Should The Dead Poets Society Be Allowed To Follow The Cause Of Suicide?

‘Carpe Diem!’, literally translating to seize the day, is a concept most in the film Dead Poets Society attempt to adhere to. Set in 1959, the boys take this latin mantra to heart after being first introduced to it by Mr Keating. This then becomes the prime factor of motivation for most, if not all, of their actions in the film. Although the outcomes are positive on occasion, with an unbiased mind, their physical actions and choices would easily be seen as selfish and naive.

As an example, throughout the entire film, Neil Perry endeavours to follow his dreams of acting against his father’s will. This decision is controversial as yes, he should be allowed to follow the path he desires, but do the consequences really outweigh the good he can do in this world if he listens to his parents’ wishes? The film suggests that doing what he wanted was positive reform. One can sympathise with Neil, whose talents are suppressed by his parents and so is unable to achieve his full potential, but was suicide really the answer? Not only did he have absolutely no chance whatsoever to aid the current world in the afterlife, Neil did not have any chance to redeem his faith in acting and time he missed out while he was banned. In choosing to commit suicide, Neil Perry was selfish. He did not think of his friends, of his family.
He did not rid the
world of his pain, he merely passed it onto others. The burden he put onto his loved ones’ shoulders was heavy, almost unbearable. And now, they would have to carry the weight of his actions throughout their entire lives.
Neil had amazing potential; high grades, a charismatic attitude towards people, yet he ‘threw it all away’.
All for the preconceived idea that he should live by the words Carpe Diem.

Another example is Knox Overstreet in his pursuit of a girl whom he had feelings for, Chris Noel. Chris, already being in a relationship did not welcome his advances yet he continued harassing her. In one scene in the film, Knox follows Chris into her classroom, effectively trapping her. He reads out a poem where not only her, but all her classmates are forced to listen to his speech which clearly angers and embarrases her. Later, Chris makes her way to Welton and confronts Knox about the issue;
‘Oh, but it’s fine for you to come barging into my school and make a complete fool out of me?’ [Chris Noel]
‘I didn't mean to make a fool out of you.’ [Knox Overstreet]
‘...Knox, you have got to stop this stuff.’ [Chris Noel]
‘I can't, Chris. I love you.’ [Knox Overstreet]
This fragmentary excerpt relays Knox’s complete lack of respect and understanding towards Chris’ inconveniences caused by himself.
With the ending scene having an overall positive outcome between them (sometime during watching Neil’s play, Chris holds Knox’s hand), the film wrongly encourages viewers to believe Knox’s self-centered actions were decent. Whether purposely or not, Dead Poets Society alludes to the common stereotype that girls who say ‘no’ are just playing hard to get. Once again, this does not only display a premature negligence to anyone but the individual’s emotions, but it also brushes aside the powerful notion of
consent.

The general atmosphere we often subconsciously recognise in Dead Poets Society is created by many contributing factors outside of the film. Peter Weir, the director of this film, carefully decides on many contrasting effects such as the lighting, sound, and editing to create the desired effects of a theme. Take the play in which Neil stars for instance. As mentioned before, Neil is extremely dedicated to acting, it is his passion. He is on stage and there is soft music playing in the background, giving a wistful and serene aura. His words ring out loud, but not harsh, a reflection of himself. The audience watches with baited breath as Puck is in the spotlight and they are encaptured. We see an honest man performing what he loved to do. The cinematic techniques used helped us understand Neil’s passion, hence, we had more understanding and sympathy towards his decision of suicide. Todd also, would be a good example in the scene which he throws away his desk set. The film showed a vulnerable side of Todd, in both his acting and the outside environment. And although many major actions which were made thinking on behalf of only the individual,were negative. This excerpt portrays a relieving positive conclusion.

The self-interests of characters in the film Dead Poets Society often attract an unfavourable result. The utter ‘romanticism’ or ‘heroism’ in various scenes is incredibly effective at having viewers unintentionally ignore the complete disregard of feelings of others, integrated throughout the entire film.