Carpe Diem
"O Captain! My Captain!"
written by Walt Whitman(1819- 1892)
featured in the film The Dead Poets Society
O CAPTAIN! my Captain! our fearful trip is done;
The ship has weather'd every rack, the prize we sought is won;
The port is near, the bells I hear, the people all exulting,
While follow eyes the steady keel, the vessel grim and daring:But O heart! heart! heart!
O the bleeding drops of red,
Where on the deck my Captain lies,
Fallen cold and dead.
O Captain! my Captain! rise up and hear the bells;
Rise up--for you the flag is flung--for you the bugle trills;
For you bouquets and ribbon'd wreaths--for you the shores a-crowding;
For you they call, the swaying mass, their eager faces turning;
Here Captain! dear father!
This arm beneath your head;
It is some dream that on the deck,
You've fallen cold and dead.
My Captain does not answer, his lips are pale and still;
My father does not feel my arm, he has no pulse nor will;
The ship is anchor'd safe and sound, its voyage closed and done;
From fearful trip, the victor ship, comes in with object won;
Exult, O shores, and ring, O bells!
But I, with mournful tread,
Walk the deck my Captain lies,
Fallen cold and dead.
To analyze this poem I would like to employ the references from The Dead Poets Society. If you haven't seen this movie it is crucial that you watch it as soon as possible especially if you have even the smallest passion for the written word. Again, if you haven't seen this electrifying movie it is about a unique english teacher that changes his male pupils lives forever with his exceptional lessons of literature and life. If you haven't seen this astounding movie you should at least be able to recognize the famous line "O Captain! My Captain"
This message in this poem is not shrouded from ignorant eyes. What is occurring in this poem is about a crew that has made it through a horrendous storm. "The people all exulting," and "The port is near", yet their captain is dead. The whole crew has survived because of their captain who now is, "fallen cold and dead." The sorrow of this poem is clear, but that is not the whole tone of this poem. The men are enveloped both in grief for their Captain as well as gratitude and reverence for their Captain that led them to safety. To understand "O Captain! My Captain!" is to understand The Dead Poets Society, and to understand The Dead Poets Society is to understand "O Captain! My Captain!". In the movie a group of boys is influenced and led by their teacher, and in result grown into men. Although as in the poem their "captain" in result of certain events is fired unjustly. When their teacher departs the classroom for the final time those students that remain loyal to him stand on their desks and shout "O Captain! My Captain!" It is a stirring moment that squeezes the heart and makes anyone stand on the nearest table and join in the chorus. Watch the movie and understand the full extent of Walt Whitman's work, and after you have seen it click on the correct meaning of Carpe Diem to see the final moment again if you guess wrong you will be sent to a funny cat video to atone for your mistake.
What is does Carpe Diem mean? A Truth is strength B Never give up C Seize the day D Carps Die E Always move forward
