Now remember, keep your shoulders back.
Okay, put your arm around your brother. That's it.
That's it. Right, and breathe in.
Okay, one more.
Now, just to review,
you're going to follow along the procession...
until you get to the headmaster.
At that point, he will indicate to you...
to light the candles of the boys.
All right, boys, let's settle down.
Banners up !
Ladies and gentlemen, boys...
the Light of Knowledge.
One hundred years ago, in 1859,
41 boys sat in this room...
and were asked the same question...
that now greets you at the start of each semester.
Gentlemen, what are the Four Pillars ?
Tradition. Honour. Discipline. Excellence.
In her first year,
Welton Academy graduated five students.
Last year we graduated 51.
And more than 75 percent of those...
went on to the lvy League.
This-This kind of accomplishment...
is the result...
of fervent dedication to the principles taught here.
This is why you parents have been sending us your sons.
This is why we are the best...
preparatory school in the United States.
As you know,
our beloved Mr Portius of the English Department retired last term.
You will have the opportunity later to meet his replacement, Mr John Keating,
himself an honours graduate of this school.
And who, for the past several years, has been teaching...
at the highly regarded Chester School in London.
Richard, you forgot your bag !
Hi, Johnny ! Hey, how you doin' ?
Don't worry. I got your room assignment.
They haven't moved the dining area.
Glad you could come by.
- Thrilling ceremony, as usual, Dr Nolan. - You've been away too long.
- Hello, Dr Nolan. - Good to have you back.
- This is our youngest, Todd. - Mr Anderson.
You have some big shoes to fill. Your brother was one of our finest.
Thank you.
- Lovely ceremony. - Thank you. Glad you liked it.
- Gale. - Tom.
- Good to see you again. - Hello, Mr Nolan.
- We expect great things from you this year. - Thank you, sir.
Well, he won't disappoint us. Right, Neil ?
I'll do my best, sir.
- Hey, come on, son.
- Chin up. - Okay.
- No tears now. - Chin up.
- I don't want to go here. - Honey, I love you.
- I'll walk you over. - You be a good boy. Do your lessons.
Hey ! I hear we're gonna be roommates.
- I'm Neil Perry. - I'm Todd Anderson.
Why'd you leave Balincrest ?
My brother went here.
Oh, so you're that Anderson.
- This is for his sinuses. - Yes. I see.
Oh, and if he can't swallow, you give him one of these.
And if he has trouble breathing, you can give him some of those.
- Did you remember your vaporizer ? - Yes, I put it in my room.
- Hey, how's it going, Neil ? - Hey, Knox.
- Neil, study group tonight ?
- Yeah, sure. - Business as usual, huh ?
Hey, I heard you got the new kid. Looks like a stiff !
Oops.
Listen, don't mind Cameron.
He was born with his foot in his mouth. You know what I mean ?
Rumour has it... you did summer school.
Yep. Chemistry. My father thought I should get ahead.
How was your summer, slick ?
- Keen.
Meeks. Door. Closed.
Yes, sir.
Gentlemen, what are the Four Pillars ?
Travesty. Horror. Decadence. Excrement.
- Okay. Study group.
Meeks aced Latin. I didn't quite flunk English.
- If you want, we got our study group. - Sure.
Cameron asked me too. Anyone mind including him ?
Hmm, what's his specialty ? Bootlicking ?
- Come on, he's your roommate. - That's not my fault.
- I'm sorry. My name is Stephen Meeks.
Oh ! This is Todd Anderson.
- Nice to meet you. - Nice to meet you.
Charlie Dalton.
Knox Overstreet.
Todd's brother was Jeffrey Anderson.
- Oh, yeah, sure. - What do you know ?
- Valedictorian. National Merit Scholar. - Oh, well...
welcome to Hell-ton.
It's every bit as tough as they say unless you're a genius like Meeks.
He flatters me. That's why I help him with Latin.
- And English. And Trig.
- It's open.
Father, I thought you'd gone.
- Mr Perry. - Keep your seats, fellows.
Neil, I've just spoken to Mr Nolan.
You're taking too many extracurricular activities this semester,
and I've decided that you should drop the school annual.
But I'm the assistant editor this year.
- Well, I'm sorry, Neil. - But, Father, I can't.
