Three Folklore songs make up the love-triangle storyline that includes “august”: “cardigan,” “august,” and “betty.” Each song presents a different perspective on the same fictional relationship.
“august” is told from Augustine’s perspective, a female character who has a brief summer romance with James. “betty” is associated with James’s perspective, while “cardigan” presents Betty’s viewpoint. The songs are connected by characters and events rather than being a single continuous narrative performed by multiple singers.
This structure was unusual in Swift’s catalog because the songs use fictional characters instead of directly presenting autobiographical events. The storyline also helps explain why “august” has a wistful, temporary feeling: Augustine wants the relationship, but James ultimately returns to Betty. A common mistake is to count only “august” and “betty,” or to treat “cardigan” as unrelated because its title does not name a character. All three tracks belong to the same narrative set.