I honestly didn’t know what to expect from Dead Poets Society before watching it this past Friday. It was pretty evident what the movies focus would be based on the few opening scenes. The movie opens previewing a preparatory school showing bright students destined for an ivy league education and their parents looming over their heads. The students new English teacher challenges them to think differently, explore the world through poetry and escape from the traditionalism enforced by the school if only for the duration of that one class. The students escalate it to another level though, congregating outside of class, sneaking out of their dormitories and reading verse. After the parents caught wind of their actions things started to go south, and this is what I found most frustrating about the student’s actions.

This conflict between the children and their parents can be seen in every person in the Dead Poets Society in one form or another. Each one of them has not had an opportunity to even develop a personality as their parents loom over them with every waking breath. Only after these meeting were they finally able to mature and grow and be something other than carbon copies of each other. They were all force to go to the school, and knew nothing else other than academics. I kept thinking to myself constantly during the movie, why are they not telling their parents how they really feel? I was lucky enough to have parents who would have been supportive no matter what I decided to pursue. It was just so hard to process for me, being in a situation in which you cannot freely do what you want, with your parents exerting control over every aspect of your life. The parent’s perspective can also be rationalized, and it is depicted by Neil’s father, how he values the financial security of a more orthodox career path for Neil. His father made the decision for Neil that the happiness from money is more important than the happiness of fulfilling his career aspirations. The decision he made for Neil ultimately cost him Neil’s life as he committed suicide because he could not bear the fact of spending the next 10+ years of his life becoming a doctor, and not pursuing his acting aspirations. The blame was placed on Keating, but by then Keating’s job had already been done letting the students find themselves through reading poetry and unlocking its meaning.