- It wouldn't be fair. - Would you excuse us for a moment ?
Don't you ever dispute me in public. Do you understand ?
-Father, I wasn't disputing-- -After you've finished medical school...
and you're on your own, then you can do as you damn well please.
But until then, you do as I tell you. Is that clear ?
Yes, sir. I'm sorry.
You know how much this means to your mother, don't you?
Yes, sir.
You know me; always taking on too much.
Well, that's my boy.
- You need anything, you let us know. - Yes, sir.
Why doesn't he let you do what you want ?
Yeah, Neil. Tell him off. Couldn't get any worse.
Oh, that's rich. Like you guys tell your parents off ?
Mr Future Lawyer and Mr Future Banker ?
Okay, so I don't like it any more than you do.
Well, just don't tell me how to talk to my father.
- You guys are the same way. - All right, all right. Jesus.
- So what are you gonna do then ? - What I have to do.
- Drop the annual. - I wouldn't lose much sleep over it.
It's just a bunch of jerks trying to impress Nolan.
I don't care. I don't give a damn about any of it.
- Well, uh... Latin, 8:00 in my room ? - Yes.
- That sounds okay. - Todd, you're welcome to join us.
- Yeah, come along, pal. - Thanks.
Slow down, boys !
Slow down, you horrible phalanx of pubescence !
Pick three laboratory experiments from the project list...
and report on them every five weeks.
The first 20 questions at the end of chapter one are due tomorrow.
- Agricolam. - Agricolam.
- Agricola. - Agricola.
- Agricolae. - Agricolae.
- Agricolarum. - Agricolarum.
- Agricolis. - Agricolis.
- Agricolas. - Agricolas.
- Agricolis. - Agricolis.
- Again, please. Agricola. - Agricola.
Your study of trigonometry requires absolute precision.
Anyone failing to turn in any homework assignment...
will be penalized one point off their final grade.
Let me urge you now not to test me on this point.
Hey, Spaz. Spaz.
- Brain damage !
- Shh !
Well, come on.
- Let's go. - Let's go, guys.
- Let's go.
"Oh, Captain, my Captain."
Who knows where that comes from ?
Anybody ?
Not a clue ?
It's from a poem by Walt Whitman about Mr Abraham Lincoln.
Now in this class you can either call me Mr Keating...
or, if you're slightly more daring, "Oh, Captain, my Captain."
Now, let me dispel a few rumours so they don't fester into facts.
Yes, l, too, attended Hell-ton and survived.
And, no, at that time, I was not the mental giant you see before you.
I was the intellectual equivalent of a 98-pound weakling.
I would go to the beach, and people would kick copies of Byron in my face.
Now... Mr Pitts ?
That's a rather unfortunate name.
- Mr Pitts, where are you ?
Mr Pitts, would you open your hymnal to page 542.
Read the first stanza of the poem you find there.
"To the Virgins to Make Much of Time" ?
Yes, that's the one.
- Somewhat appropriate, isn't it ?
"Gather ye rosebuds while ye may.
"Old Time is still a-flying.
And this same flower that smiles today, tomorrow will be dying."
Thank you, Mr Pitts.
"Gather ye rosebuds while ye may."
The Latin term for that sentiment is "Carpe diem."
Now, who knows what that means ?
Carpe diem. That's "Seize the day."
- Very good, Mister-- - Meeks.
Meeks. Another unusual name.
Seize the day.
"Gather ye rosebuds while ye may."
Why does the writer use these lines ?
- Because he's in a hurry. - No ! Ding !
Thank you for playing anyway.
Because we are food for worms, lads.
Because, believe it or not, each and every one of us in this room...
is one day going to stop breathing, turn cold and die.
I would like you to step forward over here...
and peruse some of the faces from the past.
You've walked past them many times. I don't think you've really looked at them.
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. Do you hear it ?
Carpe.
Hear it ?
Carpe.
Carpe diem.
Seize the day, boys.
Make your lives extraordinary.
- That was weird. - But different.
Spooky, if you ask me.
Think he'll test us on that stuff ?
Oh, come on, Cameron. Don't you get anything ?
What ? What ?
Let's go, boys. Hustle up in here. That means you, Dalton !
Who's up for a quick study group tonight, guys ?
- Me. - What ?
