Brittany Rotatori

Ms. Baz.

English III Honors

31 October 2008

Whitman and Dead Poets Society

Walt Whitman’s influence in Dead Poets Society is greatly recognized throughout the film. The actors each portray a characteristic that is Whitman-like. Knox, Charlie/Nuanda, Neil, and Mr. Keating all demonstrate a Whitman-like characteristic. Knox is a romantic, Charlie is a rebel, Neil has his life planned for him, and Mr. Keating is an individual thinker.

Knox Overstreet is a romantic. He is obsessed with a girl named Chris. He writes her poetry hoping to win her heart, knowing that she has a boyfriend. He buys her flowers in his last chance to ignite a flame between them. Knox is like Whitman because both men express their feelings through poetry. Both men are also romantics proving that Knox is one of Whitman’s many characteristics.

Charlie/Nuanda shows his rebellious side several times in the film. The most memorable act of rebellion that is seen is when Charlie stands up in the middle of a meeting and states, “Welton Academy, hello. Yes he is, just a moment. Mr. Nolan, it’s for you. It’s God. He says we should have girls at Welton.” Charlie is the perfect example of Whitman’s individuality. When the boys go outside and march around he is the only boy who says, “ I exercise my right not to walk.” which shows his uniqueness. Charlie has the courage to stand up for himself and he proves to be the only one who is correct. Charlie also wants to be called Nuanda because it is his name at the dead poets society meeting. Again, he symbolizes creativity and individuality.

Neil Perry is a what every parent dreams of because he is living the life his father wants. He eventually peruses his dream of acting, but his father strongly disagrees. Neil is not able to have a breakthrough with his father. Mr. Keating encourages Neil to continue his acting career and Neil intends to do so until his father sees him at the play. The viewer can clearly see that Neil is petrified that his father has shown up to the play. Neil keeps his originality and does not let his father plan out his life by doing the only thing possible. As Neil commits suicide, he finally becomes free which symbolizes individuality once again.

The final character that is mainly based on Walt Whitman is Mr. Keating. He is the most original person in this film. He is loathed by the other teachers. It is obvious that Mr. Keating is well liked. He relates to Whitman because he is the one person who encourages the boys to be diverse. Mr. Keating is referred to as “captain” which is from one of Whitman’s works. He writes, “ Captain, my captain” so Whitman can be directly related to that. Mr. Keating quotes Whitman and is similar to him in many ways. Mr. Keating and Whitman’s means of thinking can be connected to one another.

Dead Poets Society is a wonderful way to express the character of Walt Whitman for who he was. Knox, Charlie, Neil, and Mr. Keating all portrayed one man, whose ideas and personality were in no way ordinary.

John Proctor is a complicated character in The Crucible by Arthur Miller. His morals are often questioned. John and Abigail Williams are having an affair. Elizabeth, John’s wife is unaware of this. John is not proud of his encounter with Abigail when he says, “ Abby you’ll put it out of mind. I’ll not be comin’ for you more.” John admits that he is wrong and takes the blame for his actions, demonstrating his good intentions.

Another quality that sets John apart from the citizens is that he is not positive that he believes in witches. Giles Corey states, “ He don’t believe in witches.” Proctor replies with, “ I never spoke on witches one way or another.” The citizens are different from Proctor because they are falling for the tricks that the girls are playing on them. Proctor is the only one who can see the real Abigail for who she is. He is skeptical of the accusations because John knows how sly Abby is.

As a husband, it is obvious that John is not completely faithful to Elizabeth. John does care about her well being when he asks, “ Are you well today?” John and Elizabeth do have an unusual relationship. Elizabeth is suspicious of Abigail. She knows that John and Abby are sneaking out to see each other. When John is being asked to sign a deposition stating that he is not a witch he cannot do it. John knows that he will be hanged if he does not sign the deposition. John is not a witch. Reverend Hale is yelling to John, telling him that he will hang. John does not care because he replies with, “I can. And there’s your first marvel, that I can.” Hale asks for Elizabeth’s words and she responds by saying, “ He have his goodness now. God forbid I take it from him!” The love between John and Elizabeth is so pure that Elizabeth cannot deny what John wants.

Proctor is a good man and a good friend. He stands up for the citizens even when they turn their back on him accusing Elizabeth of witchcraft. Proctor says that he has seen no one with the devil and that the girls are making it up. He is the only towns person that is brave enough to stand up to the girls. John remains loyal until he is hanged.

Even though Proctor had every right to be angry with his town he still stood up for them. Even though his morals may have been questionable, he never turned his back on his town. Proctor is the only one brave enough to stand up to the girls and it costs him his life. All three of the accused witches recite their prayers before being hanged. The town people were too ignorant and gullible to see through the children’s lies and foolishness.