Whenever someone asks me whether you have seen the film, Dead Poets Society. My reply to that person is,“Aye Aye Captain” and when I had to suggest someone to watch this film, I say this single sentence,“gather ye rosebuds while ye may”. This film is an atom bomb of motivation. The brilliant cast, The extraordinary direction, The oscar winning screenplay of this extraordinary film is impeccable.
The film was produced in 1989, around 30 years ago, still It motivates us to live, to actually live, to follow our hearts, our passion, our love. It tells us to accomplish our dreams and the fact that everyone’s gonna die, so do what you love, while you’re alive. This film teaches us so many things. The things which can and should be exercised by us in 2018 as well. Also, It teaches us not to pursue any degree which we aren’t interested in, just because our parents pressurized us to. Like, how Neil was pressurized by his parents to pursue a degree he wasn’t interested in. Sounds similar, right? It’s because even after 30 years, this film shows us the reality of our society. This movie has not yet grown old.
Carpe Diem
Walt whitman wrote the poem,O Captain! My Captain! about Abraham Lincoln. Who was a beacon of hope for USA and changed the whole country by his ideologies. I think that’s why Mr. Keating told his students to refer him as O Captain! My Captain! because he was a beacon of hope for the students of Hel-ton, and he knew his ideologies will change or motivate his students to achieve something extraordinary. He opt to take the students outside the classroom, on his first day with them, shows how determined he was to bring change in the teaching pattern. Wanted to bring in change because he too survived hel-ton and didn’t want his students to survive, rather he wanted them to actually live. That’s why he started his lecture with the first stanza,”Gather ye rosebuds while ye may”. The latin term of that phrase is Carpe Diem, which means seize the day. He taught his students the most important thing in this world, to seize the day. To make the most out of your day. To grab your day and proudly say,”You are mine”. The mode that he used to deliver this message was the best one. Because who else can give a better advice than the seniors of the same school, who has achieved greatness already.
Dead poets society
The Idea of creating a group and reading poetry’s everyday is so fabulous. The description that we get to hear from Mr. Keating about the group is so beautiful, so mesmerising. They used to come together at night, tired of studies or jobs and sit together and read poetrys. They forget each and everything and just indulge in the poems. It’s like a time window of everyday, where they get to disconnect from the tensions, the problems, the sadness and just flow in the world of poems. Even we should make such a group, where we just follow our passion and do what we love.
Life isn’t a Technique
No one can tell you a technique to live life by. Not even Mahatma Gandhi. Because life too can’t be measured on a scale, just like poetrys and all the other art forms as well. This film depicting poems actually depicts all the arts. It’s the figure of speech Synecdoche, one stands for all. The poems stands for all the things you’re passionate about. There’s one dialogue that really touched me, that was,“Medicine, law, business, engineering, these are noble pursuits and necessary to sustain life. But poetry, beauty, romance, love these are what we stay alive for”. This dialogue has so much truth in it. Business, law these professions are necessary to survive, but as I said, life isn’t just something to survive. It is not your final exams. Life has to have a meaning in it, a passion, something that provides a motive to live through the day. Not just poems but all art forms. Be it Dance, Drama, Painting, Sports anything that gives us a sense of pleasure.
Perspective
Mr. Keating teach us one more important thing. It is to look at things the different way. He stood up that table, it was a very small example. Maybe it was silly or wrong. Yet, this small example has such a massive meaning behind it. Atleast there was something different in it and that’s what made the difference. All the professors taught in the same boring way, but Mr. Keating taught in his own different style. So that this style could help his students to concentrate more, and also to become a role model by setting an example of different as well. That’s what made him, this film and the lives of all the students extraordinary. I really admire how Mr. Keating used to make them study, read and memorise poems. He made them play sports to read poems, and the best of them all, Mimicry of various film stars to make them study shakespeare, which bored them the most. He was a bright light of hope for all the students of hel-ton.
Todd’s cell break
Yes, the scene where Todd Anderson breaks his cell of hesitation and recites a poem all by himself. I personally find this scene very important from the direction point of view, from an actor’s point of view and from the movie’s point of view too. A guy like Todd, who’s such an introvert is pushed by Mr. Keating so much, that he creates his own poetry in seconds. From the direction point of view, I loved the one take part of this scene and how there wasn’t any background music, yet it was so inspirational. It shows how involved the actors were during the shoot. Robin Williams as always left his mark by merely making Todd screaming YAWP and this is an important point, as it depicts that there is nothing that you cannot achieve. A guy like Todd did something extraordinary just by a mere push. Maybe sometimes all you need is a gentle push and you achieve something which you haven’t thought of.
The herd mentality
The-asking-for-permission mentality. Everybody has their own pace. Has their own way, own style. This was demonstrated by the walking experiment, where Mr. Keating made 3 students walk. They had their own pace, had their own style. But as they walked, they all started walking together at the same pace, in the same way. And this is what herd mentality is. To get accepted, we forget our style, our pace and try to match everyone’s expectations and try to join the herd. He told his students to walk against the stream, which we still tell ourselves and others too. But as usual. We fail. Isn’t this film from 1989 teaching us the things, which we still try to adapt on ourselves.
They did seize the day
I believe that all the students were misguided or, they all were lost. They just needed someone to guide them and show them a path. And that someone came in the form of Mr. Keating. He was a godsend to them, a savior who showed them the right path and cleared their minds. May it be Knox’s love for chris, or Neil’s love for acting. He helped them to stand up for themselves and slowly and steadily they started to live.
Knox’s love
First of them, Knox Overstreet. Knox, after taking punches from Chet(chris’s boyfriend) still, he hung there and went for chris. He didn’t give a damn about the consequences. Just went ahead and tried to Seize the day, exactly how he was taught by his Captain to, and not just that, he did it by reading the poem aloud in the class, in front of everybody. But due to that daring and positive attitude, Knox got chris.
Neil’s tragedy
I know the consequences of Neil acting on stage even after his father warned him not to, was not good. But atleast he stood up for himself. And before he died, he acted one last time. Neil wearing that crown before he shot himself, depicts such strong feelings of him. He still wanted to act, because he knew, once he gets into Braden military school. He won’t be able to act for atleast 10 more years. So, he took an easy route instead. What he did was not right, yet it feels so saddening when we imagine what Neil would’ve become, if he had to leave his only passion i.e acting.
Charlie’s boulevard
Charlie, or should I say, Nuwanda, initially was a spoilt, rich little brat! but as the story moved ahead and how The Captain impacted him was really strong. He used to do michief or bully people. Though he didn’t change much, but he started channelling his energy and his standing up attitude for the right causes and began to execute correct things.
Todd’s savior
Todd Anderson, the most introvert and hesitated guy. For him, Mr. Keating was like a savior. The difference in him, before and after The Captain entered in his life, was tremendous. The best instance of his change was the farewell scene of Captain. Nobody had the guts to stand up and say ‘Thank you’ to the Captain, while he was leaving. The one person who stood up was Todd, the most introvert and frightened guy of the whole hel-ton. He stood up on that table, in front of the principal, Mr. Nolan himself and said the words,”O Captain, my Captain!”. While everybody followed him. Yes, the person who was even scared to follow anyone, actually led the movement himself.
The emotional change that everyone went through because of The Captain was really moving! I hope such films to be produced excessively. Because even after around 30 years. This film never gets old.