I can't make it, guys. I have to have dinner at the Danburrys' house tonight.
The Danburrys ? Who are the Danburrys ?
Big alums. How'd you swing that ?
Friends of my dad's. They're probably in their nineties or something.
Ooh !
Anything's better than Hell-ton hash, Knox.
- I'll second that. - Yeah, we'll see.
- You coming to the study group tonight?
Uh... no. No, l-- Uh, I've got some history I wanna do.
- Suit yourself.
Ready, Overstreet ?
Ready to go, sir.
- Chet, can you get that ?
- I can't, Mom. - I'll get it !
Can I help you ?
Hi. Knox Overstreet.
- Uh, Dr Hager. - Hi.
This is the Danburrys', right ?
- Are you here to see Chet ? - Mrs Danburry ?
- No. - Sorry. Thank you. I'm Mrs Danburry.
- You must be Knox. - Yes.
Back by 9:00 ? Please, come on in.
- Chris, come on ! - Chet, I'm coming.
Knox. How are you ? Joe Danburry.
- Nice to meet you, sir. - He's the spitting image of his father.
- How is he ? Come on in. - Chris !
- Great. He just did a big case for G.M. - I know where you're headed.
- I'm coming. - Like father, like son, huh ?
Ooh ! Psycho !
- Yes ! - To Queen-Six.
- Another game ? - What do you mean ? - Duh !
Just replace these numbers here with "x," for "x" and "y."
- Of course. - Of course. So what's the problem ?
You think I can get in there ? You've been hogging it all day.
- Wait. No. - How was dinner ?
Huh ?
- How was dinner ? - Terrible.
- Awful. - Why ? What happened ?
Tonight, I met the most beautiful girl...
I have ever seen in my entire life.
Are you crazy ? What's wrong with that ?
She's practically engaged to Chet Danburry.
- That guy could eat a football.
- Too bad. - "Too bad" ?
It's worse than "too bad," Pittsie. It's a tragedy.
A girl this beautiful in love with such a jerk.
All the good ones go for jerks. You know that.
Yeah, forget her. Open your trig book and try and figure out problem five.
I can't just forget her, Cameron.
And I certainly can't think about trig.
- We got it !
All right, gentlemen. Five minutes.
- Let's go.
- Did you see her naked ? - Very funny, Dalton.
- That wouldn't be a radio in your lap,
- would it, Mr Pitts ? - No, sir. Science experiment.
Radar.
Gentlemen, open your text to page 21 of the introduction.
Mr Perry, will you read the opening paragraph of the preface,
entitled "Understanding Poetry."
"'Understand Poetry' by Dr J. Evans Pritchard, Ph.D.
"To fully understand poetry, we must first be fluent...
"with its metre, rhyme and figures of speech.
"Then ask two questions.
"One: How artfully has the objective of the poem been rendered ?
"And, two: How important is that objective ?
"Question one rates the poem's perfection.
"Question two rates its importance.
"And once these questions have been answered...
"determining a poem's greatness becomes a relatively simple matter.
"If the poem's score for perfection is plotted...
"on the horizontal of a graph...
"and its importance is plotted on the vertical,
"then calculating the total area of the poem...
"yields the measure of its greatness.
"A sonnet by Byron might score high on the vertical,
"but only average on the horizontal.
"A Shakespearean sonnet, on the other hand,
"would score high both horizontally and vertically,
"yielding a massive total area;
"thereby revealing the poem to be truly great.
"As you proceed through the poetry in this book, practise this rating method.
"As your ability to evaluate poems in this manner grows,
so will-- so will your enjoyment and understanding of poetry."
Excrement.
That's what I think of Mr J. Evans Pritchard.
We're not laying pipe. We're talking about poetry.
I mean, how can you describe poetry like American Bandstand ?
"I like Byron. I give him a 42. But I can't dance to it."
Now, I want you to rip out that page.
Go on. Rip out the entire page.
You heard me. Rip it out.
Rip it out !
Go on. Rip it out.
Thank you, Mr Dalton.
Gentlemen, tell you what. Don't just tear out that page.
Tear out the entire introduction. I want it gone, history. Leave nothing.
Rip it out ! Rip ! Be gone, J. Evans Pritchard, Ph.D. !
