Thursday, May 4, 2017

DEAD POETS SOCIETY

Hello everybody. Here we are with yet another chance to speak our minds through this wonderful blog that we are putting up together. On this ocassion, you will be searching your soul and picking your brains to come up with answers for the questionnaire I have placed on your platform. You need to cover as many of these questions as possible in the form of a paragraph, carefully crafted to meet my demands. Scrupulous attention to the last three and in particular to the bold part of the first in that lot. Enjoy the rest of the movie by yourselves at home before coming with your contributions. Regards.

35 comments:

  1. I have just finished watching “Dead Poets Society” and would like to share my opinion. What I noticed most was the way that those students, especially Todd Anderson and Neil Perry who were the main characters, were treated by the school and their parents. Nowadays, young people, teenagers have a close-kinit relationship with their parents and can tell them their problems and discuss what they would like to do in the future. However, this could not happen at Welton Academy or by parents, especially Neil´s. Society was different in 1959 and I believe the story would be different if it took place today. Parents were stricter in that time and in the film take part in their children’s lives in a negative way. They want the best for them but in doing this they plan their lives in the way they want to and not what their sons enjoy doing. This would be a perfect example of tradition; the parents of these parents probably did the same and the school also maintains the same discipline and training for college and expects the kids to do as their ancestors did. In the movie however, they do break free by following Keating and breaking rules. For example, the boys decide to go to a secret cave which is near the school to share self-written poems and talk to each together.
    Mr. Keating is introduced at the start of the film as someone to admire and respect as he had graduated from the same school. The viewer thinks that he will be a teacher who will follow the school rules and traditions and make his students work hard. However, as we see, he is really a very passionate teacher, who knew about poetry and created a very close relationship with his students. Keating tries to show them the way they should live by not always following the rules. For example, I think the teacher left the book in Neil´s room even though it is against the school rules. He wants the pupils to learn in a different way. As a consequence, Neil Perry decides to start acting class even though is father prohibited and eventually this leads to his suicide. So, it is true that if he had not met Keating he would have probably become the doctor his father wanted him to be. However, I do not think he would have been happy and maybe he would have committed suicide in the future. Alternatively, maybe he would have stood up to his father and show him his passion about acting.

    We could say that Neil Perry was a coward at the beginning of the film, because he did not have the guts to tell his father about how he really felt. Furthermore, I have to say that the bravest is Todd Anderson. This is very clear when he stands on top of the desk at the end of the film, showing his support for Keating, which was follow by some of the others, even though they know that they will be expelled of the school. Finally, I really enjoyed the movie because it has a big impact. Although it is upsetting, the suicide is a good ending because it makes the message clearer. People should be allowed to choose their own lives and make their own mistakes. A happy ending would have been a cliché.

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  2. As “The Death Poets Society” is a movie set in 1959, it leads us to interpret that the methods used in that times were pretty antique. For example, nowadays, most of the schools are mixed, as girls and boys can both attend to the same institution. However, the academy where the story goes on only accepted males as students. If the story took place nowadays, I believe that many things would be different, such as punishments, communication, and even the ways of learning. Through the story we can realize that Dalton´s Academy methods of teaching haven´t changed through the years. In order to comprehend this last statement, we need to think about Mr. Keating experience during his student years. In the first part of the movie, the group of pupils find Mr. Keating old yearbook, where a part of his experience during his attendance to Dalton´s Academy is briefly summarized. The point is that Mr. Keating attended to the same classes, participated in the same activities and was introduced the same goals that the actual students attending to the academy. This shows us the lack of innovation in the school´s mentality through the years, and it also explains that all the main characters are forced to have the same ideas as their forefathers.
    In regards with the protagonists of the story, we get to learn a little bit about the life of each one of these friends and also, about their professor. We can find a boy whose father doesn´t allow him to follow his dreams, a man who is trying to introduce a different way of thinking into student´s heads, a pupil who tries to conquer the love of his life, and a shy boy who manages to make some friends in a new school. All the students mentioned, are completely pressurized by their families in order to ace at every single subject at school, graduate from a university on honor, and get a successful job. In particular, Todd´s and Neil´s families, as none of them listen to their sons or respect what they really want to do with their lives. Nevertheless, from the moment these pupils get to know their new poetry professor, their ways of thinking would change forever and their careers would stop being the main focus in their lives. Briefly, Mr. Keating introduces to the students and incredible way of seeing life. His classes are full of life and creativity, one day they may be marching in the school´s garden in order to memorize a poem, and the following class they may be playing sports in order to set free their inner fury. It should be noted that many people blames Mr. Keating´s methodology at the moment of teaching for what happens at the end of the movie. Unfortunately, one of the main characters passes away thanks to the pressure his family was putting on him. Neil´s father and the school authorities consider his professor as the responsible for his suicide, and unfortunately, Mr. Keating is expelled from the academy.
    To summarize, the movie has a shocking ending. I consider that the final twenty minutes of the film gives the audience a lot to think about. If the ending would be simpler, or less cruel, the message the film is trying to give us wouldn´t be so clear, “seize the day”.

