Monday, December 8, 2008

Dead Poets Society Reflection

After watching clips from the great movie, Dead Poets Society, please write what quotes/ideas/messages Robin Williams' character, John Keating teaches his students and justify why they resonate with or speak to you. With regard to what he teaches, why does it stand out to you? Do you agree/disagree? How can you apply what he says?

11 comments:

Lauren L said...

In Dead Poets Society John Keating teaches his students a lot about living your life while you can. He talked about how some day we are all going to die, so while you are alive now have your voice heard because words and ideas can change the world. Don’t take everything as face value. Look into things with deeper meaning. His favorite main phrase is carpediem, seize the day. All of this really stood out to me because I agree with it all. Life is too short to not have your voice heard. You also only get to live once, to make it amazing. Do everything you want to do in life before it’s too late. I think Mr. Keating was taking a risk teaching like this because everyone is use to the same old thing. I would love to have been in that class though because I feel like I would really benefit from all of the life lessons he was teaching. I think we need more teachers like him, instead of the boring teachers who just make us take notes and the whole class gets nothing out of it.

Anonymous said...
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Anonymous said...

John Keating talked a lot about carpe diem or seizing the day. Why not live life to the fullest? because in the end ‘we are food for worms’. He tells the class to make their lives extraordinary. “The powerful play goes on, you can have a verse. What’s your verse to contribute?” Keating not only tells his students to fully live everyday but to contribute greatness to the world. He expresses that they should show and express their passion for life, to have a passion for life.
Mr. Keating does this demonstration to show how people conform and the difficulty in keeping your own beliefs. He asks three of his students to walk a few laps; in the beginning they all have their own unique strides. But by the end of the laps they all are walking to the same pace, in sync with each other. John Keating explains how important it is to be true to your own stride, to stick up for your beliefs.
It stands out to me because Mr. Keating is so enrapture about what he has to say that it means that much more. You can tell he believes every word that he says with every particle in his being. He is so true and strong in his beliefs, and I think that’s a rare thing to come by.
I completely agree with everything that he says I think that it is important to be yourself and stand up for what you believe in. Above all I think that carpe diem is the most important thing to live by. You never know what day could be your last.
I can do at least one great thing a day. Everyday something greater than the last and just enjoying every moment I have on this planet. Making the most of every minuet and just filling my life with passion and excitement. To fulfill everyday every last second of my life.

Joyce B. said...

John Keating has a very unique teaching style, right off the bat he tells his students to rip out the beginning of their text books because he doesn’t think poetry should be rated. I believe that its true literature should not be rated on a scale; you should take what you can from it and if you enjoy something you read don’t let someone tell you that it’s not good because it doesn’t rate very well on their scale. Another one of his messages is carpe diem or cease the day. Life is too short to waste it, don’t take any thing for granted and make every moment of your life worth while. He also said that every one dies one day and we will become food for the worms. I thought this was a very humbling statement, in the end we will become food for creatures that we have always thought were so insignificant compared to us. You don’t have to be a supper hero to save the world this was another idea that struck me from the movie. Mr. Keating’s said words and ideas can change the world, I think this means nobody is to small to make a difference if you put your mind to it you can do anything. When Mr. Keating’s said the human race is filled with passion I had to stop and think about it for a bit. I agree that the human race does have the potential to be full of passion, but in actuality I don’t think a very large percentage is full of passion. Too many people these days just kind do what it takes to make it through the day but nothing more. Constantly change your point of view, don’t be hard set on something unless you have really evaluated the other sides/options. When you think you really know something try looking at it from a different point of view and see if that changes any thing. Strive to find your own life; this is a favorite moral of mine. Don’t become part of the crowd that follows the beaten path and never tries something new. You don’t have to act and look the same as others to hang out with them. Strive to find your own unique way of living!

jbarry said...

In Dead Poets Society, Keating teaches his students the essentials of succeeding in life. He stresses "carpe diem", which means seize the day. He also teaches that works of the heart cannot be measured on on a scale, and that people are but a small line in the larger play of life. His message is valid because we may only get one chance in life to succeed, and we need to take it now. Procrastination eliminates ones chances to succeed. I think if more people took Keating's message to heart, we would be a more successful nation and world.

Trent W. said...

Robin Williams' character, Keating, in The Dead Poet Society was a very unconformist teacher. It was a unique teaching style as Joyce suggested. Not only was it unique but it did get the majority of the students to think and become leaders to a degree, like the shy one, who overcame his fears. Because of Keating we saw him gradually, grow, as did every other. Some were degenerated at the end though; I think it generally had to do with the attitude of the people. Anyway, Keating got everyone motivated to think, learn and lead. He used the phrase Carpe Diem, obviously the Latin phrase of seize the day. "Make Your Lives Extordinary!" he also said. He took risks even when he attended the school. He set a basis of thinking, not thinking like others. To be candid, the Doctor of Literature that wrote the introduction of the book knew nothing, no common sense. It seems the more education, the stupider some people become!Thankfully, Keating ignored it and ripped it out. This shows the risk involved of thinking the world, be it communism or not. We shouldn't be told how to think, or what to think, or what to learn for a more radical approach, only what we choose.
Well to basically get to the point, I see the phrase Carpe Diem, the word Diem in particular and having a similar root to the word God in the romance languages. Dios, in Spanish, Dieu in French, Dues in Portuguese, and Dio in Italian. it's similar to the word day in most of the romance languages. From this I see tha phrase Seize God, or go to Him. And He raises us higher but not before we con over come obstacles. It's always worth it.And it's our own prize, not to anyone else. So how does this tie in? Good Question! How many obstacles did each person face? Who gave up eventually and who didn't? It a risk they all took some grow and others...well failed. So it's all about choices the way I see it, and whether or not our beliefs actually connect with the doings.

