturing different shadows on the patriots and the movement in the bar

2:17-2:22 One of the only shots where the man is not at the center of the shot. The shot starts on a shot glass, zooms out to show the bar as a guy takes the shot showing the woman on the bar counter. The scene has a balanced amount of patrons on each side of the shot taker. We then zoom back in towards the faces of the man and his friend.

2:23-2:25 Camera zooms in on money as hands move out of the way

2:26 Shot from above to capture the movement of the man swinging his racket and hitting the ball. The man is on the left to give room for motion. There is a clear contrast between the bright blue and the clean white of the costuming and set. Multiple lights are ensuring the court and surrounding area is well lit.

2:27-2:28 The camera peers up from behind the net towards the man's expressions and allows space for the sign in the back to be read.

2:30 Focused on racket swing cutting out the man’s head and below his knees.

2:31-2:34 Multiple slowed shots following the man's movements, keeping him relatively centered.

2:35 Shot from slight;y below looking up at the umpire from the man's point of view.

2:36 Shot from eye level with the man centered following his motions in slowed motion.

2:37 Shot from above getting more of the umpire’s perspective as the man yells and gestures.

2:38-2:41Multiple slowed shots following the man's movements, keeping him relatively centered.

2:42-2:44 Young woman is centered and is framed from the waist up to focus on her reaction.

2:45-2:46 Wedding cake is in focus on the left and then shifts to the wedding chapel behind it moving to the right until the aisle is centered with the bride and groom at the end of it. There is clear symmetry and the pastel colours set the tone. The scene is brightly lit.

2:47-2:49 Bride centered from shoulders up.

2:50-2:52 Groom centered from shoulders up.

2:53-2:56 The pair centered from waist up to focus on expressions

2:57-3:00 Camera zooms back allowing the couple to move forward down the aisle.

3:01-3:02 Multiple shots of the man in motion in the colour arm hall.

3:03-3:04 Camera pans from top to bottom showcasing documentary the poster.

3:05 Close up of man's face.

3:06 Close up of coworkers’ faces.

3:07-3:08 Wider shot of the man centered in the workroom balanced again by coworkers.

3:09- 3:11Close up man's face then pans right to close up the waiter's reaction.

3:12 Close up of man’s face then pans to young adults' reactions.

3:14 Man centered. Relatively crotch level shot to emphasize the motion of man.

3:15- 3:16 Waist up shot of bride and groom.

3:17 Close up of bride's reaction.

3:18-3:28 We return to the tennis court. The man is centered to show full-motion captured in slow motion. Shifts to regular speed and the man walks out of center around the things in his way and walks out of the screen to the left.

3:29-3:49 The camera has moved back revealing the tennis court as a film set and continues to move back until the director is in the picture. The shot follows the man as he enters this area. She stands to meet him and she is at the center of the screen while he is slightly to the right. The amount of equipment and background movement is balanced as they speak.

3:50-4:14 Black background as the credits roll in white font and there are multiple still images presented on each side of the text.

Research

Taylor Swift vs. Scooter Braun

In 2018, Taylor Swift left her former label Big Machine Records (Wallis 2019). This departure meant that she would be leaving behind the rights to the master recordings of her first six albums (Wallis 2019). Swift had decided to leave when her contract was ending and asked to purchase her own work however, the label refused to sell rights to the albums outright and used them as bargaining tools against Swift (Wallis 2019). They offer her another contract under their label and for every album she made under them in the future she would earn one back (Wallis 2019). Taylor knew that this contract was restrictive and if the Big Machine company were to be sold then her past, present and future creative projects could be tethered to individuals who do not have her best interests at heart (Wallis 2019). In 2019, Big Machine Records was purchased by Scooter Braun, a man who has not been kind to Taylor throughout her career, and Taylor’s masters were thus sold along with the company (Wallis 2019). Taylor has felt betrayed by her former label and hurt by the fact that someone who has been manipulative towards her will now profit from her life’s work when she never had a fair chance to do so (Wallis 2019).

Wallis, A. “Taylor Swift vs. Scooter Braun: What, exactly, is going on?”. Global News. July 11, 2019. Retrieved from https://globalnews.ca/news/5451642/taylor-swift-vs-scooter-braun/. Accessed Dec. 8th, 2020.

Taylor vs The Media

Taylor has been criticized at every turn of her career. Her relationships were relatively public and always commented on, when she wrote songs about exes she was condemned for violating their privacy, when she hung out with friends she was called a mean girl for excluding others, she was told not to be political but people were disapproving that she did not publicly support humans rights matters and when she finally did speak out about her views she was accused of having ulterior motives (Snapes 2019). The woman can’t win.