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  3. In my viewpoint, I believe that if the movie was set in the present time it would be utterly different, since nowadays families that constitute society are not as traditionalist as they used to be. For example, in the present time there are not as many boarding schools as it used to be, or at least I am not aware of their existence. Furthermore the decisions youngsters make do not depend on their parent’s opinions as it used before. Nowadays, people are able to steer their life in the direction they’d like, by chasing their dreams or studying a major that they are truly interested in. However, there are still some families whose sons are subjected into the family legacy. In Mr Keating’s viewpoint he clearly states that one of Welton’s aims was to transform teenagers into gentlemen; most of the generations of students of Welton had “dreams”. This shows how Welton’s ideal was to create the same kind of people and not let them find themselves or realizes who they truly were as individuals. But, Mr Keating does point out something very interesting, that all of those previous students wanted to give a message to the future pupils “Carpe Diem”. A value that he teaches to his students but that is remembered specially by this group of friends who are as well the protagonists of the movie: Nial, Todd, Charlie and Knox (among others). We can also clearly see how most of Welton’s teachers aim to nurture their students with the same values taught in the same way. They all want to create the perfect specimen for the high class since that was seem as the ethical thing to do in this particular school. All these teachers, except for Mr Keating, repressed their true personalities, with those one socially acceptable in those times. I dare to say that tradition is portrayed in many ways during the movie, such as how many generations of the same family had studied in the same school (Welton), how miserable these teens were by being slaves of the same diurnal activities and couldn’t neither express them nor do as they pleased. Despite all of this, the group of friends I mentioned before or at least some of the members are able to break free from this monotonous lifestyle after Nial’s tragic suicide. Mr Keating encourage his students to live by one of his most precious values “Carpe Diem”, he tells his students that after all everyone is going to turn into food for worms so we might as well enjoy life while we are living it and do as we please, we should live an extraordinary life rather than the one that we are “supposed” to live. WE MUST LIVE A LIFE THAT MAKES US FEEL FULL AND WE MIGHT ALSO LEAVE A MARK AS WE WALK THROUGH THIS WORLD . In my humble opinion the parents of the children enrolled in this institution only cared about repressing their children dreams and to make their sons bow down. I personally found a similarity between Todd’s and Nial’s family: both of them want their kids to follow this legacy. Even though, Nial’s dad is always stalling his son and Todd’s parents are not even aware of their son’s health or activities. This tragically ending that the movie has is one of the reasons why this masterpiece is so well-known, because this ending proves the other side of following and chasing your dreams. Even though we might rebel against our oppressors, our attempts of making a difference might find complete failure. This movie has a marvellous and very Victorian setting that is extremely lugubrious and dismal, therefore making us feel the pain that these characters felt. It would be completely different if the movie took place in a sunny or happy setting since some of the magic and aesthetic of the movie would be lost. In my opinion we met many brave characters throughout the movie but the most remarkable one in Nial Perry, since he had the guts to put his foot down and talk back to his father, chase his dreams and tried to become more than just a student who would turn into a lawyer. He tried to put his essence into something he truly cherished like acting.


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  4. Since this movie is set in the 1950’s it obviously shows a more passé way of teaching and conservative orthodox rules than what we have today. In my view, if the film took place today there would be a very different way of solving issues. For instance, when Charlie played the phone call prank his punishment was being spanked whereas if it were today that would be inhuman and the solution would be much more civilized in a way; suspension. The main characters are Todd, Mr. Keating, and Neil. Nevertheless, the rest of the members of the Dead Poets society could be considered as well. At first, I thought it would be the whole movie from Todd’s point of view since he is presented first but after finishing it I think it would be unfair to not include those other characters, especially when Neil seems more like the leader of the group than anyone else. I think adults play a key role in the lives of the Welton students in a negative way; every professor before Keating tried to nurture them making them believe they should study only careers that ensure high-incomes and that their parents have a say in everything they do until they become adults themselves. One example of this is when one of the teachers told Keating “Freethinkers? At seventeen?” and laughed in amusement. Throughout the film, we get to see how the school only believes in tradition and discipline, the authorities never encourage anything liberal or radical. No one cared about their well-being, just teaching straight facts. This is why Keating has this big of an impact in their lives, the students are surprised that he teaches with this new method when years ago he was one of them. Families are a big issue as well, Todd’s and Neil’s are great examples for this, they want their kids to carry on their family legacy and never stop to ask what do THEY want.
    Contradictory to what some people may think, I believe that the ending is what made the film so iconic. Especially being around that time, it might have been a wake-up call to a lot of parents. If it had a happy ending I would probably never found out about it. While it is sad, it’s what made it so special. Same thing with the setting, it wouldn’t have made any sense if it were in California since it’s known for being sunny all the time, Vermont was a perfect state because of the cold weather, in my opinion, it reflects the “cold” academy. In other words, how strict they were; almost heartless.
    Going back to Mr. Keating and Neil, perhaps this last one wouldn’t have committed suicide if he never met Keating. Having said that, it probably was for the best since he would have lived a depressing and unhappy life with a boring job he doesn’t care about only to please his father. Personally, I don’t blame Keating for his death, he only encouraged him to do what he was passionate about; before that Neil had no idea that you could do things outside your parent’s rules. He died doing what he loved the most, at least he was happy; instead of going to a military school.
    I would have to say the bravest is a tough choice between Neil and Todd. Neil because he dared to go against his father’s orders and perform on the play anyway. On the other hand, Todd was the one who stood up first and tried to defend Keating with all he had although he was made sign the paper which caused his teacher to lose his position. Cameron was the character I hated the most; from the beginning, he complained about this society the boys were trying to create and tried to stop it at all costs. He was the first who blamed Keating for Neil’s death and only cared about his own sake, not his friends.
    I am certain that Keating was the one who put the book in Neil’s room. As I mentioned earlier, since he was a former student in the academy he understood how strict it all was, and probably wanted the boys to realize they have much more potential that the school and parents wanted to bring out in them.