Rip ! Shred ! Tear !
Rip it out ! I want to hear nothing but ripping of Mr Pritchard !
- We'll perforate it, put it on a roll !
It's not the Bible. You're not gonna go to hell for this.
Go on. Make a clean tear. I want nothing left of it.
- We shouldn't be doing this.
Rip ! Rip ! Rip !
Rip it out ! Rip !
Rip it ! Yeah ! Rip it out !
- Rip it ! - What the hell is going on here ?
- I don't hear enough rips. - Mr Keating.
Mr McAllister.
I'm sorry, l-- I didn't know you were here.
- I am. - Ah. So you are.
Excuse me.
Keep ripping, gentlemen.
This is a battle, a war.
And the casualties could be your hearts and souls.
Thank you, Mr Dalton.
Armies of academics going forward measuring poetry.
No ! We will not have that here.
No more of Mr J. Evans Pritchard.
Now, my class, you will learn to think for yourselves again.
You will learn to savour words and language.
No matter what anybody tells you,
words and ideas can change the world.
I see that look in Mr Pitts' eye...
Iike 19th century literature has nothing to do...
with going to business school or medical school.
Right ? Maybe.
Mr Hopkins, you may agree with him, thinking,
"Yes, we should simply study our Mr Pritchard...
"and learn our rhyme and metre and go quietly about the business...
of achieving other ambitions."
I have a little secret for you. Huddle up.
Huddle up !
We don't read and write poetry because it's cute.
We read and write poetry because we are members of the human race.
And the human race is filled with passion.
Medicine, law, business, engineering;
these are noble pursuits and necessary to sustain life.
But poetry,
beauty, romance, love;
these are what we stay alive for.
To quote from Whitman:
"O me, O life of the questions of these recurring.
"Of the endless trains of the faithless.
"Of cities filled with the foolish.
"What good amid these, O me, O life ?
"Answer: That you are here.
"That life exists and identity.
"That the powerful play goes on,
and you may contribute a verse."
"That the powerful play goes on,
and you may contribute a verse."
What will your verse be ?
For what we are about to receive,
may the Lord make us truly grateful.
Amen.
Quite an interesting class you gave today, Mr Keating.
-Sorry if I shocked you, Mr McAllister. -There's no need to apologize.
It was very fascinating, misguided though it was.
You think so ?
You take a big risk by encouraging them to become artists, John.
When they realize that they're not Rembrandts, Shakespeares or Mozarts,
they'll hate you for it.
We're not talking artists, George. We're talking freethinkers.
Freethinkers at 17 ?
Funny, I never pegged you as a cynic.
Not a cynic.
A realist.
"Show me the heart unfettered by foolish dreams,
and I'll show you a happy man."
"But only in their dreams can men be truly free.
'Twas always thus, and always thus will be."
Tennyson ?
No. Keating.
Hey, I found his senior annual in the library.
Listen to this. Captain of the soccer team.
Editor of the school annual. Cambridge bound.
Thigh man and the Dead Poets Society.
"Man Most Likely To Do Anything."
Thigh man ? Mr "K" was a hell-raiser.
- What's the Dead Poets Society ?
- I don't know. - Is there a picture in the annual ?
- Nothing. No other mention of it. - That boy there,
see me after lunch.
Mr Keating ?
- Mr Keating ?
- Sir ?
- Say something. - Oh, Captain, my Captain ?
- Gentlemen.
We were just looking in your old annual.
- Oh, my God.
- No, that's not me.
Stanley "The Tool" Wilson.
- God. - What was the Dead Poets Society ?
I doubt the present administration would look too favourably upon that.
Why ? What was it ?
- Gentlemen, can you keep a secret ? - Sure.
The Dead Poets were dedicated to sucking the marrow out of life.
That's a phrase from Thoreau we'd invoke at the beginning of every meeting.
You see, we would gather at the old lndian cave...
and take turns reading from Thoreau, Whitman, Shelley; the biggies.
Even some of our own verse.
And in the enchantment of the moment, we'd let poetry work its magic.
You mean it was a bunch of guys sitting around, reading poetry ?
No, Mr Overstreet. It wasn't just guys.
We weren't a Greek organization. We were romantics.
We didn't just read poetry, we let it drip from our tongues, like honey.
