: An analysis from Academia.edu that codes 69 of her songs, including those from the Lust for Life album, to understand how she reframes traditional feminist perspectives.

: The song's intro features a monologue from the 1962 horror film Carnival of Souls , which sets a tone of being "set apart" from the world.

: Lana Del Rey has stated the song is literally about driving past 13 different beaches between Santa Monica and Ventura until she found one without paparazzi.

: This research applies Karen Horney’s psychoanalytic social theory to "13 Beaches," identifying "neurotic tendencies" and the speaker’s compulsive behaviors as strategies for managing deep anxiety.

: A Georgetown University study that positions Del Rey as a "cultural critic" who uses songs like this to rebel against her passive role as a media object. It discusses the song through the lenses of feminism, nostalgia, and the American Dream.

: This paper on ResearchGate explores the contradictory accounts of the feminine image in her lyrics, looking at how characters "escape" reality through isolation. Thematic Foundations of the Song

For a "proper" understanding of the track, these key elements are frequently cited in both academic and critical reviews:

: Critics at Billboard and PopMatters analyze the "black beaches" motif as a symbol for both personal heartbreak and the "noir" complexity of her public life. Lana Del Rey: Lust for Life - PopMatters