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  5. Dead Poet Society is a film set in the 1959 when there was the Cold War and the society was going through a change from the traditional way to a modern one, a society with individualist and open minded. This development can be seen throughout the film. The story takes place in Welton´s academy, where Mr. Keating is the new literature teacher. He attended the Academy when he was younger, he says so and the students find a yearbook where he is shown. During his years there, he attended the same classes and activities and in the present these traditions where still the same. Some of the students who were interested in their literature teacher, where the protagonist of this movie too, most importantly Todd Anderson and Neil Perry, the rest of the members of the Dead Poest Society can also be consider as protagonist, these where Knox Overstreet, Charlie Dalton ("Nuwanda"), Steven Meeks, Richard Cameron, Gerard Pitts. It could be said that the main theme in this movie “tradition” not only in the study system but also in their lives. Inside Welton, their lives of the students follow the tradition by addressing the authorities as Sir´s and standing firmly and having tight timetables. Despite this, they sometimes break free, mostly when they find out about the Dead Poet Society. When they were supposed to be sleeping they slip from their rooms to a cave in the middle of the woods to organize this club. Mr. Keating during his classes encourages the students to talk, to express themselves instead of repeating what the books said, and that´s why he asks them to rip out some book pages. This encouragement did not only apply during the class but also in their lives. This values are enforce mostly at the end of the film when they stand on the desks and defend Mr. Keating who was fired, or when they recreate the Dead Poet Society. Even though students have this breaks free, their families play a paramount role in their lives by nurturing them to keep up with great marks since the academy is expensive. So students where pressurized constantly by their families. Neil´s parents where one of this influential families, they weren´t as reach as other ones and they were making a big effort to keep Neil in the academy. Unfortunately, Nail was attract by the idea of acting and his father was against it and this becomes a predicament which leads to Neil committing suicide. This event happens at the end of the film and in my opinion it would be different if we change it because it wouldn´t have the same dramatic and melancholic impact it has which is also promoted by the setting.
    I dear say Neil wouldn´t have committed suicide if Mr. Keating would have never come into his life. Before Keating, he was a student with high marks who was passionate about acting but would never say a word against his father because he was afraid of him. The new teacher encourage him to talk and express his feeling and opinion but this didn´t go well because Neil´s father wanted his son to follow a serious carrier and make honor to his studies and the money that was expend. So I believe he would have never challenge his father in the case that Mt. Keating didn´t appear in his life.
    I would say that in Neil´s group of friends at the beginning he was a coward because like I said before he was afraid of his father. Throughout the film he learns how to dear against him so he becomes brave as “Newuanda”, who posts an article in the academy´s newspaper expressing his desire of having girls in Welton and when he is discover as the doer of this actions he accepts the consequences without exposing his friends. I would say Todd was also one of them because he was the first one to stand up in defense of Mr. Keating.
    I am convinced that Keating put the poet book in Neil´s room. Even though he knew the present administrations were strict towards their traditions, but Keating wanted to break through this and he probably wanted to encourage his students but secretly.

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  6. ‘Dead Poets Society’ is a film set in 1959. While watching the movie, we can all realize that this story takes place in the old times due to the way the students are treated, taught and punished by teachers and principals of the institution. For instance, teachers use a blackboard and books in order to teach, and whenever students beak up one of the rules, they will be hit as a form of punishment. Moreover, students are supposed to speak to their parents formally (they have to address them as Mr and Mrs instead of calling them by their names) and must pursue the career which runs in the family no matter if they take pleasure in doing that job or not, which is rather unusual these days. This is because nowadays schools have developed their methods of teaching as a result of the invention of technological devices and the society has shifted its eye towards the rights children have. In addition, people’s hairstyles and clothes make us reach to the conclusion that it is not set in modern times. So if this film had taken place today, it would have been different.
    At the beginning of the story, we get to know about the lives of some of the students that study at Welton who are the protagonists of the movie: Neil Perry, Charlie Dalton, Knox Overstreet, Todd Anderson and Steven Meeks, together with Mr Keating, the students’ new poetry teacher, who is an ex student from that institution. Even though he has experienced the fact of being in that school, he does not follow the traditional form of educating in there where professors are supposed to teach a subject objectively. Since the moment he has entered the classroom, Mr Keating encourages the kids to speak their minds and see the world in different ways. An example in which is shown that Keating also wants the children to be freer is when he explained them about the Dead poets Society and he leaves the poetry book into Neil’s room.
    Two characters who are mentioned the most are Todd and Neil. Todd is sent to Welton so as to shadow his brother’s steps whereas Neil is bound to fulfill his father’s dream of becoming a doctor. Both are doing what their families told them to do but not what they are looking forward to. Luckily, Todd’s parents are not as pending as Neil’s since they do not have a close relationship. The most outstanding difference between Todd and Neil is that the first character has the courage to challenge his father and Todd is a coward person who can’t even talk in front of the class. Talking about themes, ‘tradition’ is one which is very remarkable throughout the story in view of the fact that the academy follows a tradition towards education and religion until the arrival of Mr Keating. Regarding to the ending, Mr Keating encourages Neil not to give up but not to hide from their parents the fact that he is going to act, to the contrary, he supports him to talk with his father about his desire, so I do not see eye to eye with the directors of Welton who state that the professor is to blame for the incident. Nevertheless, I feel that if Mr Keating had never come into Neil’s life, he wouldn’t have committed suicide and he would have carried on with his miserable life because he was accustomed to that lifestyle and didn’t imagine a possibility of changing it till the teacher gave him an illusion of doing what he loved. I believe the film wouldn’t have had such a substantial impact if its conclusion hadn’t been as tragic as it is because you become aware of how important is to have a supportive family at the time of accomplishing your goals. And with respect to the setting, its location creates a feeling of isolation and unhappiness which coincides with the kids’ experience at Welton. For example, if it had been set in California, it would have been different because it is a lively city where such a disciplined school would not agree.