Spirits soared, women swooned and gods were created, gentlemen.
Not a bad way to spend an evening, eh ?
Hmm.
Thank you, Mr Perry, for this stroll down amnesia lane.
Burn that.
- Especially my picture.
- Dead Poets Society.
What ?
- I say we go tonight. - Tonight ?
- Wait a minute. - Everybody in ?
- Where's this cave he's talking about ? - It's beyond the stream.
- I know where it is. - That's miles.
- Sounds boring to me. - Don't go.
- You know how many demerits we're talking? - So don't come. Please.
Look, all I'm saying is that we have to be careful.
- We can't get caught. - No shit, Sherlock.
You boys there ! Hurry up !
- All right, who's in ? - Aw, come on, Neil. Hager's--
Forget Hager ! No ! Who's in ?
I'm in.
I'm warning you ! Move !
Me too.
- I don't know, Neil. - What ? Pitts !
- Pittsie, come on. - His grades are hurting.
- You can help him, Meeks. - What is this, a midnight study group ?
Forget it, Pitts. You're coming. Meeks, your grades hurting too ?
- I'll try anything once. - Except sex.
- Ha, ha, ha. - I'm in as long as we're careful.
- What about you, Knox ? - I don't know, Charlie.
Come on, Knox. It'll help you get Chris.
Yeah ? How ?
- Women swoon. - But why do they swoon ?
Charlie, tell me why they swoon ! Charlie !
Okay, follow the stream to the waterfall.
It's right there. It's got to be on the banks.
I don't know. This is starting to sound dangerous.
- Oh, well, why don't you stay home ? - Hey, you're crazy.
For God's sake, stop chattering and sit down.
- Todd, are you coming tonight ? - No.
Why not ? God, you were there. You heard Keating.
- Don't you want to do something about that ? - Yes.
- But-- - But ? But what ?
Keating said that everybody took turns reading,
and I don't want to do that.
Gosh, you really have a problem with that, don't you ?
N-No, I don't have a problem.
Neil, I just-- I don't want to do it, okay ?
All right.
What if you didn't have to read ? What if you just came and listened ?
- That's not how it works. - Well, forget how it works.
What if-- What if they said it was okay ?
What-- What, are you gonna go up and ask them ?
No. No, Neil.
- I'll be right back. - Neil. Neil !
- Oh, shut up, will you ?
- That's for my asthma, okay ?
- Could you give that back, please ?
What's the matter ? Don't you like snakes ?
- You're in. - Get away from me, okay ?
- Why don't you check your pocket, huh ?
- Come on. I have to brush my teeth. - Get a-- Get off.
- Cut out that racket in there !
- Go. Go.
- I'm a dead poet ! - Aw, shit, Charlie.
- Guys ! Over here ! - Funny. You're real funny.
- It's too wet.
God, are you trying to smoke us out of here ?
No, no. The smoke's going right up this opening.
- You okay ?
- Oh, God. Clowns.
- All right, forget the fire.
- Let's go, gentlemen.
- I hereby reconvene the Dead Poets Society,
Welton Chapter.
The meetings will be conducted by myself...
and the other new initiates now present.
Todd Anderson, because he prefers not to read,
will keep minutes of the meetings.
I'll now read the traditional opening message...
by Society member Henry David Thoreau.
"I went to the woods because I wanted to live deliberately.
I wanted to live deep and suck out all the marrow of life."
I'll second that.
"To put to rout all that was not life.
"And not, when I had come to die,
discover that I had not lived."
- Keating's marked a bunch of other pages. - All right, intermission !
Dig deep. Right here. Right here, lay it down.
On the mud ? We're gonna put our food on the mud ?
Meeks, put your coat down. Picnic blanket.
- Use Meeks' coat.
Don't keep anything back either.
- You guys are always bumming my smokes. - Raisins ?
- Yuck. - Wait a minute !
- Who gave us half a roll ? - I'm eating the other half.
- Come on ! - What, you want me to put it back ?
It was a dark and rainy night, and this old lady,
who had a passion for jigsaw puzzles,
sat by herself in her house at her table to complete a new jigsaw puzzle.
But as she pieced the puzzle together,
she realized, to her astonishment,
that the image that was formed was her very own room.
