However, the speaker is clearly seen to be mourning through the repetition of fallen cold and dead at the conclusion of each stanza. The nation is depicted as being rejoiceful and quickly moving on from any sacrifices made –emphasizing a nation’s wellbeing over an individual’s. It was ultimately a great lesson on how to prioritise studies though.įor you bouquets and ribbon’d wreaths-for you the shores a-crowding, / For you they call, the swaying mass, their eager faces turning Īnother juxtaposition found throughout this poem is the distinction between the speaker and the nation’s response. It seems like a weird flex, but I felt that the sacrifices I made for my physical and mental health far outweighed the grades that I got. Personally, one of the saddest moments of my Undergraduate degree was when I achieved straight H1s for my second year of Biomedicine. However, occasionally one must acknowledge the sacrifices made to get to that position sacrifices which may have far been too great to be fair.īut O heart! heart! heart! / O the bleeding drops of red, / Where on the deck my Captain lies, / Fallen cold and dead. When one’s fearful trip is done (=success over trials), it might be human instinct to immediately celebrate. As a result, victory and loss are closely intertwined throughout the poem and this juxtaposition illustrates the close nature between victory, and any associated pain. While “O Captain! My Captain!” was written at a time of celebration with the conclusion of the American Civil War, this poem is also an elegy for President Abraham Lincoln’s assassination. O Captain! my Captain! our fearful trip is done, / The ship has weather’d every rack, the prize we sought is won… I found the symbolism of this piece to the overall plot of the movie to be hauntingly beautiful. In Dead Poets Society, “O Captain! My Captain!” is the phrase used by the students to address an unorthodox but inspiring English teacher, Mr. While the movie references many poems, the one that sticks out is this one by Walt Whitman. The movie emphasizes the importance of both literature and critical thought two forces that define much of who I am today. I recently watched Dead Poets Society (1989) and absolutely loved it. The ship is anchor’d safe and sound, its voyage closed and done,įrom fearful trip the victor ship comes in with object won My father does not feel my arm, he has no pulse nor will, My Captain does not answer, his lips are pale and still, Rise up-for you the flag is flung-for you the bugle trills,įor you bouquets and ribbon’d wreaths-for you the shores a-crowding,įor you they call, the swaying mass, their eager faces turning O Captain! my Captain! rise up and hear the bells While follow eyes the steady keel, the vessel grim and daring The port is near, the bells I hear, the people all exulting, The ship has weather’d every rack, the prize we sought is won, O Captain! my Captain! our fearful trip is done, “O Captain! My Captain!” by Walt Whitman (read by Tom O’Bedlam):
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