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  7. After I finished watching “Dead Poets Society”, I came to the conclusion of several questions that arose through watching the movie. Due to that fact, I decided to share with you my impression.
    First of all, the story took place in 1959 what affected several aspects of its characters lifestyle, such as the strict teaching method the school had, or the formal way the boys talked to their authorities. I am sure if the whole film was setted in the present there would be a lot of differences on it. There would be sometimes some lack of respect between the teenagers and their teachers or parents. Students would have more freedom to choose their motivations.
    As seen in the movie, there were more than one protagonist, who would be the students Neil, Todd, Knox, Charlie and their professor, Mr. Keating. When John Keating introduced himself to his class he explained that he had been a Welton alumnus too and, by analyzing the way he was , I could say he used to follow just his own path rather than doing everything that the high school would tell him to do. A good example could be the fact that he had been a member of the unsanctioned Dead Poets Society, a group of students who used to sneak off campus to a cave where they read poetry and verses. Mr. Keating, like most of the adults, had as his goals to make the boys succeed and reach their full potential in the future. He expressed them by telling his students to not waste their time and make their lives extraordinary. In other hand, Neil’s father express them by forcing Neil to finish medical school and prohibiting him to work as an actor, and Welton by teaching its students in a rigorous way and never letting them break free.
    Having in mind that goal, John encouraged the boys by telling them to rip out the introduction of their poetry books, having them take turns standing on the desk to teach them how they must look at life in a different way and inviting them to make up their own style of walking in a courtyard to encourage them to be individuals. Several actions which contradicted the value he was supposed to teach and enforced, especially, Todd who wasn't capable of making himself heard.
    Families apparently did not play a big part in the life of the students because Welton Academy had accommodation for pupils to stay, so the boys weren't going to see their family again until the school year had finished. One of the family experiences I found most controversial was Todd’s dysfunctional relationship with his parents, which was shown when they bought him for birthday the same desk from the previous year. Another polemical experience was the one of Neil, thanks to the way his father made him always follow his others. He prevented Neil to become an actor which triggered his choice of committing suicide.
    I extremely believe that the film wouldn’t have the same impact if it had different ending because Neil´s dead produced a different view of life to all the characters and even made Todd to produce his voice. Although if the setting would have been in sunny California the ending may hadn’t been so different due to how exhausted was Neil of not being capable of doing what he wanted and following his dreams how Keating had said.

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    1. Ok. Now, please post it where it´s been requested to.

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  9. My opinion in regards to de movie 'DEAD POETS SOCIETY' is that is a movie with a great moral. First of all, this movie made me think and analyze a lot the society I live nowadays and how thankful i should be of not having such an estrict relationship either with my parents or teachers. In 'Dead Poets Society' we can see how distant and formal relationships were. In these day you can talk and interchange ideas and comments with your teachers while before that confidence did not existes. Moreover, i was impressed by how parents treat and force their children to do what they wanted and did not warry about their son´s hapiness. Welton academy was a really traditional and conservative preparatory as it ethos of “tradition, honor, discipline, and excellence. On the other hand, proffesor John Keating who had graduated from Welton and was expected to follow the school´s path, was a guy who inspired his students to enjoy their lives, seize the day and make extraordinary things. In other words, Keating challenged their students to question the social and political norms that defines their lives and also the school, something that made the director furious. For example, he inspired Charlie to publish an article in the school newspaper arguing for why the school should also accept girls.
    The protagonists of the movie are Mr. Keating, Todd and Neil.
    This movie represents the change between modern and old education times as we can see like a war between teachers and partens who were old fashioned and Keating who was a revolutionist of the way of learning.
    My sincere opinion is that Neil was the bravest of the group as he was able to fight against his father and pursue his own dream although things did not go how he expected and finally commited suicide. Though Keating was blamed of Neil´s suicide I do not consider he was accountable for that as proffesor Keating only wanted their students to follow their dreams but he was going against that old and strict society. The reason of Neil´s suicide was clearly the pressure he had and the disability to follow her dream of becoming an actor.
    To end up, this movie reflects that a good teacher is not only the one who has the knowledge, but the one who cares about everything that happens to his students inside and outside the classroom, motivation, personalized attention, innovation, cares about personality, Interests, but above All recognize that their students are human beings with feelings, emotions, attitudes, abilities and because not to limitation, seeking to maximize their strengths to achieve meaningful learning and thus be able to face daily life.