And the figure in the centre of the puzzle,
as she completed it, was herself.
And with trembling hands, she placed the last four pieces...
and stared in horror at the face of a demented madman at the window.
The last thing that this old lady ever heard...
- was the sound of breaking glass. - No, she didn't.
- Yes, this is true. This is true.
- I've got one that's better than that.
I do. There's a young, married couple,
and they're driving through the forest at night on a long trip.
And they run out of gas, and there's a madman on the--
The thing with the hand ?
- I love that story !
- I told you that one. - You did not.
- I got that in camp in sixth grade. - Last year ?
"In a mean abode in the Shanking Road,
"Iived a man named William Bloat.
"Now, he had a wife, the plague of his life,
"who continually got his goat.
"And one day at dawn, with her nightshift on,
he slit her bloody throat."
- Oh, and it gets worse.
You want to hear a real poem ?
-You want this ? -No, I don't need-- Get this outta here.
- What, did you bring one ? - You memorized a poem ?
- An original piece by Charlie Dalton. - An original piece.
- Take centre stage. - You know, this is history, right ?
Wow. Whoa.
- Where did you get that ?
Where did you--
- Whoa. - "Teach me to love ?
"Go teach thyself more wit.
"I chief professor am of it.
"The god of love, if such a thing there be,
may learn to love from me."
Wow. Did you write that ?
Abraham Cowley.
Okay. Who's next ?
Alfred Lord Tennyson.
"Come, my friends.
"'Tis not too late to seek a newer world.
"For my purpose holds to sail beyond the sunset.
"And though we are not now that strength...
"which in old days moved Earth and heaven.
"That which we are, we are:
"One equal temper of heroic hearts...
"made weak by time and fate, but strong in will...
"to strive, to seek, to find,
and not to yield."
"Then I had religion, then I had a vision.
"I could not turn from their revel in derision.
"Then I saw the Congo creeping through the black,
cutting through the forest with a golden track."
- Then I saw the Congo creeping through the black, - Meeks. Meeks.
cutting through the forest with a golden track.
Then I saw the Congo creeping through the black,
- cutting through the forest with a golden track.
Then I saw the Congo creeping through the black,
- cutting through the forest with a golden track !
Then I saw the Congo creeping through the black,
cutting through the forest with a golden track !
Then I saw the Congo creeping through the black,
cutting through the forest with a golden track !
Then I saw the Congo creeping through the black,
- cutting through the forest with a golden track !
Then I saw the Congo creeping through the black,
cutting through the forest with a golden track !
Cutting through the forest with a golden track !
Then I saw the Congo creeping through the black--
A man is not "very tired." He is "exhausted."
And don't use "very sad." Use--
Come on, Mr Overstreet, you twerp.
- "Morose" ? - Exactly ! Morose !
Language was developed for one endeavour, and that is-- Mr Anderson ?
Come on, are you a man or an amoeba ?
Mr Perry ?
Uh... to communicate.
No ! To woo women.
- Today we're going to be talking...
- about William Shakespeare. - Oh, God.
I know. A lot of you look forward to this...
about as much as you look forward to root canal work.
We're gonna talk about Shakespeare...
as someone who writes something very interesting.
Now, many of you have seen Shakespeare done very much like this:
"O, Titus, bring your friend hither."
But if any of you have seen Mr Marlon Brando,
you know that Shakespeare can be different.
"Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears."
You can also imagine maybe John Wayne as Macbeth going...
"Well, is this a dagger I see before me ?"
"Dogs, sir ? Oh, not just now.
"I do enjoy a good dog once in a while, sir.
"You can have yourself a three-course meal from one dog.
"Start with a canine croquette.
"Go to your Fido Flambe for main course.
"And for dessert, a Pekingese parfait.
And you can pick your teeth with the little paw."
Why do I stand up here ?
- Anybody ? - To feel taller.
- No ! Thank you for playing.
- I stand upon my desk...
to remind myself that we must constantly look at things in a different way.
See, the world looks very different from up here.
You don't believe me ?
Come see for yourselves. Come on.
Come on. Just when you think you know something,
you have to look at it in another way.
Even though it may seem silly or wrong,
you must try.
Now when you read, don't just consider what the author thinks.
- Consider what you think.
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.
