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Dead Poets Society Dead Poets Society is set at the Welton Academy, an elite preparatory school for boys. The four pillars of the school's philosophy are: tradition, honour, discipline and excellence. John Keating (played by Robin Williams) is an ex-pupil of the school and its new English teacher. He believes that the purpose of education is to teach students to think for themselves. This belief brings him into conflict with the school's administration. Mr. Nolan, the school's headmaster, observes Mr. Keating giving his students an exercise to prove the dangers of conformity. "But John," he protests, "the curriculum is set, it's proven, it works. If you question it what's to prevent them from doing the same?" Mr. Keating replies, "I always thought the idea of education was to learn to think for yourself." Mr. Nolan explodes, "At these boys' age! Not on your life!" A few of Mr. Keating's students find his senior annual, and learn that when he attended Welton he was a member of the Dead Poets Society, a group "dedicated to sucking the marrow out of life." The group would gather at an old Indian cave and read poetry, letting the words "drip from [their] tongues like honey." The boys are inspired to form their own Dead Poets Society. One of the boys is Neil Perry (played by Robert Sean Leonard). Neil wants to become an actor, but his father wants him to go to Harvard to become a doctor. He has wanted to be an actor ever since he can remember, and this is what he wants to do with the rest of his life. Neil lands the lead role in William Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream. But Mr. Perry learns that his son is in the play and forbids him to take part. He tells his son, "I've made a great many sacrifices to get you here ... and you will not let me down." Neil takes part in the play anyway, believing that his father will be in Chicago for the next four days. But his father turns up to the opening night. Mr. Perry tells Neil that he's removing him from Welton and enrolling him in military school. Neil is devastated. It will mean another ten years before he's free from his father's control, and is able to pursue his passion for acting. To Neil this is a life-sentence. Let's pause here for reflection. I'm sure Mr. Perry sincerely believes that he's doing what is best for his son. The problem is that for Mr. Perry the value of being a doctor floats in mid-air, like a primitive god to which everything else must be sacrificed. Neil commits suicide. Neil's father requests an inquiry into his son's death, believing that Mr. Keating put Neil up to this "absurd acting business." The members of the Dead Poets Society are pressured into signing a declaration stating that it was Mr. Keating's abuse of his position that led to Neil's death. Todd Anderson (played by Ethan Hawke) is a close friend of Neil's, and a member of the Dead Poets Society. This is his first year at Welton. Todd is a painfully shy boy, who initially doesn't want to take part in the Dead Poets Society because he thinks it will mean having to read poetry in front of the other boys. A defining moment in the film is when Todd has to write his own poem for Mr. Keating's class. The thought of having to express his feelings in public fills Todd with the kind of intense fear that most people only feel when faced with some kind of external danger. Todd believes, in Mr. Keating's words, that "everything inside of him is worthless and embarrassing." Mr. Keating disagrees. He believes that Todd has "something inside of [him] that is worth a great deal" - and he brings it out. Todd delivers his poem, and we feel that we have touched his soul, and that it is worth a great deal. Todd is devastated by Neil's suicide. He doesn't believe that Mr. Keating is responsible for Neil's death, but the pressure from the headmaster and his parents to conform is too much for him - he signs the declaration condemning Mr. Keating. The impact of the final scene is difficult to convey here. I cannot watch it - or even think about it - without reaching for the tissues. Mr. Nolan has taken over Mr. Keating's class. Mr. Keating enters to collect his personals. Todd tries to tell Mr. Keating that they were pressured into condemning him, but Mr. Nolan tells Todd to sit down or he'll be expelled. Todd obeys. Mr. Keating turns to leave, and Mr. Nolan believes he has triumphed. Then - in a salute to Mr. Keating - Todd climbs onto his desk, and calls out, "Oh Captain, my Captain!" Mr. Keating stated earlier in the movie that words and ideas can change the world, and in that moment we know he was right, words and ideas can change the world - by setting people's souls on fire. Centre for Objectivist Studies P.O. Box 7581 Wellesley Street, Auckland white@objectivism.org.nz www.objectivism.org.nz 021-122-1119 If you enjoyed this, why not subscribe to The Free Radical?
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