A Requirement

For

Field Study 5

Submitted by:

Riegner Lan L. Balasbas

Bsed – III F
Part I (Introduction)

The Class is a 2008 French drama film directed by Laurent Cantet, based on the
2006 novel of the same name by François Bégaudeau. The novel is a semi-
autobiographical account of Bégaudeau's experiences as a French language and
literature teacher in a middle school in the 20th arrondissement of Paris, particularly
illuminating his struggles with "problem children": Esmerelda (Esmeralda Ouertani),
Khoumba (Rachel Regulier), and Souleymane (Franck Keïta). The film stars Bégaudeau
himself in the role of the teacher. The film received the Palme d'Or at the 2008 Cannes
Film Festival, making it the first French film to do so since 1987, when Maurice Pialat
won the award for Under the Sun of Satan. The Class was also nominated for an
Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film, but lost to Departures. The Class
release date: May 24, 2008 (Cannes), September 24, 2008 (France).
Part II (Summary)
François Marin (Bégaudeau playing a fictionalized version of himself) isn't
content to simply teach French, he wants to challenge his students to think as well. But
while Marin's intentions may be noble, his students are rebellious and decidedly strong-
headed. Most have little interest in the subject at hand, though by assigning them
projects in which they must master the language while learning about themselves in the
process, Marin works hard to keep them learning. Some students, like Chinese
immigrant Wei (Wey Huang), are up to the challenge, while others like the tempestuous
Souleymane (Franck Keita) and outspoken sports fan Nassim (Nassim Amrabt) seem
more interested in shaking things up than bettering themselves. When Souleymane
erupts during a heated exchange between the teacher and his students, the school
board schedules a meeting to determine if he should be expelled. Marin's account of the
incident will play a pivotal role in determining whether Souleymane stays or goes, but
when it comes to light that the teacher himself made some questionable comments in
front of his students that day, his fellow board members begin to suspect that he may
have inadvertently escalated the situation. When a concerned student reveals that
Souleymane's father will send the boy back to Mali if he's expelled, Marin realizes that
his actions may have greater consequences than he intended.

Part III (Analysis of the events)

Set wholly in a secondary school in a working-class district of Paris, where many

inhabitants are foreign-born, the film follows the year of a young teacher, François
Marin, and the 25 pupils aged 14 or 15 who he takes for an hour each day in French
language. A loner, he walks the narrow line between maintaining discipline and gaining
co-operation.
From the start, wide differences are apparent in the class over standards of
dress, deportment, knowledge and application. A dispute arises over using the
imperfect and pluperfect subjunctive, which he admits may be a bit of an affectation and
is then labeled as gay. When pupils have to read aloud from a set book, The Diary of
Anne Frank, a girl called Khoumba refuses because she does not consider it relevant to
her life. In private, François forces her to apologize.
 Success comes when he asks the pupils to write a self-portrait. An assertive girl
called Esmeralda reveals that she would like to be a policewoman or failing that, a
rapper. A difficult boy called Souleymane, weak in written French, submits his story in
an interesting series of photographs (at a parents' evening, his mother can speak no
French at all). However, after an argument over football teams with Carl, another boy
who is problematic, Souleymane insults François and is sent to the head teacher's
office.
At a teachers' conference to decide final placings, François defends Souleymane
but his efforts are undermined by the two student representatives at the meeting,
Esmeralda and Louise, who behave in a very childish manner. Afterwards, though
sworn to secrecy, the two girls tell the others that François had it in for Souleymane. A
furious François rebukes the pair, saying they behaved like "skanks" (French:
pétasses). Uproar follows, in which Souleymane, after accidentally hitting Khoumba with
his sports bag, storms out and is suspended. After a disciplinary hearing at which
Souleymane is supported by his mother, for whom he has to translate, he is expelled
and faces possible deportation to his native country, Mali.
In the last lesson of the year, François asks each pupil what they have learned
over the year. Carl has been inspired by science experiments in his chemistry class,
Khoumba has warmed to music and enjoyed learning Spanish, Esmerelda pretends to
have learned nothing but then admits that she has been reading Plato's Republic and is
gripped by the character of Socrates. After they have all left the room, a quiet girl called
Henriette comes back and despondently claims that she really has not learned anything
at all. Outside, an impromptu football match has begun between the pupils and
teachers.

Part IV (Creative Elements)

Characterization

François Bégaudeau as François Marin, the French language teacher.

Jean-Michel Simonet as the school principal.
Burak Ozyilmaz as Burak, top boy of the class.
Boubacar Touré as Boubacar, who accuses Marin of being gay.
Carl Nanor as Carl, who has been expelled from his previous school.
Louise Grinberg as Louise, top girl of the class and a student delegate.
Esmeralda Ouertani as Esmeralda, the other student delegate.
Franck Keïta as Souleymane, whose lack of control leads to him being disciplined.
Henriette Kasaruhanda as Henriette, the silent girl who says she has learned nothing.
Rachel Régulier as Khoumba, the girl who refuses to read.

Part V (Opinion)

The Class is an excellent movie that explores the difficulties of being a teacher.
The whole film takes the point of view from the side of the teacher, and I found this to be
interesting as most films would take on the student's point of view in order for the
audience to easily relate. The Class successfully made me sympathies and empathies
for the struggles that teachers have to go through. The film also accurately depicts
students quite accurately and not be boxed in by the stereotypes that are commonly
found in school student characters.
At the end of the film, it made me think back of my high school days and the
difficulties that my teachers had to go through in order to get the students to learn and
grow. I do thank my teachers for what they have done for me, because without them, I
wouldn't be where I am now.

