Ed Sheeran, a man, describes a man’s lust for a woman. He goes very in-depth into how the couple meet at and have sex. He’s not in love with her, but simply her body. At the end of the song, he explains how his heart is falling for her too. A feminist reading can be done with this too.
“Say, boy, let’s not talk too much: Grab on my waist and put that body on me” – The woman is seducing the man. There is a huge feminist reading to be done in these lyrics which Modleski would refer to. Commonly in romance plots, the woman is meant to be a virgin and inexperienced in sex. However, in this seen, a woman takes charge and tells the man what to do. At first, the song seems like the man goes to a bar to look for a lover, which he does. But the attractive heroine is experienced too, contradicting normal requirements.
“I’m in love with your body: And last night you were in my room: And now my bed sheets smell like you” – The man talks about how the woman was in his room the previous night. Again, he is head-over-heels for this woman because of her physical prowess.
“One week in we let the story begin: We’re going out on our first date: You and me are thrifty, so go all you can eat: Fill up your bag and I fill up a plate: We talk for hours and hours about the sweet and the sour: And how your family is doing okay” – The couple now begins to perform the typical dating ritual. They seem to have a healthy relationship, showcasing the malleability of the modern women. Going from having sex to dating is typically scandalous and the woman might be scorned. However, here she is portrayed in an extremely positive light.
“Although my heart is falling too: I’m in love with your body” – They eventually fall in love. A perfect end to a starkly different romance plot which is very feminist.