Examples Of Transcendentalism In Dead Poets Society

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Whoso would be a man must be a nonconformist. He who would gather immortal palms, must not be hindered by the name of goodness, but must explore if it be goodness. Nothing is at last sacred but the integrity of our own mind.” (Emerson 190)
Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau were transcendentalist. Emerson’s philosophy was shown throughout the film, Dead Poets Society. Many transcendentalist ideas, such as distinctiveness, free-spiritedness, and independence were expressed in the film. Each main character is able to portray a unique idea that relates to transcendentalism.
Many of Emerson’s and Thoreau’s beliefs were revealed through the characters in the film, one being Neil Perry. Neil is a distinctive and keen child. He is able to represent the ideas of transcendentalism in multiple ways during the film. Neil wanted the other boys to help bring back the Dead Poets Society, by always being opened to hear others poems and making everyone realize that you need to be able to express yourself and who you really are, or there’s nothing to life. …show more content…
He inspires the group to pursue the challenge of creating a Dead Poet Society, after their English teacher, Mr. Keating shows them new ways to think of life. Neil wanted the others to be opened to having a spiritual unity with nature. During the first meeting Neil began with reading a traditional message, “I went to the woods because I wanted to live deliberately. I wanted to live deep and suck out all the marrow of life. To put to rout all that was not life, and not, when I had come to die, discover that I had not lived.” (Thoreau 175.) The line he spoke was meant to show freedom and belief of being spiritual
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