One of my English literature teachers in high school once said that if the school would let him, he would definitely incorporate music lyrics into the syllabus. When I asked which songs he would teach, he said, “Any, really — lyrics are literature, there’s the good and the bad.” Ever since then, that’s how I viewed music lyrics. The day before Bob Dylan won the Nobel Prize in literature, I was arguing in one of my classes that we should take music more seriously, both as literature and as a historical device. Dylan winning the Nobel Prize was more than an I-told-you-so moment for me; it was a reaffirmation that literature — and the arts — are moving toward being viewed in a more accepting way. It’s a kind reminder that it’s okay if things, especially art, don’t fit into a box that we all approve of.

To begin with, there’s the formal aspect of poetry that allows music lyrics to fit into works of literature. Often music lyrics have a rhyme and measure, offer the aesthetic beauty that we expect of poetry and are usually filled with emotions. Music lyrics usually have some sort of intention, they’re often filled with figurative language and more often than not, they have layers of meaning.

And let’s not forget concept albums, which tell entire stories. Concept albums usually come full circle from the first song all the way to the last one, and they tend to trace certain plotlines and themes, which is what many works of literature do. Pink Floyd’s The Wall and The Dark Side of the Moon are both amazing concept albums, and they led to even more art being created based on them. Alan Parker directed a movie based on The Wall.

Some artists are as experimental and ambiguous as many writers are; they put so much effort into their lyrics, which sometimes do not make immediate sense, but it’s only because of the presence of many different literary tropes. For instance, Radiohead is a band whose lyrics are usually accused of being misleading, but the songs are intentionally ambiguous; the literary tropes leave a lot of room for discussion and interpretation.

Music lyrics can also be considered a great tool for learning, which is why I believe they’re great for documenting history. If it wasn’t for my 10th grade teenage angst phase which included a lot of System of a Down, I don’t think I would have known anything about the Armenian genocide, and then I don’t think I would have been curious enough to learn more about it. Actually, I went to Armenia for spring break last year just to see what that country, that is often mentioned by System of a Down, is all about.

I think music should also be taken more seriously because of its accessibility; no other form of art is as accessible as music. Music is everywhere, and as a great literary and historical device, it could also be an encouraging and strong educational tool. Also, coming from a culture where poets and singers worked hand-in-hand to develop music makes it easier for me to accept songwriters as literary figures. A beautiful example of that is Kathem Al Saher, an Iraqi singer, who worked with Nizar Qabbani, a Syrian poet, on many songs.

The biggest concern surrounding music lyrics being literature is the fact that lyrics generally cannot stand on their own and have to be accompanied by music. But why should that be a problem? Should lyrics even be able to stand on their own? The fact that artists need to make their lyrics work with a certain number of musical notes to create an appealing song makes writing music lyrics harder than writing a different form of literature or poetry. This is because lyrics have to fit a certain measure and rhythm imposed by the music, but also by the topic and by the other words. It’s twice the work.

In the end, I think Dylan being awarded the Nobel Prize is going to be influential all over. Not only will it be encouraging to singers and songwriters, but it’ll also lead to music in general being taken more seriously. My high school teacher will probably be able to incorporate music into his syllabi, and many teachers all around the world will be able to do the same.