Don't just walk off the edge like lemmings. Look around you.
- There you go, Mr Priske. Thank you !
Yes !
Dare to strike out and find new ground.
- Now, in addition to your essays,
I would like you to compose a poem of your own, an original work.
- Ooh !
That's right.
You have to deliver it aloud, in front of the class on Monday.
- Bon chance, gentlemen.
Mr Anderson.
Don't think I don't know this assignment scares the hell out of you, you mole.
Take a power train in two !
- Three, keep your eyes in the boat ! - Stroke ! Stroke !
- We got it, Pittsie.
Radio Free America !
% Some people like to rock Some people like to roll %
% But movin' and a-groovin' is gonna satisfy my soul %
% Let's have a party Oooh %
% Let's have a party %
% Let's spin it to the soul Let's rock and roll %
% Let's have a party tonight %
% I never kissed a bear I never kissed a goose %
% But I can shake a chicken in the middle of the room %
- % Let's have a party %%
- I found it. - You found what ?
What I want to do right now. What's really, really inside of me.
- "A Midsummer Night's Dream." - This is it.
- What is that ? - It's a play, dummy.
I know that. Wh-What does it have to do with you ?
All right, they're putting it on at Henley Hall.
Open tryouts. Open tryouts !
- Yeah, so ? - So !
I'm gonna act.
Yes ! Yes ! I'm gonna be an actor !
Ever since I can remember, I've wanted to try this !
I even tried to go to summer stock auditions last year,
but, of course, my father wouldn't let me.
For the first time in my whole life, I know what I want to do.
And for the first time, I'm gonna do it...
whether my father wants me to or not !
- Carpe diem ! - Neil, Neil, hold it.
How are you gonna be in a play if your father won't let you ?
First, I gotta get the part, then I can worry about that.
But won't he kill you if he finds out you went to an audition and didn't tell him ?
No, no, no. As far as I'm concerned, he won't have to know about any of this.
- Well, that's impossible. - Bullshit. Nothing's impossible.
Well, why don't you just call him and ask him and m-maybe he'll say yes.
That's a laugh.
If I don't ask him, at least I won't be disobeying him.
- Yeah, but if he said no before-- - Jesus, Todd, whose side are you on ?
I mean, I haven't even gotten the part yet.
Can't I even enjoy the idea for a little while ?
- You're coming to the meeting ? - I don't know. Maybe.
Nothing Mr Keating has to say means shit to you, does it, Todd ?
- Wh-What is that supposed to mean ? - You're in the club !
Being in the club means being stirred up by things.
You look about as stirred up as a cesspool.
- So you want me out ? - No, I want you in !
But being in means you gotta do something, not just say you're in.
Listen, Neil, I mean, I appreciate this concern,
but I'm not like you, all right ?
You-- You-You say things and people listen.
I-- I-l'm not like that.
- Don't you think you could be ? - No.
I-- I-l don't know, but that's not the point.
The point is, there's nothing you can do about it, so you can just butt out.
I can take care of myself just fine.
All right ?
No.
What do you mean, "no" ?
No.
Give me that ! Neil !
- Neil, give that back ! - "We are dreaming of a tomorrow--"
- It's poetry ! - Neil !
I'm being chased by Walt Whitman !
Okay ! Okay !
What are you guys doing ? I'm trying-- You see this chemistry--
- Hey. Give me-- Neil, give me--
- Don't be immature. Come on !
- I need my-- - Give it to me !
- Charlie !
Let me have my book. I need my--
Okay, everybody on the bus.
Let's go, boys.
- Come on. Let's go. On the bus, boys.
- Now !
Now, devotees may argue...
that one sport or game is inherently better than another.
For me, sport is actually a chance...
for us to have other human beings push us to excel.
I want you all to come over here and take a slip of paper...
and line up single file.
Mr Meeks, time to inherit the Earth.
Mr Pitts... rise above your name.
I want you to hand these out to the boys, one apiece.
You know what to do, Pitts !
"Oh, to struggle against great odds, to meet enemies undaunted."
Sounds like you're daunted. Say it again like you're undaunted.
"Oh, to struggle against great odds, to meet enemies undaunted" !
Now go on !
Yes ! Next !
"To be a sailor of the world bound for all ports."
Next. Louder !
