Desks & Dreams: Stepping Stones in The Dead Poet's Society

I would like for you to remember the time when
your teacher had you stand on your desk to recite a poem.

 

Wait, you didn’t do that?

I know what you’re thinking. Laughable. Absurd. Hysterical! You wouldn’t find such a thing in a classroom, what heresy!

That probably didn’t happen to you. But in Mr. Keating’s classroom, such an event would be a typical Tuesday.

"Boys, you must strive to find your own voice. Because the longer you wait to begin, the less likely you are to find it at all. Thoreau said, "Most men lead lives of quiet desperation." Don't be resigned to that. Break out!" -John Keating

Education for bored high-school students at an all-boys school may be just be a stone, kicked about and tossed on the side of the road. Something in the way. A stumbling block, a hindrance to an individual's life. But in the brilliant movie, "Dead Poets Society", education is a stepping stone, a pathway, serving as a journey to the discovery of self, the development of identity.

On the first day of school, the boys file in to their classroom for English class, dressed to a T in their pressed uniforms, hair slicked to the side into a neat comb over, looking forward to lunch time.

Mr. Keating, an English teacher played by none other than Robin Williams, walks quietly in the room, whistling Beethoven's 8th symphony. He looks around, ventures down an aisle of desks, and casually strolls out. The boys look around confused, expecting an old hag to come in and tell them to open up their books. Keating pokes his head back in, and says, "Well, come on!" Still confused, they follow him.

He takes them to a display case in the hallway, a sort of "hall of fame" of previous students. It's filled with old, black and white photos, of boys their age on football teams and class pictures. This scene, perhaps what made Dead Poets Society famous, served as a turning point in many of the boy's lives. He tells them to lean in and listen to what the boys have to say. (Should I mention the boys are STILL confused? They are taken out of their norm, slapped up the side of the head, awake and aware. Within a matter of minutes, Mr. Keating has captured their attention for life)

Keating says the boys in the picture, just like them, have something to say. He tells them to lean in closer. And then he proceeds to deliver perhaps one of the most famous monologues in film history.

"They're not that different from you, are they? Same haircuts. Full of hormones, just like you. Invincible, just like you feel. The world is their oyster. They believe they're destined for great things, just like many of you, their eyes are full of hope, just like you. Did they wait until it was too late to make from their lives even one iota of what they were capable? Because, you see gentlemen, these boys are now fertilizing daffodils. But if you listen real close, you can hear them whisper their legacy to you. Go on, lean in. Listen, you hear it? - - Carpe - - hear it? - - Carpe, carpe diem, seize the day boys, make your lives extraordinary."

And in this class, the boys do just that. They develop a newfound love for poetry, allowing it to spring forth from their souls. Keating pulls out of them something they didn't even know was there.

He teaches his classes in the most unusual ways. They play kickball, reciting poetry as they go in for the kick. They walk outside and step to their own tune, developing an individual walk. They stand up on their desks, as Keating challenges them to see the world in a new way, a different perspective.

And as the title of the film says, a few of the boys create their own "Dead Poets Society" reciting famous poems from “dead poets” and reading them aloud in their personal time, even bringing musical instruments…finding a new form of freedom in expression.

Ok seriously.

Can you imagine a group of teenage boys reading poems aloud? Because they want to? They discovered a hidden power in words. In language. In prose. In speech. And as Keating challenged them, they found their voice.

In Mr. Keating’s class, boys become men. Not because they are growing older, but because their identities are springing to life. Because of a teacher who plays the role of a gardener in their lives.

Keating digs up the roots to get to the bottom, the foundation, where potential is found and growth is possible. He plants seeds and sees growth. He changes life. And part of me wonders…isn’t school supposed to be this way?

Education has a power to bring forth an identity, to make growth possible.

Keating does everything right. Although, maybe not by society's standards. Some classrooms are prisons, but Keating's classroom is a garden, springing to life and bringing forth new fruit. The students want to come to class. Why? 

Because they feel valued, they feel powerful, and they feel that they are important.

The first poem Keating mentions, is the last poem mentioned in the movie. It's Walt Whitman's "O Captain, my Captain." And as if these boys are mere sailors, serving aboard a ship, Keating is their captain and leader, leading them to new lands, arising new dreams.

Keating leaves his legacy behind, and the boys salute to him, for making them feel valued. With the power of poetry, and the potential to make a difference, they are now ready to face the world.

So perhaps the unimportant stone of education, grounded in the tire tracks in the dirt, trampled over one too many times, maybe it's important. Maybe that stone is a larger stone, serving as a ground on which to stand, important to the fabrication of identity, a mere, but important stepping stone on the pathway to life.

"No matter what anybody tells you, words and ideas can change the world." -John Keating

The movie does travel into some rocky waters towards the end and may cause emotional tension, but it is truly worth the ride. The positive journey of the movie redeems the stormy seasons. It might break your heart, but it will certainly impact your life.