Part VI (Conclusion)

The movie is bursting with life, energy, fears, frustrations and the quick laughter
of a classroom hungry for relief. It avoids lockstep plotting and plunges into the middle
of the fray, helping us become familiar with the students, suggesting more than it tells,
allowing us to identify with many points of view. It is convincing.
The reason for that, I learn, involves the method of the director, Laurent Cantet,
one of the most gifted new French directors. He began with a best-selling
autobiographical novel by a teacher, Francois Begaudeau. He cast Begaudeau as the
teacher. He worked for a year with a group of students, improvising and filming scenes.
So convincing is the film that it seems documentary, but all of the students, I learn, are
playing roles and not themselves.
A lot of grief in the classroom has to do with the rote teaching of French. As the
students puzzle their way through, I don't know, the passive pluperfect subjunctive or
whatever, I must say I sided with them. Despite the best efforts of dedicated and gifted
nuns, I never learned to diagram a sentence; something they believed was of
paramount importance. Yet I have made my living by writing and speaking. You learn a
language by listening and speaking. You learn how to write by reading. It's not an
abstraction.
Part I (Introduction)
The Great Debaters is a 2007 American biographical drama film directed by and
starring Denzel Washington. It is based on an article written about the Wiley College
debate team by Tony Scherman for the spring 1997 issue of American Legacy. The film
co-stars Forest Whitaker, Denzel Washington , Kimberly Elise, Nate Parker, Gina
Ravera, Jermaine Williams and Jurnee Smollett. The screenplay is written by Robert
Eisele, with story by Robert Eisele and Jeffrey Porro. The film was released in theaters
on December 25, 2007. The Great Debaters release date:
December 11, 2007 (Cinerama Dome premiere), December 19, 2007 (Ziegfeld Theatre
premiere), December 25, 2007 (United States).

Part II (Summary)
A black debate team competes with white schools during civil unrest in America.
It is the mid-1930s and Professor Tolson assembles a black debate team at Wiley
College. He trains them with the goal that they compete with white debate teams across
the country to prove that they are just as good, maybe even better. The team is
composed of Samantha, James (the youngest member and the son of another Wiley
professor), Henry, and Hamilton. As the team competes across the country, they
experience first-hand the injustice and terror of racism. They witness a lynch mob
murder a black man and are deeply bothered by the incident. Prof. Tolson, who secretly
engages in political activity deemed illegal in those days, also faces adversity. Despite
such trials, the team fares well, to the point of being asked to compete against the
leading team in the country, Harvard University. At the debate, James, initially a
researcher, is given the chance to debate with Samantha, eventually winning the
contest. The team then continues their winning streak for the next ten years.

Part III (Analysis of the events)

Based on a true story, the plot revolves around the efforts of debate coach
Melvin B. Tolson (Denzel Washington) at Wiley College, a historically black college
related to the Methodist Episcopal Church, South (now The United Methodist Church),
to place his team on equal footing with whites in the American South during the 1930s,
when Jim Crow laws were common and lynch mobs were a fear for blacks. The fictional
Wiley team eventually succeeds to the point where they are able to debate Harvard
University.
The movie explores social constructs in Texas during the Great Depression, from
day-to-day insults African Americans endured to lynching. Also depicted is James L.
Farmer, Jr. (Denzel Whitaker), who, at 14 years old, was on Wiley's debate team after
completing high school (and who later went on to co-found the Congress of Racial
Equality). Another character on the team, Samantha Booke, is based on the real
individual Henrietta Bell Wells, acclaimed poet and the only female member of the 1930
Wiley team who participated in the first collegiate interracial debate in the US.
The key line of dialogue, used several times, is a famous paraphrase of theologian St.
Augustine of Hippo: "An unjust law is no law at all." Another major line, repeated in
slightly different versions according to context, concerns doing what you "have to do" in
order that we "can do" what we "want to do." In all instances, these vital lines are
spoken by the James L. Farmer Sr. and James L. Farmer, Jr. characters.

Part IV (Creative Elements)

Characterization

Denzel Washington as Melvin B. Tolson

Forest Whitaker as James L. Farmer, Sr.
Denzel Whitaker as James L. Farmer, Jr.
Nate Parker as Henry Lowe
Jurnee Smollett as Samantha Booke
Jermaine Williams as Hamilton Burgess
Gina Ravera as Ruth Tolson
John Heard as Sheriff Dozier
Kimberly Elise as Pearl Farmer
Devyn A. Tyler as Helen Farmer
Trenton McClain Boyd as Nathaniel Farmer
Jackson Walker as Pig Owner
Tim Parati as Pig Farmer
Justice Leak as Harland Osbourne
Robert X. Golphin as Dunbar Reed
Damien Leake as Wilson
Frank L. Ridley as Security Guard

