In Taylor Swift’s song “august,” James’s former lover is named Betty. Betty is the person James ultimately returns to after his brief summer romance with the narrator of “august.”
The song is one part of a three-track narrative on Folklore. “Cardigan” presents Betty’s perspective, “Betty” presents James’s perspective, and “august” presents the perspective of the girl involved with James during the summer. The three songs use different viewpoints to revisit the same relationship triangle.
The narrator of “august” is not actually named in the lyrics. Swift said she imagined the character as “Augusta” or “Augustine,” which is why some listeners treat Augustine as her informal name. That imagined label does not replace Betty’s established name in the story.
Another common mix-up is treating “cardigan” as a character. In the narrative, “cardigan” is the song title, while Betty is the named character associated with that perspective. James and Betty’s reconciliation explains why the “august” romance remains temporary.