"Oh, I live to be the ruler of life, not a slave."
"To mount the scaffolds.
To advance to the muzzles of guns with perfect nonchalance."
Come on, Meeks ! Listen to the music !
"To dance, clap hands, exalt, shout, skip,
- roll on, float on !" - Yes !
"Oh, to have life henceforth, the poem of new joys."
Boo !
Come on, Charlie, let it fill your soul.
"To indeed be a god !"
Charlie, I got the part !
I'm gonna play Puck !
- I'm gonna play Puck ! - What did he say ?
- Puck you ! - The main part !
- Great, Neil ! - Charlie, I got it !
- Congratulations. - Good for you ! Good for you !
- Okay, okay, okay, okay.
- Neil, how are you gonna do this ?
They need a letter of permission from my father and Mr Nolan.
- You're not gonna write it. - Oh, yes, I am.
- Oh, Neil-- Neil, you're crazy.
- Okay.
I am writing to you...
on behalf of...
my son...
Neil Perry.
This is great !
"To Chris."
Who's Chris ? Mmm, Chris.
"I see a sweetness in her smile.
"Bright light shines from her eyes.
"But life is complete, contentment is mine...
- "just knowing that--
- "Just knowing that...
she's alive."
- I'm sorry, Captain. It's stupid. - No. No, it's not stupid.
It's a good effort. It touched on one of the major themes: love.
A major theme not only in poetry but life.
Mr Hopkins, you were laughing. You're up.
"The cat sat on the mat."
Congratulations, Mr Hopkins.
Yours is the first poem to ever have a negative score on the Pritchard scale.
We're not laughing at you, we're laughing near you.
I don't mind that your poem had a simple theme.
Sometimes the most beautiful poetry can be about simple things,
Iike a cat or a flower or rain.
You see, poetry can come from anything with the stuff of revelation in it.
Just don't let your poems be ordinary.
Now, who's next ?
Mr Anderson, I see you sitting there in agony.
Come on, Todd, step up. Let's put you out of your misery.
I-l didn't do it. I didn't write a poem.
Mr Anderson thinks everything inside of him is worthless and embarrassing.
Isn't that right, Todd ? lsn't that your worst fear ?
Well, I think you're wrong. I think you have something inside of you...
that is worth a great deal.
"I sound...
"my barbaric...
"yawp...
"over the rooftops...
of the world."
W.W. Uncle Walt, again.
Now, for those of you who don't know, a yawp is a loud cry or yell.
Now, Todd, I would like you to give us a demonstration of a barbaric yawp.
- Come on, you can't yawp sitting down.
Let's go. Come on, up.
- Got to get in yawping stance.
- A-A yawp ? - Not just a yawp. A barbaric yawp.
- Right. Yawp. - Come on. Louder.
- Yawp. - That's a mouse. Come on, louder !
- Yawp. - Oh, good God, boy, yell like a man !
- Yawp ! - There it is.
You see, you have a barbarian in you after all.
You don't get away that easy. There's a picture of Uncle Walt up there.
What does he remind you of ? Don't think, answer. Go on.
- A m-m-m-madman. - What kind of madman ?
- Don't think about it, just answer. - A cr-crazy madman.
No, you can do better than that. Free up your mind. Use your imagination.
Say the first thing that pops into your head, even if it's total gibberish.
A-A-A sweaty-toothed madman.
Good God, boy, there's a poet in you after all !
There. Close your eyes. Close your eyes. Close them.
Now, describe what you see.
- Uh, l-l close my eyes... - Yes ?
- uh, and his image floats beside me. - A sweaty-toothed madman.
A sweaty-toothed madman with a stare that pounds my brain.
Oh, that's excellent !
Now, give him action, make him do something.
- H-His hands reach out and choke me. - That's it. Wonderful. Wonderful.
- And all the time he's mumbling. - What's he mumbling ?
- Mumbling truth. - Yes.
- Truth is like a blanket that always leaves your feet cold.
Forget them. Forget them. Stay with the blanket. Tell me about that blanket.
Y-Y-You push it, stretch it, it'll never be enough.
You kick at it, beat it, it'll never cover any of us.
From the moment we enter crying to the moment we leave dying,
it'll just cover your face as you wail and cry and scream.
- Don't you forget this.