Sound tracks used in the movie

"My Soul is a Witness" – Alvin "Youngblood" Hart & Sharon Jones

"That's What My Baby Likes" – Sharon Jones, Alvin Youngblood Hart & Teenie Hodges
"I've Got Blood in My Eyes for You" – The Carolina Chocolate Drops & Alvin
"Youngblood" Hart
"Step It Up and Go" – Alvin "Youngblood" Hart & Teenie Hodges
"It's Tight Like That" – Sharon Jones, Alvin Youngblood Hart & Teenie Hodges
"Busy Bootin'" – Alvin "Youngblood" Hart & The Carolina Chocolate Drops
"City of Refuge" – Alvin "Youngblood" Hart & The Carolina Chocolate Drops
"Two Wings" – Alvin "Youngblood" Hart, Sharon Jones w/Billy Rivers and the Angelic
Voices of Faith
"Delta Serenade" – David Berger & The Sultans of Swing
"Rock n' Rye" – David Berger & The Sultans of Swing
"Wild About That Thing" – Sharon Jones, Alvin Youngblood Hart, & Teenie Hodges
"Nobody's Fault but Mine" – Alvin "Youngblood" Hart & The Carolina Chocolate Drops
"How Long Before I Change My Clothes" – Alvin "Youngblood" Hart
"We Shall Not Be Moved" – Sharon Jones w/Billy Rivers and the Angelic Voices of Faith
"Up Above My Head" – Sharon Jones w/Billy Rivers and the Angelic Voices of Faith
"The Shout" – Art Tatum
"Begrüssung" – Marian Anderson
Part V (Opinion)

This movie is definitely a message movie, intended to inspire hope and thought. I
personally wish it had not resorted to a rather large historical inaccuracy, namely, that
this debate team from a small black college won over Harvard. Actually it bested the
University of Southern California. Nevertheless, the movie has good achievements in
directing and acting by the enthusiastic and talented Denzel Washington and the fresh
faces that perform the major roles, not to mention the brilliant performance by the
always splendid Forest Whitaker, playing a deeply spiritual and intellectually gifted
minister. John Heard also appears, playing with great effect a sinister sheriff whose
whiny voice with a sadistic edge to it helped create the hideous world of the racist South
during the Depression. There are sobering scenes of lynching, racial violence, and
sexual immorality and carousing. However, the thrust of the story is the courageous and
inspiring effort by the debating students to achieve intellectual victory despite great
odds.

Part VI (Conclusion)

The movie is not really about how this team defeats the national champions. It is
more about how its members, its coach, its school and community believe that an
education is their best way out of the morass of racism and discrimination. They would
find it unthinkable that decades in the future, serious black students would be criticized
by jealous contemporaries for "acting white." They are black, proud, single-minded,
focused, and they express all this most dramatically in their debating.
Since debaters are supposed to defend whatever position they draw, it might
have been intriguing to see them defend something they disbelieve, even despise. Still,
I suppose I understand why that isn't done here; it would have interrupted the flow. And
the flow becomes a mighty flood in a powerful and impassioned story.
Part I (Introduction)

Freedom Writers is a 2007 American drama film written and directed by Richard
LaGravenese and starring Hilary Swank, Scott Glenn, Imelda Staunton, Patrick
Dempsey and Mario. It is based on the book The Freedom Writers Diary by teacher Erin
Gruwell and students who compiled the book out of real diary entries about their lives
that they wrote in their English class at Woodrow Wilson Classical High School in Long
Beach, California. The movie is also based on the DC program called City at Peace.
The title of the movie and book is a play on the term "Freedom Riders", referring to the
multiracial civil rights activists who tested the U.S. Supreme Court decision ordering the
desegregation of interstate buses in 1961. The idea for the film came from journalist
Tracey Durning, who made a documentary about Erin Gruwell for the ABC News
program Primetime Live. Durning served as co-executive producer of the film. The film
was dedicated to the memory of Armand Jones, who was killed after wrapping up
Freedom Writers. He was 18 and was shot to death in Anaheim, California after a
confrontation with a man who robbed Jones of a necklace in a Denny's restaurant.

Part II (Summary)

The Freedom Writers Movie is based in a real story about a teacher (Erin
Gruwell) who changed the lives of young people separated by their ethnicities. Mrs. G,
as her class calls her, is a first timer and she never really expects the type of class she
is getting. Everyone in her class is disrespectful and seems to be gangsters, and do not
care about school or their futures at all.
The last straw is broken when an incident happens and she compares it to the
start of the holocaust. This is a reality check for both, her and her students. As the year
goes along Mrs. G finds different dynamics and projects that show her students that
they are not as different after all. Therefore, she asks them to write in a notebook
journal about their lives, and what they consider to make their teacher to know about
them, all their different stories.
According to all her students' past, their lives, their stories, Mrs. G knows which is
her responsibility now, to make each of them reach their goals and make them believe
in themselves no matter which situation they will face throughout their lives; but Mrs. G
will face some other obstacles that will not let her down until she completes her
proposal.

Part III (Analysis of the events)

