Dead Poets Society :: essays research papers

When I first saw Dead Poets Society, it was nothing I expected. The film is quite serious and it is without question the best movie I've ever seen. It takes place in 1959 at Welton Academy, a private collage prep school for boys where discipline is the most important goal and any demonstration of a free thought is strictly prohibited . One voice stands out among narrow-minded administration-John Keatings, eccentric and inspiring teacher. He wants his students to "suck the bone of life to the marrow", "to seize the day", and to make their lives "extraordinary". Keatings teaches poetry, but his students get a lot more than that- they learn passion, courage, and romance. Group of his students dare to form Dead Poets Society, a secret organization. One of the boys, Neil, who wants to be an actor but whose overbearing father forbids him to , commits a suicide and dies . His roommate , Todd, is trying to live up to expectations after his brother becomes the school's valedictorian. At the end, Mr. Keatings is fired after being accused of having a negative impact on his students. Self-esteem becomes one of the centers of the movie. Neil's low self-esteem reveals itself only in the relationship with Neil's father, but leads Neil to his tragic end. On the other hand, Todd, with the help of Professor Keatings, was able to build up his self-esteem . John Keatings wasn't a regular professor: his teaching methods were very different from those of others in Welton Academy. The relationship between Todd and professor Keatings is quite interesting because we can see the transformation that Todd went through from being afraid to answer teacher's question to being the first one to show his appreciation for Mr. Keatings when doing so could lead to expelling from the school.It is very interesting to see how John Keatings establishes the relationship with his students. He is quite open with his students about his attitude towards the world and his ideas about the purposes of life, and other general things, however, at the same time he doesn't reveal his personal life. This is very understandable due to the fact that he is a teacher, and his role as a teacher prevents him from getting too personal with his students. Moreover, in my opinion, it was very important to keep this barrier between the professor and his students because otherwise they could've lost their respect for him as a teacher.