Includes bibliographical references (p. 221-231) and index.

"Speaking words of wisdom" : the Beatles' poetics. "I am he as you are he as you are me and we are all together" : Bakhtin and the Beatles / Ian Marshall ; From "craft" to "art" : formal structure in the music of the Beatles / John Covach ; "Love, love, love" : representations of gender and sexuality in selected songs by the Beatles / Sheila Whiteley ; Painting their room in a colorful way : the Beatles' exploration of timbre / Walter Everett -- "A splendid time is guaranteed for all" : theorizing the Beatles. Mythology, remythology, and demythology : the Beatles on film / Kenneth Womack and Todd F. Davis ; Vacio luminoso : "Tomorrow never knows" and the coherence of the impossible / Russell Reising ; The spectacle of alienation : death, loss, and the crowd in Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band / William M. Northcutt ; We all want to change the world : postmodern politics and the Beatles' White album / Jeffrey Roessner -- "We can work it out" : the Beatles and culture. "The rest of you, if you'll just rattle your jewelry" : the Beatles and questions of mass and high culture / Paul Gleed ; A universal childhood : tourism, pilgrimage, and the Beatles / Kevin McCarron ; "Baby, you're a rich man" : the Beatles, ideology, and the cultural moment / James M. Decker ; Spinning the historical record : Lennon, McCartney, and museum politics / John Kimsey -- Afterword : I want to hold your hand / Jane Tompkins.