James is the teenage boy pursued by the narrator in Taylor Swift’s “august” love-triangle story.
The three connected Folklore songs portray a fictional relationship involving James, Betty, and the female narrator of “august.” James has a summer romance with the narrator while remaining connected to Betty, and the relationship ends when he returns to Betty.
“Cardigan” presents Betty’s perspective, while “betty” presents James’s perspective. “August” completes the triangle by focusing on the person who experiences the summer relationship as emotionally important but ultimately temporary.
The narrator is not explicitly named in the lyrics. Swift said she imagined names such as Augusta or Augustine privately, but the song itself leaves her unnamed. That distinction matters: James and Betty are named characters, while “Augustine” is an interpretive label rather than an official lyric name.