In 1994 in Long Beach, California, Erin Gruwell (Hilary Swank) has been
accepted to teach English for at-risk students at Woodrow Wilson High School—a once
highly acclaimed school which has declined since voluntary integration had been
enforced and where racial tensions have increased since the Los Angeles riots two
years prior. Erin struggles to form a connection with her students and observes
numerous fights between some of them, who are in rival gangs.
One night, Latina student Eva Benitez (April L. Hernandez), her boyfriend Paco
(Will Morales), and a friend go to a convenience store. Eva's classmate Sindy Ngor
(Jaclyn Ngan), who is a Cambodian refugee, and her boyfriend also enter the store.
African-American student Grant Rice (Armand Jones), frustrated at losing an arcade
game, demands a refund from the store owner.
As Grant storms out, Paco (as retaliation for losing a fight against Grant earlier
during a massive brawl at school) attempts a drive-by shooting to kill Grant, but misses
and accidentally kills Sindy's boyfriend. As a witness, Eva must testify in court; she
intends to guard "her own" in her testimony.
At school, Erin intercepts a racist drawing by one of her Latino students and
utilizes it to teach the class about the Holocaust, which everyone, except Caucasian
student Ben Samuels (Hunter Parrish), has no knowledge of. She gradually begins to
earn their trust and buys composition books for them to use as diaries, in which they
talk about their experiences of being abused, seeing their friends die, and being evicted.
Determined to reform her students, Erin takes on two part-time jobs to pay for more
books and activities, and spends a lot more time at school, much to the disappointment
of her husband (Patrick Dempsey). A transformation is specifically visible in one
student, Marcus (Jason Finn). Erin invites various Jewish Holocaust survivors to talk
with her class about their experiences and requires the students to attend a field trip to
the Museum of Tolerance. The students start to realize that being rivals against each
other, just because of their race, shouldn't be a reason to prohibit their friendships with
one another. Meanwhile, her unique training methods are scorned by her colleagues
and department chair Margaret Campbell (Imelda Staunton).
The following school year comes and Erin teaches her class (now sophomores)
again, making it the second year that she is their teacher. On the first day, Erin makes
her class propose a "Toast for Change", allowing everyone to open up about their
struggles and what they wish to change about themselves. Later on, the class makes
enough money to have Miep Gies (Pat Carroll) come to the United States and tell her
story of her helping Anne Frank, her family, and the Van Pels hide from the Nazis; she
then also persuades the students that they are heroes and that they "within their own
small ways, [can] turn on a small light in a dark room."
These two events inspire Eva to tell the truth, breaking free of the demands of
her father to always protect her own. At Grant's trial, she shocks the courtroom by
revealing that Paco actually killed Sindy's boyfriend in the store; Grant is spared of
being convicted and Sindy later forgives Eva. Afterward, Eva is attacked and
threatened, but ultimately spared by her fellow gang members, and moves in with her
aunt for safety.
Meanwhile, Erin asks her students to write their diaries in book form. She
compiles the entries and names it The Freedom Writers Diary. Her husband divorces
her, since he feels like Erin is devoting too much of her time to her students and not
enough time for their marriage. Margaret tells her she cannot teach her kids for their
junior year. Erin fights this decision, eventually convincing the superintendent to permit
her to teach her kids during their junior and senior years, much to their elation. The film
ends with a note that Erin successfully prepared numerous high school students to
graduate and attend college, for many the first in their families to do so.
As a teacher, she didn't only teach them knowledge, but also change their life
through a vivid experience. she wanted to help them to touch the knowledge. Education
is a big project. A real good education needs to connect life closely. Sometimes, A
teacher is like a symphony conductor, who should take good use of all kinds of
resources.
Part IV (Creative elements)
Characterization

Hilary Swank as Erin Gruwell

Patrick Dempsey as Scott Casey
Scott Glenn as Stev e Gruwell, Erin's Father
Imelda Staunton as Margaret Campbell
John Benjamin Hickey as Brian Gelford
April Lee Hernández as Eva Benitez
Mario as Andre Bryant
Jason Finn as Marcus
Vanetta Smith as Brandy Ross
Antonio Garcia as Miguel
Jaclyn Ngan as Sindy Ngor
Kristin Herrera as Gloria Munez
Gabriel Chavarria as Tito
Hunter Parrish as Ben Samuels
Giovonnie Samuels as Victoria
Deance Wyatt as Jamal Hill
Sergio Montalvo as Alejandro Santiago
Robert Wisdom as Dr. Carl Cohn
Will Morales as Paco
Ricardo Moline as Eva's Father
Angela Alvarado as Eva's Mother
Angela Sargeant as Marcus's Mother
Pat Carroll as Miep Gies
Chil Kong as gas station Owner
Armand Jones as Grant Rice

Sound tracks used in the movie

"A Dream" by Common featuring will.i.am

"Listen!!!" by Talib Kweli
"It’s R Time" by Jeannie Ortega
"When the Ship Goes Down" by Cypress Hill
"Hip Hop Hooray" by Naughty by Nature
"Keep Ya Head Up" by 2Pac
"Code of the Streets" by Gang Starr
"Rebirth of Slick (Cool Like Dat)" by Digable Planets
"Officer" by Pharcyde
"This Is How We Do It" by Montell Jordan
"Colours" by will.i.am
"Bus Ride" by will.i.am
"Riots" by will.i.am
"Eva’s Theme" by Mark Isham
"Anne Frank" by Mark Isham
Part V (Opinion)

―A teacher must be devoted to his/her students‖. This was seen in the movie
―Freedom Writers‖, where a teacher who suffer to teach her students to have respect. A
freshmen student was disrespect to their teacher, named Mrs. Gruwell. Mrs. Gruwell is
an inexperienced teacher. Mrs. Gruwell faced with a big challenged when her freshmen
students showed her a high level of disrespect. Mrs. Gruwell and her students are hard
to understand with each other. While Mrs. Gruwell taught she developed different
strategies to boost them in taking part in class activities. The students in class was so
racial and only communicated with students of the same ethnic group. Mrs. Gruwell
showed great compassion and determination because the students have no interest in
school or in her but she still tried her best, she tried different methods or techniques to
convince her students. According to the this ―Knowledge is not generated within an
individual but rather is constructed through reaction with people and other objects
around, such as books.‖. Mrs. Gruwell’s technique to help the students love reading and
writing was providing journals for them. In this technique, it is effective as all students
shared their thoughts, reflections and feelings through writing. In this movie shown me
that in order to become an effective teacher you have to explore some techniques or
methods that can clutch the students to participate in group activities and to show their
interest in school. In this movie I realized that being a teacher is not easy. I realized that
our teachers are also finding a way or a method for us to change our bad attitude. Our
teachers are tired too, they are tired of teaching us some good things but still they don’t
give up on us. For me, when I became a teacher someday I will never give up to the
things I think it’s hard for me to do. Like Mrs. Gruwell, she don’t give up on her freshmen
students so that they finally graduated, like us when we have challenges in life don’t
give up, at the end problem was already solved. All the sacrifices we have done are all
worth it.

