This past J-Term, Professor Colin Wells introduced his course “English 265: The Beatles in Context.” In four weeks, students examined The Beatles’ careers, starting from their first concert at the Cavern Club in Liverpool, and concluding with their famous “Get Back” sessions at Twickenham Studios. As a student who took this course without much knowledge of The Beatles, I fully enjoyed the course and highly recommend it. Students who have completed their first-year writing course, or something of equivalent value, can enroll in the course.

Wells structured the course to have students analyze the creative process while forming unique opinions. Throughout January, I was required to complete six journal entries, approximately 150 to 250 words each, in which I examined six different songs. For example, when the class entered the “Rubber Soul” unit, I wrote about the song “Norwegian Wood.” I talked about the interesting shift into raga-esque music, George Harrison’s new obsession with the sitar, and Bob Dylan’s major influence on the band. Besides journal entries, the course involved two blue-book exams with questions given in advance, daily homework of reading Jonathan Gould’s biography “Can’t Buy Me Love,” and listening to the Beatles’ songs.

For English majors, this class knocks out one elective course, and for non-English majors, you can get your creativity OLE Core. Whether or not you are an English major, there is definitely a lot of fun to be had. I enjoyed learning everything about the 1960s, The Beatles’ influences, the Summer of Love, and even Mod and Rocker fashion. However, the in-class discussions were the best part. I hadn’t met anyone at my table prior to taking the course, but we all shared the same interest in The Beatles. We talked about many weird and interesting things. Sometimes it was the “Paul McCartney is dead” conspiracy theory, or the strange and zany “Magical Mystery Tour” movie. Classes can be boring — but not this one. The Beatles’ career was relatively short, spanning around ten years; however, this course is shorter. Take it, spend a month diving deep into one of the most influential bands, and end with Abbey Road’s “The End:” “The love you take / is equal to / the love you make.” A delightful epitaph to the end of the Beatles’ career, and potentially your next J-Term class.