James’s perspective is used in Taylor Swift’s “betty,” the third song in the storyline that includes “august” and “cardigan.”
The Folklore love triangle is built from three viewpoints. Augustine narrates “august,” Betty is associated with “cardigan,” and James narrates “betty.” This arrangement lets Swift show the emotional consequences of a summer relationship from all sides without relying on a single narrator.
James is portrayed as a 17-year-old boy who becomes involved with Augustine while connected to Betty. His choices create the central conflict. The songs emphasize memory, regret, longing, and the uneven way people interpret the same events.
Listeners sometimes assume “betty” must be Betty’s song because her name is the title. In the narrative design, however, the title identifies the person being addressed, not the speaker. That distinction is the key to separating James’s song from Betty’s “cardigan” and Augustine’s “august.”