Part VI (Conclusion)

A meaningful and good movie. This movie is about how a group of high school
students have changed their destiny and their life in good ways. They had gained their
self-motivation toward school because of a passionate teacher.
Freedom Writers movie shows us the importance of education. At first, the
students in Mrs. G did not care anything about school so they ignored a lot of good
things they should know. For example, when they have started to read a book called
―The Diary of Anne Frank ― after that they have figured out new things they never know
before that’s why they felt very interested in the book. Freedom Writers has a good
example of dedicated teacher. Mrs. Gruwell was the one who believed in her students
even when a lot of teachers and her department head in school just ignored and did not
care about them. She tried to help them everything she could by taking on two part time
jobs to pay for more books for her students also spent a lot more time at school
In conclusion, Freedom Writers was a meaningful movie, which contains lots of
good lessons in life and knowledge. It’s also brings us a good example of the
responsibility of a teacher should have.
Part I (Introduction)

The Emperor's Club is a 2002 American drama film directed by Michael Hoffman
and starring Kevin Kline. Based on Ethan Canin's short story "The Palace Thief", the
film follows a prep school teacher and his students at a fictional boys' prep school, St.
Benedict's Academy, near Washington, D.C. The Emperor's Club release date:
September 9, 2002 (TIFF), November 22, 2002.

Part II (Summary)

William Hundert (Kevin Kline) has been teaching classics at St. Benedict's
Academy for Boys for many years. He loves his job and has dedicated every moment of
his life to shaping the character of the young men who come under his influence.
Hundert is particularly interested in the school's annual Mr. Julius Caesar Contest,
which involves weeks of essay tests capped off by a public quiz between the three top
contestants. Although he still takes care of routine chores, including overseeing one of
the dormitories, he has dreams of one day being headmaster of the school.
This particular year he faces a new challenge — a student who has little respect
for the school's traditions or Hundert's authority in the classroom. Sedgewick Bell (Emile
Hirsch) is the son of a U.S. Senator (Harris Yulin) from West Virginia. The boy
immediately shows his disdain for Hundert's seriousness about his subject. He becomes
the instigator of many pranks on campus and the ringleader of a secret meeting with
some students at a nearby private girl's school. Bell doesn't study and is convinced that
his good looks and high social standing will carry him through any situation. When
Hundert goes to see the Senator about the boy's uncooperative actions, this wheeler
dealer says that he shouldn't worry about molding Sedgewick's character; his job is just
to teach him the basics. At the end of the interview, the professor realizes just how
difficult it must be to be the son of this powerful and domineering man.
Hundert, who still believes that character shapes fate, decides to take on
Sedgewick as his special project. When the boy gets involved in the Julius Caesar
contest, the professor is surprised to find himself going out of his way to let him into the
final phase of the contest. To do this, he has to deny Martin Blythe (Paul Dano) a
chance to be in the public quiz. Then in the middle of the event, he realizes that Bell is
cheating.
Years later, Hundert gets another chance with this dishonest and privileged
young man who has now risen to the heights of power and prestige as a successful
businessman, an aspiring Senator, and a major contributor to St. Benedict's Academy.
Bell invites his old professor to lead a rematch of the Mr. Julius Caesar Contest at a
fancy resort with a group of his classmates. Hundert is nearing retirement and has been
passed over for the position of headmaster. James Ellerby (Rob Morrow), a younger
colleague, holds that job and regards his old friend as somewhat of a dinosaur. Several
more surprises await Hundert as he again comes into contact with Sedgewick Bell.
Part III (Analysis of the events)