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  10. DEAD POETS SOCIETY


    The action has been conveniently located in 1959, at a time far removed from the realities and problems of the educational actual system. This allowed the director to emphasize the conservatism and authoritarianism of the educational institution.
    The main characters are Mr. Keating, Todd and Neil. Other protagonists are Charlie, Knox, Cameron, Meeks, Pitts, Headmaster Nolan, Mc Allister, Mr Perry and Chris.
    Mr Keating is introduced to the viewer like a traditional professor of Welton ´s School. Although he is an ex student, he emphasizes how uninformed and mentally weak he was when he attended Welton, rather than lauding Welton's virtues and excellence. His teaching practices and the books he makes students read enforce them to live out his values. He puts the poetry book into Neil´s room with the purpose students continue with the Dead Poets Society meetings, so in this way they could learn to think for themselves, be creative and pursue their dreams.
    Other adults characters have different goals for students, they not consider boys should be encouraged to think or act freely. Families pressure their sons and don´t ask them what they like or want to be. For exampleTodd's parents just want him to be like his older brother, and Neil's parents force him to study Medicine although he tells his father he wants to be an actor. Because of this he commites suicide. It isn´t Mr Keating fault, Neil cannot stand anymore familial pressure and expectation.
    I think Neil should have confronted his father and tells him that he was going to be an actor even without his approval, or in the worst of case, run away from Welton and his family.
    In respect of the rest of the members of the DPS, in my opinion Todd is the bravest of the Keating´s boys. It is proved when professor Keating enters to the classroom to take his things, he breaks the silence and calls out him, then he stands on his desk crying "Oh captain, my captain."
    On the other hand, Cameron is the most coward as he tells Headmaster Nolan about the Dead Poets Society as he is fear of reprimand.
    Anyway, all the members of DPS show they are cowards too as they signs a document naming Mr. Keating as the reason for Neil's death, when they really don´t think that.
    About the ending, if the film has another final I think it would not impact in the same way. The fact that Neils commits suicide and Mr Keating is fired, shows how structure and closed education (formal/informal) was before.
    The final scene is promising. Todd stands on his desk and salutes Mr. Keating and many boys follow him, showing Mr Keating they learned from not to conform, and to seize the day.

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  12. This movie was recorded in 1959 at Welton Academy. One of the reasons that the story is connected with the setting is that the in the school is only for male students. Nowadays, few schools have that method, which is very outdated. Another reason could be that, in the movie, teenagers are accustomed to treat their parents in a very formal way (which is not done presently). Furthermore, students are forced by their parents to pursue a specific career to have spectacular success. If the movie took place nowadays, it would be very different in all three reasons, but mostly in the last one as, at this time, every parent approves what you want to do. The setting helps the mood in the way that generates a feeling of sadness and uncomfortable, that is same as what the students’ experience.


    There are 3 main characters:
    -Todd: the trouble he has with his dad and the institution. He is the bravest of the group of boys because he encouraged himself to tell his dad that he was going to do a play, nevertheless his dad made him quit.
    -Neil: Neil was the coward of the group because he didn’t want to tell the girl he liked, that she was pretty.
    -Mr. Keating: is introduced as the student’s favorite teacher. He is very enthusiastic about teaching new styles of classes to his students. We could see that he does not give classes strictly, not like the other teachers. Activities such as, playing sports or ripping off pages of their course books were those which Mr. Keating did in order to helped students expand their minds and think deeply. Mr. Keating inspires them to live out his values by breaking the rules and visualize their thoughts creatively



    Tradition could be one fact why parents oblige their sons to follow the career adults want to. They parents went through this when they were young, so they must experience this. It is a matter of tradition. Todd did not manage to break free at the moment of performing the concert. His dad made him quit the play and that lead him to suicide.


    Family plays a big role in the movie. Parents pressure them to proceed their expectations and hopes, instead of what the children want (which is another thing). There is an inner tension between child and parent. Children wishes more family involvement in their lives and to be allowed to do what children want.
    Neil and Todd’s families are similar on that they have to follow what their families told them. In addition, parents do not want to ruin the opportunity to be in that prestigious university.


    Adult characters do not have similar objectives for students because they have different passion and ways of thinking. Mr Keating wants them to do what they prefer in their lives. However, parents demands them to do what parents appreciate. Also, other teachers prepare them to progress in life no matter what they continue doing in life.


    The dramatic impact the ending had, utterly amazed me. I considered that if the film had another ending, the impact would be much less because it gives you an important message: teens should be authorized to choose what they want to do in their future.
    I believe that Neil wouldn’t had committed suicide if he had never met Mr Keating because he was the one that told the children to break the rules and to realize their dreams. One alternative to Neil’s situations could be: talk about his problems with his friends.

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  13. Unfortunately, my analysis is too long for the blog, so I'll leave the link to it here. I would like to add that due to the fact that I've been busy most time of the week and weekend, i was able just now to finish it since i had started it long ago. I guess i waited too long to end it and then it became too complicated. I'm very sorry about the delay, but i didn't wish to write it in a hurry.

    http://www.twitlonger.com/show/n_1spsdus?new_post=true

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    1. Insightful. Thanks for your contribution. Now go and post it the way it should. :)

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    2. Dead Poets Society is a movie set in 1959 which tells the story of “an English teacher who inspires his students through his teaching of poetry”, to which I agree but believe there’s so much more beyond that. Naturally, at this time of the history, education in institutions as Welton Academy was based on a mischievous form of political and social control which would disable young men to have a thought of their own, thus reproducing this into future generations. Had the movie been set in the new millennial, I dare say it wouldn’t have been the same. Not only because of the oscillation of the social norms, but also due to the fact that one will never be able to stand in the same position as another being, no matter how similar the circumstances are. What I mean to say is, even if the movie had been set one day later, it might as well have shifted the mood, themes or even plot. I can’t imagine the film being based on the modern day, since that situation wouldn’t have possibly happened. Why is this so? If a professor as Mr. Keating was introduced into the school I attend to, ze would be welcomed, as we are encouraged to have critical thinking. I would guess that parents would be pleased as well since it’s nice to know that your children are being taught how to be intellectually free. However, in the film John Keating was received with abundant applauses yet they were suspicious and skeptical. This can in a way portray how he would be great at his job but judged by the outer community due to his unorthodox teaching techniques. We can be assured that he was great because while he was not the teenagers’ savior, he enabled them to find their own savior inside themselves, “thereby free themselves from the context in which they suffer”, which is the most valuable learning. Only a few of the students in Keating’s class are deeply touched by his teachings. These are called Neil, Todd, Knox and Charlie (Nuwanda). Despite the fact that each one of them has a story, I would say that the main characters of the movie are undoubtedly Neil and Mr. Keating, since it focuses on how the professor’s advice gives life to the inexpert Neil yet indirectly drives him to commit suicide. How can this be so? John encouraged him to indulge his artistic passion while Neil’s father forced him to pursue a “serious” career. Both had different and respectable goals for the adolescent, yet they expressed it in different ways. For instance, the professor did in a supportive and affectionate manner throughout the time in which his father was obnoxiously arbitrary and inflexible. Neil found himself trapped into a tight and small -metaphorical- box called “tradition”.

