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lexiekeyy · 9 months

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Masterpost: Taylor Swift & The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo

Since I think the book The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo (TSHOEH) helps in understanding bearding, lavender marriages and PR stunts, I thought I’d combine all the parallels I have found to Taylor’s life. Before I start, I want to point out that I could not have done this without various anons and other tumblr users (listed at the end of this post). I’m sure there are still some parallels missing, but I will try and update this post whenever I come across something new. If you have any questions or want to add something, just message me or add in the comments of this post. Now… sit back, grab a glass of wine and enjoy this deep dive. [Obviously this contains spoilers.]

What is The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo?

It’s a novel written by Taylor Jenkins Reid, published in 2017. Here is an excerpt of the Wikipedia page: The novel tells the story of the fictional Old Hollywood star Evelyn Hugo, who at the age of 79 decides to give a final interview to an unknown journalist, Monique Grant. According to Reid, Evelyn Hugo was loosely based in part on actresses Elizabeth Taylor, who was married eight times to seven different men, and Ava Gardner, who revealed the secrets of her life to a journalist which was eventually published as Ava Garner: The Secret Conversations.

It’s basically a secret love story between two women - Evelyn Hugo and Celia St. James.

Fun Fact: Taylor Jenkins Reid responded to a tweet about Taylor in October 2017

So now that we’ve got the basics covered, let’s dive in.

Taylor’s Life vs. Evelyn’s Life / Public Persona

TSHOEH: “It strikes me as a unique form of power to say your own name when you know that everyone in the room, everyone in the world, already knows it.” Taylor: “Hi, I’m Taylor“ basically everywhere she shows up.

TSHOEH: The book jokes about how women in relationships have historically been known as “gal pals”. And use of the word “lover” to describe the relationship between two women. Taylor: This screams Kaylor. And Lover, obviously.

TSHOEH: “But of course, they got it wrong. They never did care about getting it right. The media are going to tell whatever story they want to tell. They always have. They always will.” Taylor: reputation letter - “When this album comes out, gossip blogs will scour the lyrics for the men they can attribute to each song as if the inspiration for music is as simple and basic as a paternity test. There will be slideshows of photos backing up each incorrect theory, because it’s 2017 and if you didn’t see a picture of it, it couldn’t have happened right? Let me say it again, louder for those in the back… We think we know someone, but the truth is that we only know the version of them that they have chosen to show us.”

TSHOEH: “All I had to do was make sure that my romantic scandals felt like a story that would keep making headlines.“ Taylor: Taylor’s entire public life until Toe. Plus all of Blank Space.

TSHOEH: “’I’ve spent a very long time learning how to…spin the truth,’ she says. ‘It’s hard to undo that wiring. I’ve gotten too good at it, I think. Just now, I wasn’t exactly sure how to tell the truth. I don’t have very much practice in it. It feels antithetical to my very survival. But I’ll get there.’” Taylor: Taylor has spent years spinning and controlling stories as well as the media’s image of her. I think she’s in the process of unlearning this (to a degree). She’s been testing the waters since releasing 1989 and she’s getting bolder as time goes on.

TSHOEH: “Don and I had been seen around town, our photos taken at every hot spot in Hollywood. … And we knew what we were doing, parading around in public. I needed Don’s name mentioned in the same sentence as mine, and Don needed us to look like he was part of the New Hollywood. Photos of the two of us … went a long way toward solidifying his image as a man-about-town.” Taylor: I think this speaks for itself. It describes everything she ever did with her beards.

TSHOEH: Does this article about Evelyn and Celia remind you of anyone?

Taylor: The constant speculation articles about a possible feud between Taylor and Karlie… Are they still friends? What’s going on between them?!

TSHOEH: “She and I had been taking great pains not to be seen together. It was one thing when we really were just friends, but now that we had something to hide, we had to start hiding it.” Taylor: I think one of the reasons Kaylor went dark, was because of the election. But another reason was probably that their relationship reached another level (maybe an engagement) and it became more sacred, more intimate.

TSHOEH: “Fortunately, painting me as some woman who couldn’t keep a husband sold more papers than outing me. I’m not saying the gossip columnists printed what they knew to be a lie. I’m simply saying they were all too happy to believe the lie I was selling them. And of course, that’s the easiest lie to tell, one you know the other person desperately wants to be true. All I had to do was make sure that my romantic scandals felt like a story that would keep making headlines. And as long as I did that, I knew the gossip rags would never look too closely at Celia.” Taylor: This is exactly what Taylor has been doing for more than a decade. And then she was savage enough to write a song about it!

TSHOEH: There is a part in the book where Evelyn watches Celia win an Oscar on TV. And another part where Evelyn subliminally references Celia when accepting her own Oscar: “ …and there’s one other person out there whom I think of every day. I know she’s watching right now and I just hope she knows how important she is to me.” Taylor: This reminds me of this speech Taylor gave before singing Lover at Capital Official Jingle Bell Ball.

TSHOEH: There are people who see a beautiful flower and rush over to pick it. They want to hold it in their hands, they want to own it. They want the flower’s beauty to be theirs, to be within their possession, their control. Don wasn’t like that. At least, not at first. Don was happy to be near the flower, to look at the flower, to appreciate the flower simply being. Taylor: Diary entry from August 14, 2013 - “… Whereas I think our ancestors might come upon a beautiful flower and stop and think ‘Wow, that is really beautiful.’ … They (this generation) need to possess things… That level of possession worries me.”