William Hundert works at a boarding school for boys called Saint Benedict's in
the 1970s, where he is a passionate classics teacher who attempts to impart wisdom
and a sense of honor to his students; he begins the school year by having new student
Martin Blythe read a plaque that hangs over his door which contains a statement made
by an ancient Mesopotamian ruler, Shutruk Nahunte. The plaque sings Shutruk
Nahunte's praises, but Hundert explains that he contributed nothing of value to his
kingdom, and as a result is virtually forgotten today.
Hundert's disciplined life and classroom are shaken when a new student,
Sedgewick Bell, is enrolled late in the class. Sedgewick possesses none of Hundert's
principles and is the son of a U.S. senator. He frequently disrupts class and does poorly
in his homework. Hundert meets with Sedgewick's father to talk about his behavior, only
to discover that the senator is disinterested in Sedgewick beyond knowing he is passing
his classes.
Hundert decides to help Sedgewick, they develop a friendship, and Sedgewick's
grades improve. The traditional end-of-the-year "Mr. Julius Caesar contest", in which
the top three students compete in a classics quiz in front of the entire school, is
approaching. Sedgewick works very hard to earn a spot, but ends up in fourth place.
Hundert doesn't want his efforts to be for naught, so he raises his grade to qualify;
Hundert later observes Martin, the rightful third place contestant, despondently
withdrawn under a tree. During the competition Hundert spies Sedgewick using crib
notes, but the headmaster orders Hundert to ignore it. Hundert then deliberately asks
Sedgewick a question on Hamilcar Barca which was not covered in class; it is answered
correctly by another contestant, Deepak Mehta (having been seen earlier by Hundert
reading a book on military science on his own initiative), who is crowned "Mr. Julius
Caesar". The cheating is never publicized, but the trust Sedgewick and Hundert had in
each other is broken. Sedgewick returns to his old ways and barely graduates, with
Hundert expressing deep disappointment that he failed Sedgewick.
Twenty-five years later, Hundert is poised to become the new headmaster, but
resigns in shock when a less experienced teacher gets the position due to his
fundraising ability. Hundert is later told that an adult Sedgewick will make a tremendous
donation to Saint Benedict's, contingent upon Hundert hosting a Mr. Julius Caesar
rematch at Sedgewick's resort hotel on the Gold Coast. The now adult members of
Sedgewick's graduating class are also invited, and all enjoy the reunion. The three
original contestants begin the competition, but as it progresses, Hundert realizes that
Sedgewick is being fed answers by an assistant through an earpiece. Hundert asks a
question about Shutruk Nahunte, which all the students find laughably easy; however,
Sedgewick is unable to answer it. Deepak answers correctly and once again wins.
Afterward, Sedgewick formally announces that he is running for a seat in the U.S.
Senate. While the men applaud, Hundert is appalled that he was used for political
grandstanding.
Shortly after the announcement, Hundert and Sedgewick run into each other in
the men's room, where Hundert confronts Sedgewick. Sedgewick tells Hundert that the
real world is full of dishonesty, and that Hundert has let life pass him by. The tirade is
overheard by one of Sedgewick's young sons, who is shocked to learn the truth about
his father. That evening, at the hotel bar, Hundert apologizes to Martin and admits that
he gave his spot to Sedgewick in the competition years ago. Martin forgives him, but his
body language makes his feelings toward Hundert ambiguous. The following morning,
the resort is apparently empty; however, Hundert is then greeted by a surprise party,
held in his honor by his former students, who present an award engraved with a quote
about education. The men wave goodbye as the helicopter carrying Hundert departs,
and he reflects that while he failed with Sedgewick, he succeeded with others.
Hundert returns to his old job teaching classics in the present-day Saint
Benedict's, which is now coeducational and more diverse. One student comes to class
late: the son of Martin Blythe, who is seen outside the window, gladly waving to his old
teacher. Hundert has the younger Blythe read the plaque above the door.

Part IV (Creative elements)

Characterization

Kevin Kline as William Hundert

Emile Hirsch as Sedgewick Bell
Joel Gretsch as adult Sedgewick
Embeth Davidtz as Elizabeth
Rob Morrow as James Ellerby
Edward Herrmann as Headmaster Woodbridge
Harris Yulin as Senator Hiram Bell
Paul Dano as Martin Blythe
Steven Culp as adult Martin
Jesse Eisenberg as Louis Masoudi
Patrick Dempsey as adult Louis
Rishi Mehta as Deepak Mehta
Rahul Khanna as adult Deepak
Caitlin O'Heaney as Mrs. Woodbridge
Gabriel Millman as Robert Brewster
Tim Realbuto as Jackson Pheiffer
Chris Morales as Eugene Field
Luca Bigini as Copeland Gray
Michael Coppola as Russell Hall
Sean Fredricks as Mr. Harris
Katherine O'Sullivan as The Nun
Jimmy Walsh as Robert Bell
Nick Hagelin as Martin Blythe IV

Part V (Opinion)

I thought it was a thought provoking movie. I like to look beneath the surface.
Partly because I thought it would cause people, particularly students, to think before
they cheat on a test, etc. It seems to be epidemic these days. I liked the way Hundert
challenged Sedgewick when he first encountered him in the classroom. It was like ―this
is my classroom and you are not going to disturb it.‖ I think Hundert actually admired
Sedgewick because of his individuality, and yet felt sorry for him because of his dad, so
he wanted to give him a chance to shine.
That is why he changed his grade. This is a type of ―rescuing‖ and we see it
happen all the time. They don’t have to experience consequences for their actions. But
we, the viewer, gets to see the consequences of even that kind of thinking in this movie.
Hundert said ―I failed him as a teacher.‖ He didn’t show him the character he needed to
show him. If he had challenged him in the contest at the time it happened, perhaps the
outcome would have been different.
Part VI (Conclusion)

The story is set in an exclusive college school for boys where a history teacher
named Mr. Hundert is working. The college has an interesting motto, ―The end depends
upon the beginning‖. It is somehow the central theme of the entire story because the
teacher’s choice affected the rest of the story. The college also portrays most of the
educational institutions nowadays. Although the time context is somehow in the past,
but in reality, what has transpired in the movie is still applicable in the present situation,
especially in the ethical aspects depicted in the movie.
The story relates itself to the viewers as a reality check of what ethical principles
and character we are holding as a person. There are some questions which transpired
to me while watching the film like: a) It is possible to mold some else’s character? ; b)
Who influence a person’s character and values? ; and c) What makes a person
change?
In conclusion, I quoted one line from Mr. Hundert, ―Wilful ignorance is
intolerable.‖ Ignoring mistakes and people’s wrong actions, especially the young, most
of the time leads to incomprehensible change in a man’s character. We should be
watchful about our thoughts and feelings that we can stand on what we know is right. It
is in situations involving the choice between reason (what is right, fair) and heart
(feelings, which are not always correct) that our character is tested. We are all called to
be a man of character that we may bring goodness to the world.
Part I (Introduction)