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    3. How could he not be? Firstly, he was not able to speak his mind about his own goals for the future, at least not in front of his father. Secondly, his whole life revolved around tradition; for instance his school, his family beliefs, what he was expected to become. Although this concept was most shown in Neil’s life, it applied to the others members of the Dead Poets Society as well, and even to the rest of the students in Welton. Todd’s family wasn’t as present as the one of the “actor”, but it is certain that he has a high bar due to his very well-known and successful brother. In my view, Mr. Anderson feels that his parents remain indifferent to his life as long as his grades are high. Both Todd and Neil had very high expectations imposed by their families but, in my opinion, one was more distressed and oppressed; obviously this was the one who killed himself. Some people wonder…. “why was there such ending? Doesn’t it spread the message that following one’s dreams is not to be done?” My interpretation was that reality is heart-breaking, and sometimes it doesn’t matter how hard one tries, the world will destroy and even if there had been a chance to achieve one’s goals, reality tears you apart to the point that you don’t want to keep trying. Having this in mind, we can be sure that it wasn’t Mr. Keating’s fault what happened to Neil, although without his intrusion the ending might not have been the same. I say “might” because there’s a chance that it were, but because he felt so oppressed he couldn’t even be part of the show for example. Speaking for myself, this pupil’s action is not to be considered as coward no less. He couldn’t cope with the terrible truth of what his life would consist of in the future and decided he wouldn’t stand that, which spoke volumes about his personality. Who I would dare call coward is Cameron, because when risk stuck its head, the dishonorable student blamed everything (the chaos, Neil’s death) on Mr. Keating, who did nothing but encouraged the pupils to be themselves, in order to save himself. Nevertheless, every other member of the Dead Poets Society did so as well. In this moment of the movie, I felt disheartened because John had been such as inspiration to them, and all they did was place all the responsibilities on his shoulders, making him being fired but apart from that, being seen as a miserable and barbarian being in front of society’s eyes. That’s the reason why I would say that Todd was the bravest of them all: he literally and metaphorically stood taller than everyone else to defend Keating’s honour and grace.
      “Carpe diem, seize the day boys, make your lives extraordinary”

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  14. We have lately been working with the film Dead Poets Society, directed by Peter Weir. The story takes place mostly in a boarding school in the state of Vermont and is set in the year 1959. It cannot be denied that the society has changed a lot since then, and personally I would say that the most remarkable discrepancy is the kind of relationship or bond that teenagers have with their elders and school superiors. Nowadays, communication between parents and children is much more informal than it used to, and, at least in the case of our school, I also feel that the teacher-student relation is also pretty relaxed. Many years ago, it may have been considered a tradition the fact of pursuing the same career as your parents had, or even study something even more difficult, which would make them feel proud. A strict relationship with professors, and physical punishment were also traditions at that school. The theme of the movie is the break-free of a group of guys, accompanied by a new teacher at school, whose first impression is to be a normal professor, but who ends up being revolutionary. The fact of him having graduated from that same school made me jump to the conclusion that he would be as structured as the other teachers there, but having had that kind of education led him to understand that poetry could be learnt in a totally different way, for instance, he gave a lesson in the garden instead of giving a lecture in a classroom. He and two of his pupils, Todd and Neil, are the main characters of the movie, because these changes in the traditional education system that they follow are produced by this professor, and affect mainly, those two learners. The movie shows two opposed adult thoughts: on the one hand, we can group the parents, teachers and head of the school as the old-fashioned model and on the other hand, Mr. Keating would be on his own as the subversive, radical, rebel new mentor, whose main goal is to help youngsters develop a way of thinking on their own, and be able to express themselves, which would have been impossible if it had not for him, as any argument deserved a physical punishment(as in the scene in which the head teacher hits one of the members of the group). Neither of the families of the previously mentioned teens really cares about what their kids want for their future, they just want them to be successful, but the only way is if they study what had been assigned by their parents. In the case of Neil, the fact of his father not letting him follow his dream, which was becoming an actor, made him commit suicide. It could be though that Neil would not have committed suicide if he had never met that teacher, as he would not have thought of remonstrating with his father in the first place. This tragedy was what later on in the movie makes Todd leave, and this dramatic ending is for me, the clue to understand the way those students felt during high school, they were pressurized to a limit that they were not able to control. The setting in a winter season gives the movie a special meaning of coldness, which could be compared and related to the actor´s characteristics.
    Although he could be considered to be a coward, it is my firm belief that Neil was the bravest of his group, as had the inner strenght to discuss with his father. On the other hand, Todd would be the coward of the team, who dropped out of school and left.
    I am pretty sure that the poetry book got to Neil's room with the teacher's help, and he does this although he knew and informed the teens that it wouldn't be taken as a positive action by the school authorities. It is undoubtly one of his lessons: breaking the rules.
    This film is a good way to show the young people of these days how other people lived in the previous years, and how they started revolutionary movements to change their situation and to get to what it is nowadays.