Taylor’s Lyrics vs. excerpts of TSHOEH

Speak Now

TSHOEH: “It’s not wrong, sweetheart. It’s not,” I said. “They’re wrong.” Taylor: “And it’s not theirs to speculate if it’s wrong” [Ours, Speak Now]

1989

TSHOEH: “She finished her drink. ‘People have been saying all sorts of things about the two of you, and I didn’t believe it. But now… I don’t know.’” Taylor: “The rumors are terrible and cruel, but honey, most of them are true.” [New Romantics, 1989]

reputation

TSHOEH: “It was easy to think of that one kiss in a dark laundry room as a fluke.” Taylor: “Something happened for the first time in the darkest little paradise” [Don’t Blame Me, reputation]

TSHOEH: “She was as much of a fix to me as any drug.” Taylor: “Lord, save me, my drug is my baby” [Don’t Blame Me, repuation]

TSHOEH: “I would often remind him that my name was Elizabeth and he would tell me that my name was whatever I wanted it to be.” Taylor: “My name is whatever you decide” [Don’t Blame Me, reputation]

TSHOEH: “While I was sitting in a golden prison of my own making.” Taylor: “Gold cage, hostage to my feelings” [So It Goes, reputation]

TSHOEH: “Within those four walls, we were unashamed.” Taylor: “But when you get me alone, it’s so simple” [So It Goes, reputation]

TSHOEH: “You’re gorgeous,” she said. Taylor: “You’re so gorgeous” [Gorgeous, reputation]

TSHOEH: “You should probably get a better handle on your husband, by the way. He’s in Ari’s room getting a blow job from some harpy from MGM.” Taylor: “And I got a boyfriend, he’s older than us. He’s in the club doing, I don’t know what” [Gorgeous, reputation]

TSHOEH: “’Well, let me tell you something that has changed,’ I told her. ‘I no longer care. I’m ready to give it all up.’” Taylor: “Say you fancy me, not fancy stuff. Baby all at once, this is enough.” [King Of My Heart, reputation]

TSHOEH: “You’re being paranoid.” “I’m not, Celia. And that’s what’s scary. But I’m telling you they know.” “One article in one tiny paper thinks they know. That’s not the same thing.” Taylor: “People started talking, putting us through our paces. I knew there was no one in the world who could take it. I had a bad feeling.” [Dancing with Our Hands Tied, reputation]

TSHOEH: “We were hiding in plain sight.” Taylor: “Everyone thinks that they know us, but they know nothing” [Dress, reputation]

TSHOEH: “Evelyn?” You don’t spend years pining away for one voice not to notice it when it finally appears. Taylor: “Please don’t ever become a stranger, whose laugh I could recognize anywhere.” [New Year’s Day, reputation]

TSHOEH: “I smiled in the dark and squeezed her hand. ‘The world hasn’t made that easy.’” Taylor: “You squeeze my hand three times in the back of the taxi. I can tell that it’s gonna be a long road.” [New Year’s Day, reputation]

Lover

TSHOEH: “So if we are going by the metric that all’s well that ends well, then I guess it’s safe to say that I’m not sorry.” Taylor: “All’s well that ends well to end up with you” [Lover, Lover]

TSHOEH: “And do I, Evelyn, take you, Celia, to be my wedded wife? In sickness and in health and all the other stuff? I do.” I realized there was a slight hiccup. “Wait, we don’t have rings.” Celia looked around for something that might suffice. Without taking my hands from her, I checked the nightstand. “Here,” Celia said, taking the hair tie from her head. I laughed and took mine out of my ponytail. “OK,” I said. “Celia, repeat after me. Evelyn, take this ring as a symbol of my never-ending love.” Taylor: “I like shiny things, but I’d marry you with paper rings.” [Paper Rings, Lover]

TSHOEH: “Celia may have left me in a huff, but it was a death by a thousand cuts. I hurt her with these tiny scratches, day after day.” Taylor: “It’s death by a thousand cuts” [Death By A Thousand Cuts, Lover]

TSHOEH: “We did not kiss. We occasionally lingered a little too long when our arms brushed, when our hands touched, never locking eyes. But in the middle of the night, after we both had appeared to fall asleep, I would feel her body against my back and I would push myself into her, feeling the warmth of her stomach against me, her chin in the crook of my neck.” Taylor: “In the middle of the night, in my dreams, you should see the things we do, baby.” […Ready For It?, reputation] “Something gave you the nerve to touch my hand.” [It’s Nice To Have A Friend, Lover]

And because I know the rumors lately have been kind of a downer, I thought I’d add this as a nice finish to this masterpost: Throughout the book, Evelyn and Celia break up and don’t see each other for years - one time even for decades. But in the end they find their way back to each other. I feel like this lyric describes that best: “And I woke up just in time, now I wake up by your side. My one and only, my lifeline.” [Disclaimer: I DON’T think they broke up, I still very much believe Taylor and Karlie are together. But if you think they broke up, this might give you hope.]

A huge thank you to:

@kaylorandbooks @inlovewithtoomanypeople @leave-no-marks-behind @inkandtype @loiefuller @taytaysbeard @kaylor and all the people, who submitted their thoughts anonymously.

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