John McCrae
Canadian · Early 20th century
Canadian poet and physician who served in World War One and wrote the iconic poem 'In Flanders Fields,' one of the most famous war poems in the English language.
Connection to Taylor Swift
McCrae's poppy imagery from 'In Flanders Fields' connects directly to Taylor's floral imagery tradition in The Great War, where poppies serve as symbols of death and remembrance.
Notable Works
- In Flanders Fields
Appears in the Archive
Context within the Archive
In Flanders Fields
“Say a solemn prayer, place a poppy in my hair”
Angela & Uncle Jerry connect Taylor's poppy imagery in verse three directly to John McCrae's 'In Flanders Fields,' the iconic World War One poem about poppies growing between the crosses of soldiers' graves. Uncle Jerry reads the full poem aloud and explicitly links the poppy as symbol of death and remembrance to Taylor's 'place a poppy in my hair.' He notes the poppy is 'a symbol of death, a symbol of remembrance' and says 'anything with poppies in it makes me remember that poem in Flanders Fields.'