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  15. After seeing "Dead Poet Society", we can analyze that the story takes place in 1959 as we can see how students are taught and punished in a particular way. However, it would be completely different if the film happened in the present because, firstly, schools are mixed, secondly students have the possibility to choose what they will study in the future and finally the teachers are restrain from punishing students in a physical way which, personally, would be utterly shocking.
    Mr. Keating, one of the protagonists, is a divergent character compared to other teachers. The other instructor’s aim consist of making the students pursue the career which was chosen by their parents, even if they didn’t like it, as well as making their ideals and feelings being repressed. Nonetheless, Mr. Keating urged them to follow their dreams, to study what they want and to express freely. I consider that the main characters of this film are Mr Keating, Neil and Todd.
    Adult characters scheme different goals for their children no matter what they think. For example Todd's father expected him to follow in his brother´s footsteps who had also attended the Welton Academy. Another instance is Neil's father who made his son study medicine even though he told him that he wanted to be an actor.
    I believe that tradition is a subject that stands out because, like Todd's family, many parents send their children to Welton and in a future those children will send their children to the same academy and so on as in a vicious circle. But, after Neil's death, some of the members of his group of friends are able to break free from their monotonous lifestyle.
    Mr. Keating convinces his students to remember his value "Carpe Diem", he proposes to live to the fullest, because sooner or later everyone will disappear therefore they have to seize every moment without regret in the future.
    I dare say that the parents play a paramount role since it is they who choose the future of their children without their assessment. There is a similarity between both families and is that their children are forced to pursue a specific career without their consent.
    Sadly, this story concludes with Neil's suicide. As a result, the group of friends, or at least some of them, go against their parents to follow their dreams. If the end were not this, I doubt that any of the characters could have been released from the chains of their parents.
    This film takes place in a cloudy and heavy environment. As a consequence, causes the spectator a sad and depressing atmosphere. It would change a lot the fact that this film took place in a warm and sunny atmosphere since it would lose all the essence of the tragic story.

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  16. “The Dead Poets Society”. Being a film recorded in late 1950’s, we can see how the society and their ideologies influence in the life of our protagonists. For instance, Welton’s Academy was a college only for men, if a student broke one of the rules he would be severely punished with defferent techniques, and how the students talk very formal to their relatives and authorities. Nowadays, thankfully, our society is way different from the movie, schools are for both genders and they had been banned to use torture methods to punish their students. In addition, children had changed the way they register to their parents.
    As we start watching the movie we notice the story takes place at Welton’s Academy which is a traditional and conservative college, which teaches “Tradition, Honor, Discipline”. Mr. Keating, who once was a student of Welton’s, recently became the literature professor at this college. And we know this because, Mr. Keating says so while teaching his students for the first time. His students even found an old yearbook from the academy in which Keating’s photo appears, when he was still studying in the academy. One of the students notices a little note in Keating’s old photo, saying something about a Dead Poet Society, this caught the interest of them, most importantly Todd Anderson and Neil Perry, who can be taken as the main protagonists, but there are also others who can be counted as protagonists, and they are Richard Cameron, Gerard Pitts, Steven Meeks, Knox Overstreet, Charlie Dalton and Mr. Keating.
    At Welton’s Academy every student has a “fixed” future by their parents and, for them (the students) it is mandatory to address all the school authorities as Sir’s. But, the new literature teacher, Mr. Keating, has a very unfamiliar perspective about the traditional teaching of the school or even with the students’ lives, because this system did not let the students have much freedom in the campus or in their lives due to their parents who did not give the students the freewill to choose what they want to study. For instance, when Keating teaches their student about “Carpe Diem”, which means Seize the day, he wants them to think out-of-the-box and to do what they feel it is the right thing. As the students did not have much freedom so, they looked for something they felt to break free. And, they found a solution which was to revive the “Dead Poets Society”.
    In class, Mr. Keating encourages their students to express themselves instead of recalling what the books said so, he orders them to rip out some “unnecessary” pages from their books. As I said before, Keating also teaches them to seize the day (Carpe Diem), which not only will have an impact on their class, it will encourage in their lives to fight against the odds. The values they gained are enforced near the end of the movie, when the students receive the news of Mr. Keating being fired. After hearing those horrible news, they start to make a fuss standing on the desks and defending their teacher, Mr. Keating.

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  17. The families played a paramount role in the movie because they were pressurizing their sons to be what they (the parents) desire, without caring about their sons’ feelings nor what they wanted to be as an adult. In the movie, Neil’s and Todd’s families are quite different. In one hand, Todd’s family seemed not to even care much about him as he was the second son of their family, he was kind of a shadow of his brother. They even send him the same birthday present twice. On the other hand, Neil’s family was making an incredible effort to send him into Welton’s Academy but, they were putting too much pressure on him to become a doctor without caring what he felt about it nor what he wanted to do. When Neil’s reveals against his father so he can become an actor. His father keeps putting more pressure on him and pushed Neil to the extreme decision of committing suicide. In my opinion, Neil wouldn´t have taken this extreme decision of committing suicide if Mr. Keating had not appeared in his life. Because Mr. Keating told him to do want felt it was correct, he told him to “Carpe Diem”, but the only thing professor Keating wanted was that their students can pursue they dreams without worrying at all about the formal and very strict society of those times.
    In my opinion, Neil was the coward of the group, because he was afraid of his father. But, throughout the movie he starts to be more confident of his actions and courage to face his father so, in the end, he was one of the bravest. The other two students of Keating’s boys who were bravest of them all, are Chralie (Newuanda) for posting an article in the academy´s newspaper expressing the desire of having girls in Welton’s and when he is caught, he accepts the consequences without blaming the group; and Todd, because he was the first one to ever stand up and jump on the desk while saluting to his teacher with “Oh Captain, My Captain” and after that defending him so he does not get fired.
    I believe that Professor Keating was who put the poet book in Neil’s room. I believe Professor Keating was trying to encourage their students to break through the stereotypes of the society and to seize the day, even though the Academy’s administration were strict with their traditions and rules.
    In my view, the film would have a complete different meaning if it ends in an separate way, because with Neil’s death it makes the audience aware about the importance of having supportive family when you are pursuing a dream of becoming whatever you want.
    The film was recorded in the state of Vermont because of the climate in there. Because the climate is cold, cloudy, and moist with not even one sunny day. This climate helps to give a bad mood, as everyone in the academy is ruthless towards everyone who cross in front of them. In contrast, if the movie had been recorded in the sunny California, the mood would be other, because many people relate the sun as fun or something similar. Also, California inhabitants are more tend to receive tourists, which means families in there are more open to people than the families in Vermont.