Snapes, Laura. “Taylor Swift: I was literally about to take a break”. The Guardian. Aug. 24th, 2019. Retrieved from https://www.theguardian.com/music/2019/aug/24/taylor-swift-pop-music-hunger-games-gladiators Accessed Dec. 8th, 2020.

The Wolf of Wall Street

The Wolf of Wall Street has been evaluated as an exemplification of toxic masculinity and sexism because of the nature of its main characters and treatment, disregard, objectification, and general attitude the film suggests towards women overall (Heine 2020). The movie also stars Leonardo Dicaprio

Brassett, Heine. “‘Men Behaving Badly’? Representations of Masculinity in Post-Global Financial Crisis Cinema.” International Feminist Journal of Politics, vol. ahead-of-print, no. ahead-of-print, Routledge, pp. 1–22, doi:10.1080/14616742.2020.1808502.

John McEnroe

McEnroe was a great tennis player whose temper often can out on the court. He was notorious for yelling at umpires and breaking things and although he was reprimanded for some of his actions, he often got away with inappropriate behaviour (History.com Editors 2009).

History.com Editors. “John McEnroe disqualified from the Australian Open”. History. A&E Television Networks. November 16, 2009. Retrieved from https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/john-mcenroe-disqualified-from-the-australian-open Accessed Dec. 8th, 2020.

Serena Williams

While men’s anger in tennis is tolerated and often encouraged by fans, society reacted differently to Williams’ emotions when she spoke against an umpire’s call at the US Open in 2018 (Abad-Santos 2018).

Abad-Santos, Alex. “Serena Williams’ US Open fight with umpire, Carlos Ramos, explained” Vox. Sept. 10th, 2018. Retrieved from https://www.vox.com/2018/9/10/17837598/serena-williams-us-open-umpire-carlos-ramos Accessed Dec. 8th, 2020.

Analysis

The message of this video is that there is a double standard for men and women in society and that specifically, Taylor would be praised for her actions if she were a man however, as a woman she is constantly criticized. An underlying message in the video is the mistreatment and manipulation of women within the music industry.

This is evident in the titular line where Taylor sings “If I were a man, I’d be the man”. This is a reference to the popular phrase “You’re the man” which is often used when complimenting or showing gratitude towards men. While the lyrics clearly act as a dissertation on her feelings, the scenes she presents are also telling. Taylor clearly took inspiration from the film the Wolf of Wall Street. Both the office and yacht scenes parallel the movie and from 1:30-1:32 the song even references the film's principal actor, Leonardo Dicaprio, by name. At 0:18 the women in the background chase after the man’s discarded work. This signifies society’s expectation that women pick up the slack of men’s work in the workplace. From 0:35-0:49, the man can be seen taking up an excessive amount of space in a public area and being blatantly inconsiderate of the other patrons on the subway. This is an example of men’s aptness to put their own comfort and convenience above the respect of others simply because society has implied that they can. From 1:51-2:08, we see the man doing the bare minimum in the part with his child and the other park-goers cheering him on for doing so. This is a testimony to the double standards of men and women when it comes to parenting and how it takes very little to be considered a great dad. From 2:09-2:11 and 2:17-2:22, Taylor identifies men’s objectification of women and the imagery is self-explanatory. From 2:26-2:43, Taylor commentates on the double standards of men and women in sports. This video was released shortly after Serena Williams was criticized in the news for challenging an umpire. Swift parodies John McEnroe’s behaviour in these scenes to bring light to the hypocrisy that the media was on his side when he acted in a more condemning manner. From 2:44-3:00, Taylor acknowledges the pattern of older rich men marrying young age-inappropriate women and society’s propensity to base a woman’s worth on youth and beauty rather than her character. Finally, from 3:32-3:52, we hear Swift flip the script on sexist remarks she has experienced in her own work. She asks the actor to be sexier and more likable and then turns to the actress and gives praise for doing virtually nothing.

The most notable scene where the issues in the music industry are addressed is from 0:47-1:07. In this scene, the names of each of Taylor’s previous albums are spray-painted on the wall. On the same wall, there is the no scooter graphic sign and a poster reading “Missing if found return to Taylor Swift”. This is a clear reference to the struggle she faced with Scooter Braun and her former label. The scene depicts “The Man” urinating all over her life's work and is strong imagery to describe how she has felt about the situation. Additionally, at 0:34 we can see greedy written in graffiti next to a scotch ad aimed at men that reads “ Capitalize on the feeling”. This references men’s tendency to capitalize on others and has a clear correlation with her feud with Braun. This notion is also evident from 3:57-4:00 where the credits read “Owned by Taylor Swift” highlighting the importance of an artist having the right to their own work.

There are many other references to misogyny and double standards in the video however, the ones I have presented are the most overarching examples.

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