Dani H said...

Robin Williams, as the teacher in Dead Poets Society, tries to teach his students the meaning of life. The meaning of life was what he believed to live every day like it was their last. He used the saying “Carpe Diem” meaning seize the day. I have this quote written in Sharpie on my mirror in my room. Every morning I wake up to “Carpe Diem” and I honestly do try to achieve as much as possible in that one simple 24-hour period. This quote really stood out to me because I feel the kids he was teaching and my fellow peers, including myself, go through life in a routine. The teenagers in the movie are brilliant students with amazing futures, but they know their futures, it has already been decided for them. Robin Williams reveals a different path they could take, if they wanted. He was just telling them, they didn’t have to be a doctor or a lawyer, and they could be a poet or an actor. I agree with what Robin Williams is teaching because are only teenagers, how are we already suppose to know what we want to do. I also agree that we should do in life what make us happy not makes the people around us happy, for instance our parents. So, be what you want be, do what you want to do, and “Carpe Diem”.

Dylan L said...
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Dylan L said...

In Dead Poets Society John Keating emphasizes the quote "Carpe Diam," which means seize the day. He talked about how no one lives forever, so don’t wait to take advantage of a good opportunity, "make your life extraordinary." He explains to the class the importance of having your own voice. He tells the class that there words and ideas can change the world. Everybody has something to contribute to the world, don’t hold anything back and live your life to its fullest potential. His passion for teaching wore of on the kids and showed them that the world is filled with passion. I agree with many of his teachings and believe that he sent an excellent message to his students. This movie shows that much of the knowledge to succeed in life is thought outside of the class room and not from structured text books. This movie was a motivation to live life to the fullest and remember what is truly important in life. Be yourself and “Seize the Day.”

Kelsey W said...

I have seen the movie, Dead Poets Society many times, and yet, I still learn something different from it each time. Mr. Keating teaches his students many life lessons that they should use to succeed in life, just like Josh said. The main lesson is "carpe diem", meaning seize the day. "Do what you can, while you can" says Mr. Keating. You will soon run out of time to do what you want. He also brings up, "Don’t wait until it’s too late" and "Make your lives extraordinary". He is saying these things to his students as they are looking at pictures from the students from the past. This scene has always stood out to me, just to see there faces and just how he teaches this lesson. I often wish that the teachers and Arapahoe would teach this way. In his teachings he also says, "Words and ideas can change the world". I completely agree with this because think about the Wright Brothers, they thought of the idea of the airplane, told somebody about it so they could build it, and now planes are leaving the airport all the time. There is another scene in this movie that sticks out to me. This is the one where he has all of his students get on top of there desks and look at the classroom from a different view. Here he was teaching the students that they should view the world in multiple ways, it could change there life, it may not. Sports, who would have thought that he would relate sports to how they push us to exceed? "Your beliefs are unique and your own" he says as he has them talk around how ever they like. One student even does not walk; he is being his own person. Mr. Keating is obviously reaching out and being heard by his students. Mr. Keating is a very smart man, and he teaches very differently than most teachers, but I think he is one of the very few who will actually get through to the students. Since the first time I saw this movie, I have been touched by it. I have been trying to apply his lessons to my life, I have been wasting less time doing nothing, and getting out there doing something I enjoy and also that will make my life more extraordinary. I would like to end this with one more lesson that Mr. Keating taught is, "The human race is full of passion".

Tiffany F. said...

After watching clips from Dead Poet Society, John’s character provides ideas and messages to his students. Such as be open to life and live fully because we all will die some day, that it so true. From one day to another we never know what God has in store for us on path of life. He stresses the fact you should follow your dreams, which is encouraging form a teacher because they are seeing how you do in class and they know your hidden potential. I want to be a dentist when I grow up, yes I know the road to get there is long and hard but I believe in myself and I will never quit! Without ever seeing this movie before, I feel as if John has installed his teachings in me. I love his passion in the movie and the fact that he does not care what his students think of him, he is being himself and having a great time at what he loves doing. John states to find your own voice now, I really agree with John. So many people today are all about “fitting in” and not being them self, but what does that do for you, nothing! We each are different and that is the beauty of life, just like snowflakes, all different. Along with this he says break out and look beyond the normal every day scene. This is when he made his students stand on his desk; every point in which you view the world is different you will not that until you go beyond and explore. John teaches in a different way that the “normal” teacher, which is great. His style in the movie portrayed that the students were really getting involved in the learning. His teaching stands out to me because he is full of life and really has fun with the class, he gets them involved. I agree with his teachings that we should believe the “true” facts in life and question the opinions, just as he instructed his class to rip the pages out of their books. He is a believer and will not let others change him from doing what he thinks is the “right” act. I can apply this to my life even more so, than I already do. The passage the John said in the movie that resonated in my head was trust your own beliefs, he is saying do not let others push you around in life, stands up for yourself, and follow your heart!