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This Bird Has Flown

Introduction

Ok, so if you know me, you know that my main obsession in life is pop culture. So, when given the opportunity to write a short story about anything of a historical nature I immediately jumped at the Beatles. A lot of my initial ideas I ended up scrapping, but I finished something that I quite like. Even though it’s not what I originally intended. For historical reference, before the Beatles were internationally famous they went to Hamburg in Germany for a residency in clubs there. I tried to use this setting to create this anecdote. Enjoy!



https://docs.google.com/document/d/1LLhh7pil-0e_URGaZAKbakuXcnUdxXcgf0iHXvYWo9A/edit?usp=sharing

Comments

  1. Ethan AshbrookMay 14, 2020 at 2:23 PM

    I really liked how this turned out! I was a bit concerned about what your scope for this project was when I read your rough draft, but in my opinion you pulled it together really well. The early era of the Beatles craze has a lot of room for interpretation, and you did a good job of giving all of the characters some traits that scream postmodernism and appeal to our modern image of what the Beatles would have been like as a spunky up-and-coming boy band. And given all of their songs, it's certainly believable that someone unknown to history gave them the inspiration for something like This Bird Has Flown. It's a good idea that was executed well. Good job!

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  2. Pomona Carrington HoekstraMay 14, 2020 at 9:10 PM

    This was a really good work! I liked the attention you paid to characterizing Ellen and her relationship to her partner -- it brought her into a leading role in a story about people so famous that they could easily steal the spotlight. I also like the idea of the Beatles getting a song from a completely outside source and how that event might relate to our conception of singer-songwriters.

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  3. Charlotte EbelMay 16, 2020 at 11:58 AM

    I really enjoyed reading this! I liked how, though you were writing about The Beatles, the story didn't revolve around them. Your vivid descriptions of the Hamburg club scene and the brief looks into the Beatles' relationships with each other really enhanced your story. This was a really fun read - great job!

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  4. Steven BlankeMay 17, 2020 at 2:18 PM

    Not knowing much about, I hit about page five then went down a rabbit hole reading about the beatles. Coming out of it, I realized the relevance of your story. You really helped me develop an appreciation for the Beatles. Thankyou!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Zachary's History as Fiction BlogMay 21, 2020 at 6:26 PM

    I think this is a very interesting riff on the conventional "Hamburg Grind" story about the Beatles where they found Hamburg trashy/boring/uninspiring but grew as musicians there just because they had to play so damn much. Riffing on the idea that it was actually a time they grew because of that influence from Hamburg, but maybe not in the idealized way people would picture.

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  6. Alex HynesMay 22, 2020 at 11:20 AM

    As someone who loves listening to the Beatles, this was a great story. I like that you chose the early Beatles period, where you can both foreshadow the future through your narrator, and get the pre-Beatlemania experience. Your description was so vivid. I could visualize everything as it played out and the end was perfect. Great Story!

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  7. Dominick LongMay 22, 2020 at 6:10 PM

    I really like the personalities of the characters that come through in your writing. I'm not as big a fan of the Beatles as some others are, but I like the music and I think that even if it's fictional it's fun to sort of 'get to know' famous people, especially before they became well known.

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  8. Nil PatelMay 24, 2020 at 3:04 PM

    I really enjoyed the ending and it really makes me think about the reasons why some songs are written. I also enjoyed how you describe the club and that even though the story is about The Beatles, it's not entirely about them. Ellen's also a really enjoyable character.

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