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  18. The Dead Poets Society, being set during 1959, shows a rather orthodox and strict way of teaching students, in addition to that, it also shows the pressure that parents put on their children to succeed on their academic studies and to pursue certain career (such as Medicine or Engineering) on those times, this being, in my view, the “trigger” to the movie’s plot. I consider that, given the case the movie was set during this year, the plot could be affected somehow, because parents nowadays tend to let their children choose whatever career they want. On the movie, the main reason why the events happen the way they do is, in my opinion, due to the fact that these kids from the DPS did not feel content with what their progenitors were choosing for their future, against their will and without taking into account their children’s opinions, on the other hand, if the plot was set in a more contemporary time, maybe the families of Todd or Neil would not have put this pressure on them for reaching these standards and thus, the Dead Poets Society would have never been reborn. Mr Keating, one of the most important characters in the movie, is also one of the most interesting ones, being a former student of Welton, he contradicts one of the pillars of the institution, tradition. On Keating’s first appearance, I was utterly confused, having seen the other teachers, who were strict and seemed to only care about giving their lessons and that homework was handed in on time, Keating shows to be passionate about the subject he taught, English, and to have great esteem to his students. His method of teaching was also very different to the ones of other teachers at Welton, he made his students rip off pages of their course books, he made them stand up on their desks, among other exercises that helped his pupils develop a way of thinking by themselves. The movie has two main protagonists, Todd and Neil. The movie deals with both of their stories: Neil and his existential crisis and Todd and the girl he loves. The theme of tradition is usually enforced in the way students live their lives in the fact that they are always forced to follow the commands of adults, just as the adults did when they were young, in the fact that when they finish studying at Welton, they will be studying at college, the same thing the students before them did, in other words, everything they do has already been done by previous generations and will be done by the following ones, a vicious cycle only broken when the children leave or drop out Welton, or death. Mr Keating is often and actively encouraging his students throughout the movie, during his lessons he quotes numerous times different verses of different poems from different authors to show his students that he is not the only one living with this values; every action he does in the movie support his values, teaching at Welton is, to my view, the biggest of them because he transmits this ideals to the teenagers that most need them, in such a hostile environment for ideas that encourage having ideas that contradict the dominant ones, he is a kind of a “saving angel”.

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  19. Family is one of the most important influences in the lives of the students as they impose them limitations and a certain “level” they have to reach, or else they will bring dishonour and will be severely punished. This is reflected in both Todd’s and Neil’s experiences: In Todd’s case, he has to fulfil the expectation of an older brother who excelled in all subjects only because they are from the same family. In Neil’s case, he is imposed this school, a certain career and job, because his father “didn’t have an opportunity like this and he would have loved to have it” and because “he has worked a lot to give him this and he is NOT going to ruin it”, Neil’s father is projecting in his son his own dreams. I find the ending highly impactful and, even though I was expecting the Dead Poets Society to be dissolved in one way or another, I was not expecting Neil to commit suicide at all, what is more, if the movie had other ending, it would not be as impressive. Having its setting in Welton academy truly helps the atmosphere of the movie; the cold and snow of Vermont make the academy seem as a very hostile place where very few can survive, a place where either you adapt or you die. Other places, such as sunny California or Miami, would not generate this sensation of danger and hostility this institution has.
    The movie deeply develops Neil’s situation with Mr Keating and his father, and it shows how Neil’s father firmly believes that is Keating’s fault that his son killed himself, but even if he had never met Keating, he was bound to live unhappily (or commit suicide anyways) because even before he me his English teacher he stated he disliked the way his father treated him. Keating’s boys were all brave, unfortunately, we only know the stories of Neil and Todd and the only ones I am able to judge and they are both, in my view, the bravest of Keating’s boys and cowards. Neil was brave because he took part in the play, even when his father prohibited this t him and he was brave and coward when he killed himself; it takes, in my view, a great amount of courage to grab a gun and shoot oneself, but there is always another solution to challenges in life rather than suicide. Todd was really brave for confessing his love to a girl he only met once and because of the crazy things he did for her; but he was a coward to kiss a girl when she was sleeping and without her consent and he was really stupid to attempt to kiss her right in front of her boyfriend.

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  20. The poetry book might have ended up in Neil’s room put by Keating, knowing that Neil, Todd and their friends have great potential to revive the DPS, he had the certainty that these boys were craving for a place to express themselves and feel that they were free in a place that kept them captive. Keating, if he was the one who left the book in Neil’s room, left it there knowing the bad reputation the Society had because he might have seen himself in Neil, he knew that Neil would be the optimum leader.

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