Sociological Themes In Dead Poets Society

"The Dead Poets Society" is an awe inspiring film set in the 1950s about a teacher who went against the grain and taught his high school students to think for themselves and not allow their attitudes and behavior to be constrained by conformity by older generations. In our class lectures/discussions, we have touched on many aspects of human culture and communication and this movie illustrates many of these concepts. Perspectives, gender, communication theories, persuasion, language, verbal and nonverbal communication, interpersonal relationships, public speaking, intercultural communication--these are all included and exemplified in this film.

This essay intends to examine different aspects of Social Psychology in the film, Dead Poets Society. Released in 1989, this film provides a look at the culture of an Eastern preparatory school, and how a charismatic leader can utilize minority influence to inspire a mass of students. Interactions between characters exhibit many phenomena evident of social psychology, such as how a person can influence a situation and vice versa; social influence; conformity; situational strength; the human need for individuality and to be unique. These different types of interactions all define Social Psychology, and are exhibited in every unique situation.

The history of how society came about is very old but short, only emerging during the 19th century. Therefore, it is one of the youngest as well as one of the oldest of the social sciences. According to the American Sociological Association sociology is the study of social life, social change, and the social causes and consequences of human behavior. Sociologists investigate the structure of groups, organizations, and societies, and how people interact within these contexts. In comparison to other majors, sociology has a broad scope with relevance to research, theory, and application of knowledge. Sociology provides many distinctive perspectives on the world, generating new ideas and critiquing the old. Because sociology addresses the most

Humans often take pride in their ability to think freely and act independently. However, many actions that we perform and certain ways we behave in society are often quickly overlooked and not questioned. We often do not understand why we perform certain tasks or adhere to certain rules. However, we still paradoxically pride ourselves in our freedom. By analyzing the sociological perspective, we can understand how much of a role society often plays in our actions and behavior as individuals in society. Certainly, the sociological perspective can allow us to analyze events in the movie The Long Walk Home more closely. The sociological perspective can allow us to understand how the actions of the characters are often chained and their behaviors controlled by society, through using the theories of social location, social control, and social stratification. The sociological perspective can also allow us to understand why these characters strangely adhered to these forms of oppressive control and often resisted change, through using role theory and the sociology of knowledge. Lastly, the sociological perspective will allow us to understand how actors can break free of these bindings, through using an interpretive analysis and applying concepts such as freedom, ecstasy, and bad faith. Overall, the sociological perspective allows us to understand the personalities, actions, and story of The Long Walk Home through revealing to us how these features were guided through control,

Ralph Waldo Emerson, a leader of the Transcendentalist movement in the nineteenth century, once expresses his opinion on nonconformity when he wrote, “To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment.” His words express what many people have aspired to be. These words from Ralph Waldo Emerson highlight the idea of nonconformity which is one of the main pillars of the . Humans, having naturally social instincts, find it challenging to risk going against the crowd for fear of isolation, so Transcendental ideas can be difficult to execute amid the pressures of society. Ideas from this movement, particularly nonconformity, are some of the main themes in Dead Poets Society directed by Peter Weir. While Neil’s character in Dead Poets Society initially displays characteristics of Ralph Waldo Emerson’s Transcendentalist ideas from “Self-Reliance,” he fails to continue his Transcendental endeavors proving that while Transcendentalism is possible, society ultimately causes individuals to conform.

Sociology is known as the study of the development, structure, and functioning of human society, so there is no surprise that it is so common to see the basic principles of sociology in everyday life. The 80’s film, Sixteen Candles, is a perfect example of how sociology is portrayed. Sixteen Candles is an entertaining story about sixteen year old Sam who’s family forgot about her birthday due to the distraction of her older sisters upcoming wedding. Throughout the movie, Sam wishes to be with Jake, an older student-athlete, and the audience is taken on a two day adventure which is concluded when Jake kisses Sam over a birthday cake lit with sixteen birthday candles. The movie shows many sociological elements such as deviance, race, gender

The study of sociology brings people to view topics in a unique way than others. The way we see the world, human behavior, as well as its connection to society from an outside point of view is called social imagination or perception. The sociological imagination “searches for the link between micro and macro levels of analysis,” a concept that basically says that a person lives

Sociology is the scientific study of being behavior in human groups (Schaefer). There are very many examples of sociology in the movie The Perks of Being a Wallflower, but I view alienation, deviance, and gender roles to be the most prominent. This movie is about the struggles of a teenage boy named Charlie’s freshman year of high school. Charlie is seen as a social outcast and he just barely makes it through the year with the help of his best friends Sam and Patrick. Throughout the movie Charlie experiences most of the basic struggles of starting high school and some. This movie is very relateable since it gives a more realistic view of high school for some people. Charlie , and the audience, learns the importance of love and friendship in growing up in today’s society.

Sociology is the systemic study of human society and social interaction. Sociologists study human societies and their social interactions in order to develop theories of how human behavior is shaped by group life and how, in turn, group life is affected by individuals (Kendall, 4). The movie Crash (Haggis, 2005), is full of many sociological issues, such as race, social class, and gender. Crash makes you see how group life is affected by individuals and how human behavior is shaped by group life.

The Dead Poets Society focuses on society’s oppression and how it affects individuals. There are many sociological factors that are seen in this movie such as, strain theory, symbolic interactionism, and conflict theory. This movie opens people’s viewpoints of life and brings them to a new perspective by showing these sociological factors and how they take place.

Sociology takes place everywhere at every waking moment. It is an omnipresent being that lives alongside every one of us. Whether you are in the poorest slums of the world begging for food or living in a new york city penthouse raking in $10 million a year, you are affected by an assortment of sociological theories. As the study of human interaction and the relationship between people and the society in which they live, sociology is prevalent in everyday interaction as well the media; especially movies. Whether it’s a drama, horror, comedy, romance, or action movie, every conflict displays a different theory of sociology. One widely known movie has been analyzed for it’s variety of sociological theories. Fight club depicts theories such as

The wave and dead poets’ society respectively show the struggle between the concepts of individuality and conformity. The book and movie adopt different techniques and concepts to help deliver their messages. These include the similar themes in both such as the use of a school setting, the teacher figure who encourages students to either conform or rebel and individual characters struggling to be themselves in a conformist setting.

Van Krieken R, Smith P, Habibis D, Mcdonald K, Haralambos M, Holborn M, Sociology Themes and Perspe

The book starts out in Florida at the home of Miles Halter. We subsequently discover that he wants to attend a boarding school called Culver Creek in New Hope, Alabama. After he gets there most of the significant events take place in the dorms, the gym, the smoking hole and the barn at the school. The time is in the present; as the teenagers journey through their high school years.

At the beginning of the semester, I knew very little about sociology or even what it was about. I just knew I needed to take the class for my degree plan to transfer to a four-year university and that I would be doing a lot of reading about different terms and theories of society. However, this first month of class has helped me improve my understanding of what sociology is about and shown me how my personal society has impacted the way I view society. Not only did I learn about the relationships between society and myself, but I have also learned different concepts that have helped me gain a better understanding of how society works. There are three specific sociological concepts that has helped me improve my understanding of the relation