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Neil Perry: The Powerful Character In Dead Poet Society

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Neil Perry was an incredible and very interesting character in Dead Poet Society. He seems to be the most transcendental character in the movie besides their teacher, John Keating (Quoting Henry David Thoreau) “I went to the woods because I wanted to live deliberately. I wanted to live deep and suck out all of the marrow of life” (Leonard). He shows how much he cares about others feelings and how being creative/doing what you love is more important than being in school to be the same person that everyone else is trying to be. Many of the kids don’t want to be a normal average person but they are forced to by their family. Neil was one of those kids, his mother seemed to be somewhat on his side but never said anything to defend him, his father was very controlling and demanding that Neil has no fun and just focuses on school. His father, Mr. Perry’s reasoning would be better understood if Neil was failing classes along with acting but he was not, he was just trying to be himself. His father’s selfish and nonunderstanding mindset destroyed Neil’s entire …show more content…

He had it all figured out but was stopped right in his tracks during the happiest part of his life. He loved poetry. He loved acting. He helped others and would always think freely. These are the great traits that would lead anyone to believe that he was a transcendentalist. This may be a movie but this terrible thing has probably happened before to a different innocent kid in a different place or time period. Everyone should be allowed to chase their dreams and do what makes them happy. “I just talked to my father. He’s making me quit the play at Henley Hall. Acting’s everything to me. I-but he doesn’t know! He-I can see the point; we are not a rich family, like Charlie’s. We-But he’s planning the rest of my life for me, and I-He’s never asked me what I want”

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Throughout the movie, Neil went to a cave away from people. Furthermore, Neil’s friends joined him to have fun with the Dead Poets Society, a group Neil recreated after hearing that his professor, Mr. Keating, had been involved in when he was a student at Welton. Overall, Neil Perry was a great example of transcendentalism throughout the entire movie. One transcendental quality Neil possessed was his love for the beauty of words. Neil Perry was a good student; he wanted to do what was best for him and not what his mom and dad wanted.

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"I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived.”- Henry David Thoreau. Transcendentalism is an American philosophy that revolves around self-reliance and independence, commonly in nature, a Transcendentalist wants to find the true meaning in life. I believe that Chris McCandless was a Transcendentalist because he was able to leave his whole life behind and take on a minimalist lifestyle while having a strong relationship with god. However, I believe that I am not a Transcendentalist, but simply an adventurer.

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He understood that his father would disagree with this decision, but he wanted to follow his dreams of acting. Without the influence of Mr. Keating, Neil might have never been influenced in the way he did. A more strict teacher, like the rest of the teachers at Welton, might have only threatened him to focus on his studies, much like Neil’s father might have

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Neil’s father, Mr. Perry was responsible for his son’s suicide. “Neil couldn’t deal with the idea that to give up acting was to quit playing the roles that he lived every day, and so he killed himself because he “realized that he had not lived” up to that point” (See). Neil was not an honest person to himself or his father. Neil’s father wants the best for him and is able to give him the best education. “You have opportunities that I never even dreamt of and I am not going to let you waste them” (Schulman).

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Mr. Keating is viewed as rowdy and rebellious to the conservative structure the preparatory usually implements. Neil’s parents are viewed as dominating Neil’s life. Neil parents are overbearing about what Neil needs to do and who he needs to become. Todd thinks his parents favor his brother. They are always comparing him to his brother that previously graduated.

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