Dead Poets Society is a 1989 American drama film directed by Peter Weir,
written by Tom Schulman, and starring Robin Williams. Set in 1959 at the fictional elite
conservative Vermont boarding school Welton Academy, it tells the story of an English
teacher who inspires his students through his teaching of poetry. The film won the
BAFTA Award for Best Film, the César Award for Best Foreign Film and the David di
Donatello Award for Best Foreign Film. Schulman received an Academy Award for Best
Original Screenplay for his wPart II (Summary)
Dead Poets Society explores the conflict between realism and romanticism as
these contrasting ideals are presented to the students at an all boys preparatory school.
Welton Academy is founded on tradition and excellence and is bent on providing strict
structured lessons prescribed by the realist, anti-youth administration. With the dawning
of each new semester, hundreds of parents abandon their sons, leaving them in the
tried hands of Welton staff in hopes that they will raise doctors and lawyers. When a
replacement English teacher arrives, who happens to be a Welton alumnus, he brings
with him a passion for teaching romanticism, thus opening a never-before-seen world to
his students.
The story is predominantly viewed through the eyes of Todd Anderson (Ethan
Hawke), a newcomer to Welton, and his roommate Neil Perry (Robert Sean Leonard).
Todd is painfully shy and terrified that what he might say is insignificant and
meaningless. This is particularly disturbing to him since he is repeatedly told that he has
―big shoes to fill‖ being the younger brother of a former valedictorian. Neil, on the other
hand, is bright and full of ambition, which is unfortunately squelched by his overbearing,
controlling father. Mr. Perry dictates every detail of his son’s life including extra
curricular activities, future plans, and specifically what others think of him.
The new English teacher John Keating (Robin Williams) begins his teachings with a
fervent lecture on their imminent deaths, explaining to the students that their lives are
fleeting so they should seize the day to make their lives count, to leave a legacy of
―carpe diem.‖ He continues his teaching by instructing the class to rip out the pages of
their books which describe a scientific way to determine the greatness of poetry. He
teaches them the works of the romantic poets such as Thoreau and Lord Byron and
employs outdoor exercises to warn them of the dangers of conformity and the power of
sports as a way which human beings push each other to excel.
Amidst these eccentric activities, the students, intrigued with their new teacher, learn
that he was a member of the Dead Poets Society. When asked, Keating describes
glorious moments of creating gods, but warns them to forget about the idea.
Nevertheless, they repeatedly sneak off campus to convene their own version of the
Dead Poets Society. Todd is allowed to attend as an exception: since he does not want
to read aloud, he keeps minutes of the meetings. Throughout these meetings, each
character is able to develop his own romantic or realist nature.
The shocking clash between realism and romanticism begins to unfold when
Charlie Dalton (Gale Hansen) prints an obnoxious article in the school news in the
name of the Dead Poets. The administration is appalled and begins an investigation.
Meanwhile, Knox Overstreet (Josh Charles) fall madly in love with a girl who is
practically engaged to the son of his parent’s friends. He pursues her relentlessly,
driven by romantic ideals, in the face of the threats on his life by her boyfriend. Neil
realizes that his real passion in life is acting and proceeds to land the role of Puck in a
Midsummer Night’s Dream at the local theater. He begins to weave a tangled web of
deception by failing to inform his father, then lying to Mr. Keating when his father finds
out and demands he quit the play. Feeling trapped, after his final performance and a
standing ovation, he takes his own life.
This horrible outrage echoes through the hallowed halls of Welton, applying even
greater pressure to the Dead Poets. When Mr. and Mrs. Perry demand a thorough
investigation, Welton administration links the Dead Poets Society, which they
determined as the cause for the upheaval, to Mr. Keating. Each member is called before
the administration and their parents to sign a confession statement indicating that Mr.
Keating filled their minds with these lofty ideals ultimately leading to Neil’s suicide.
Richard Cameron (Dylan Kussman), ultimately a realist concerned most with doing what
is already determined to be right, signs the statement and encourages the rest of them
to do the same. Knowing full well that Keating was not responsible, Cameron lets him
take the rap to free himself.
Angered by this betrayal, Dalton punches Cameron in an impulsive fit displaying
his final romantic act, only to be expelled. The last to sign, though unwillingly, is Todd,
thus removing John Keating from his treasured position. In one final scene, displaying
the beauty of a balance between the two ideals, Todd is able to cry out to Mr. Keating,
who stopped by the class to collect his belongings, ―O Captain, my Captain!‖ Todd, who
previously had no identity, contributed his verse to mankind, climbing to the top of his
desk to salute his fallen teacher, who changed his life.

