Carpe Diem - seize the day - is the main theme of the movie ‘Dead Poets Society’
starring Robert Williams and Robert Sean Leonard. It tells the story of a group of
students who, inspired by Mr. Keating’s classes, choose to think for themselves and
do what they feel is best for them to “suck the marrow out of life”. They are so deeply
influenced by the words “Carpe Diem” that they do so even if it gets them into
trouble.
Mr. Keating is their English teacher who very quickly proves himself to be very
inspiring and unconventional in his teaching methods. However, while his students
are very focused and interested in his classes, his colleagues and the head teacher
are not as impressed. They believe his approach to teaching English is controversial
and that young people should not be encouraged to think for themselves and that
they should be taught discipline instead.
The plot focuses mainly on the group of students, all of whom want to change
something about them. Whether it is chasing their dream of becoming an actor or
sharing their feelings with someone they love, they are all too scared to do anything
until their English teacher shows them that now is the time to chase their dreams, no
matter what anyone else thinks or says.
In my opinion, even though the outcome of this mindset at first turns out to be very
tragic, in the end, every single one of them achieves what they want, even if only for
a brief moment. I find the way they all make sacrifices to succeed very inspirational.
The Dead Poets Society itself is a club first set up by Mr. Keating when he was a
student and then resurrected by his students. It mainly focuses on reading, writing
and sharing poetry, but more importantly, it focuses on supporting each other to take
brave steps and seize the day.
I enjoyed this movie a lot for great acting, an interesting plot, a surprising ending and
a very inspirational message that really makes you think. Even though I do not
believe I am going to do anything unconventional or random after watching this film, it
still made me think about who I am and who I want to be. Additionally, I can easily
imagine how this movie could change another person’s life completely.
Patryk