1. Rebellious youth, or ignited blood
The autumn night is cool. But watching the movie "Dead Poets Society", I still have fire inside. It was small at first, but as the plot progressed, it gradually grew bigger and burned, making the blood that had been stagnant for a long time warm and boil.
The 1950s in the United States. Peter Weir's masterpiece. A passionate performance by Robin Williams. Oscar for Best Original Screenplay, French César Award for Best Foreign Language Film. But what excited me was not these, but the teacher with personality. His passions, his thoughts, his confrontations and failures. He allowed me to see my youth and the time I spent on campus.
Wilton Preparatory Academy, with its strict order, utilitarian thinking and rigid model, was highly respected at the time and became famous throughout the United States. The reason is, as Principal Nolan said: "More than 75% of the school's students have entered prestigious universities." This is so because it has always adhered to the school motto of "Tradition, Honor, Discipline, and Excellence." This is the spiritual pillar of a century-old prestigious school. But in the mouths of students, this pillar has become "mockery, terror, decadence, and excretion." In their minds, this school is like hell, and the solemn atmosphere is suffocating. Studying here, they are mechanically indoctrinated. Their youthful vitality is restrained, and their life path is set: they will be lawyers, bankers, doctors in the future... They can only obey silently and follow the rules. Anything new or deviant will not be allowed.
But, with the arrival of Keating, all this changed. Keating, a former top student at Wilton, replaced the retiring English teacher - the equivalent of a Chinese teacher. I have said that the important thing for Chinese teachers is not to give students knowledge, but to cultivate their sentiments and guide their souls. Chinese teachers should lay a spiritual foundation for students’ lifelong development and become the people who have the greatest influence on students’ future lives. This is a responsibility and an honor.
That's exactly what happened to Keating. His appearance was different. Instead of being serious and dignified as a teacher, he walked into the classroom whistling. He asked students to look at alumni photos in the gallery. He told the students that the people in the photos were once young and full of hope, and their bodies once held dreams and desires, but now they have become food for maggots. Life is short and death is cruel. One day, we too will stop breathing, freeze and die. "So we want to 'Carpe Diem' and make life transcend the ordinary." He said. "Carpe Diem" is Latin, which means awakening to life.
This is the first lesson. For students who have been suffocated for a long time, this is nothing short of an earthquake. "Carpe Diem" has become the motto of many students.
Like a boulder dropped into stagnant water, Keating’s passionate and outstanding teachings set off a storm in Wilton. He asked his students to tear up the arithmetic formula-like preface in the textbook because he thought it was "farting". He encouraged students to stand up on their desks and observe the world from a new perspective. He leads students out of the classroom and teaches them to feel nature with their own hearts. He lets students walk in their own way. He asked students to appreciate thoughtful poetry. He asked students to write poems, allowing Anderson, who had always been silent and inferior, to express his inner primitive roar. He leads and inspires students with poetry. He told students to think independently: "You must have your own opinions, find your own voice, and make breakthroughs!" He allowed them to realize the beauty of life, experience the freedom of thought, and dare to pursue their inner aspirations.
The students have been changed: the cowardly have become brave, the reckless have become mature, the timid have become passionate... They are no longer reading tools to fulfill their parents' expectations. They began to resist those heavy expectations, outdated values, and resist the temptation of worldly vision and fame. They begin to pursue love, passion and dreams. As the "Dead Poets Society" was launched again, Knuckles began to resist and mustered up the courage to pursue Chris; Todd gradually got rid of his inferiority complex; Neil revived his ideal of love; Charlie even used the name of "Dead Poets Society" to , published an article in the school magazine, calling on Wilton to admit girls, causing an uproar.
Keating awakened the dormant souls of students. This is bound to cause contradictions and conflicts: schools and parents who represent traditional authority, and students who represent freedom and passion. These are two completely different worlds, one is realistic, full of constraints and depression, and the other is a dream, full of blood and passion. Keating is the link between these two worlds and, of course, the sticking point of conflict. He is a teacher in the real world and a captain who guides students to discover and cherish their inner dreams. He leads students to follow the instructions of their inner voices.
But the reality is cruel after all. Charlie was kicked out of school. Neil committed suicide after a successful theatrical performance. Todd had to sign the investigative materials that framed Keating. Keating was eventually accused of instigating students and causing Neil to commit suicide and was expelled from the school.
This is a Hollywood movie from 17 years ago, a typical youth movie. Although we are separated by vast oceans and a long distance, the life is familiar to us. This is a fable about freedom and conformity, individuality and authority, romance and reality. Ignorance - liberation - suppression - awakening. Like a concerto, it reflects the oppression of young minds by education and the growth and resistance of young minds. The imprisonment and liberation of thoughts. The longing and relaxation of the soul. The confrontation between traditional isolation and youthful vitality. Looking at it today, there is no distance or barrier at all.
These contradictions and value questioning are still deeply realistic in current Chinese education.
Growth is always accompanied by pain. Get hurt, fall down, get up. Injure again, fall again, get up again. When we were growing up, we may have all longed for a teacher like Keating, who loved literature and life and inspired us to express our individuality. And when we step onto the podium, we all more or less imitate Keating. Because we firmly believe that in the rigid and closed reality, there is always some light that guides us to resist or fight.