Part III (Analysis of the events)

In the autumn of 1959, shy Todd Anderson begins his senior year of high school
at Welton Academy, an all-male, elite prep school. He is assigned one of Welton's most
promising students, Neil Perry, as his roommate and is quickly accepted by Neil's
friends: Knox Overstreet, Richard Cameron, Stephen Meeks, Gerard Pitts, and Charlie
Dalton.
On the first day of classes, they are surprised by the unorthodox teaching
methods of the new English teacher John Keating, a Welton alumnus who encourages
his students to "make your lives extraordinary", a sentiment he summarizes with the
Latin expression carpe diem, meaning "seize the day."
Subsequent lessons include having them take turns standing on his desk to
demonstrate ways to look at life in a different way, telling them to rip out the introduction
of their poetry books which explains a mathematical formula used for rating poetry, and
inviting them to make up their own style of walking in a courtyard to encourage them to
be individuals. His methods attract the attention of strict headmaster Gale Nolan.
Upon learning that Keating was a member of the unsanctioned Dead Poets Society
while he was at Welton, Neil restarts the club and he and his friends sneak off campus
to a cave where they read poetry and verse, including their own compositions. As the
school year progresses, Keating's lessons and their involvement with the club
encourage them to live their lives on their own terms. Knox pursues Chris Noel, an
attractive cheerleader who is dating Chet Danburry, a football player from a local public
school whose family is friends with his.
Neil discovers his love of acting and gets the role as Puck in a local production of
A Midsummer Night's Dream, despite the fact that his domineering father wants him in
the Ivy League (and ultimately medical school). Keating helps Todd come out of his
shell and realize his potential when he takes him through an exercise in self-expression,
resulting in his composing a poem spontaneously in front of the class.
However, Charlie takes things too far when he publishes an article in the school
newspaper in the club's name demanding that girls be admitted to Welton. Nolan
paddles Charlie to coerce him into revealing who else is in the Dead Poets Society, but
he resists. Nolan also speaks with Keating, warning him that he should discourage his
students from questioning authority. Keating does admonish the boys (in his manner),
warning that one must assess all consequences.
Neil's father discovers his son's involvement in the play and forces him to quit on
the eve of the opening performance. Devastated, Neil goes to Keating, who advises him
to stand his ground and prove to his father that his love of acting is something he takes
seriously. Neil's father unexpectedly shows up at the performance. He takes Neil home
and says he has been withdrawn from Welton, only to be enrolled in a military academy
to prepare him for Harvard so he will become a doctor. Unable to find the courage to
stand up to his father, and lacking any support from his concerned mother, a distraught
Neil commits suicide.
Nolan investigates Neil's death at the request of the Perry family. Cameron
blames Neil's death on Keating to escape punishment for his own participation in the
Dead Poets Society, and names the other members. Confronted by Charlie, Cameron
urges the rest of them to let Keating take the fall. Charlie punches Cameron and is
expelled. Each of the boys is called to Nolan's office to sign a letter attesting to the truth
of Cameron's allegations, even though they know they are false. When Todd's turn
comes, he is reluctant to sign, but does so after seeing that the others have complied
and succumbing to his parents' pressure.
Keating is fired and Nolan (who taught English at Welton before becoming headmaster)
takes over teaching the class, with the intent of adhering to traditional Welton rules.
Keating interrupts the class to gather his leftover belongings. As he leaves, Todd stands
up on his desk and says "O Captain! My Captain!", which prompts the other members of
the Dead Poets Society to do the same, to Nolan’s fury and Keating’s pleasant surprise.
Touched by this gesture, Keating proudly thanks the boys and departs.

Part IV (Creative elements)

Characterization

Robin Williams as John Keating

Ethan Hawke as Todd Anderson
Robert Sean Leonard as Neil Perry
Josh Charles as Knox Overstreet
Gale Hansen as Charlie Dalton
Norman Lloyd as Headmaster Gale Nolan
Kurtwood Smith as Thomas Perry
Dylan Kussman as Richard Cameron
James Waterston as Gerard Pitts
Allelon Ruggiero as Steven Meeks
Alexandra Powers as Chris Noel
Leon Pownall as George McAllister, Latin teacher
George Martin as Dr. Hager, maths teacher
Jane Moore as Mrs. Danburry
Kevin Cooney as Joe Danburry
Colin Irving as Chet Danburry
Matt Carey as Kurt Hopkins
John Cunningham as Mr. Anderson
Lara Flynn Boyle as Ginny Danburry

Part V (Opinion)

This movie showed a situation in which an English teacher handled or managed

a class with a unique medium of instruction. It does not follow the traditional type of
assessment like conducting a paper and pencil test or letting the students performed a
particular tasks that deals with real life experiences or performance base assessment.
An English teacher used a strategy that made him feel that his/her students will surely
learn and participate the classroom discussion. He challenged his/her students to create
their own poem without depending or copying to someone’s work and by letting the
learner recite his work in front of the class. Eventually, his students were able to make
it. But there comes a time that the teacher were going to leave his students and the
school due to his strategy in teaching, the students then beg him not to go but rather
stay there and be still their teacher.
As what I’ve observed that despite of his unique teaching he was then became
very successful not just to encourage the student but more likely to build a strong
relationship with his students. I will be a future educator someday, it is important that we
love, care and teach our students with passion and sincerity. Let them explore
learning’s by their own. Let them discover themselves by engaging them in the real
world experiences and letting them go outside in the classroom sometimes because
learning is not just limited to the four corners of the classroom.

Part VI (Conclusion)

Teachers are heroes. The movie takes place at a small preparatory boys'
school. The story follows the lives of a group of students and the way that Mr. Keating’s
teachings influence them. He encourages the boys to become freethinkers and to live
life and let them learn to the real life scenarios.
In conclusion, despite of the different strategy of Mr. Keating’s the students have
learned. All the strategies or approaches are effective defends on how the teacher apply
it to the students. As a future educator, we have to be more creative and passion on the
way we teach different kinds of students.