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Keating: "Oh Captain, My Captain" who knows
where that comes from? Anybody?
Not a clue? It's from a poem by Walt Whitman
about Mr. Abraham Lincoln. Now in this class you can either call
me Mr. Keating. Or, if you're slightly more daring, Oh Captain,
My Captain. Now let me
dispel a few rumors so they don't
fester into facts. Yes, I too attended Welton and survived. And no, at
that time I was not the mental giant you see before you. I was
the intellectual equivalent of a ninety-eight pound weakling. I
would go to the beach and people would kick copies of Byron in
my face. Now, Mr. Pitts? That's a rather unfortunate name. Mr.
Pitts, where are you? Mr. Pitts? Would you open your hymnal to
page 542 and read the first stanza of the poem you find there?
Pitts: To the virgins, to make much of time?
Keating: Yes, that's the one. Somewhat appropriate, isn't it.
Pitts: Gather ye rosebuds while ye may, old time is still a
flying, and this same flower that smiles today, tomorrow will be
dying.
Keating: Thank you Mr. Pitts. "Gather ye rosebuds while ye
may." The Latin term for that sentiment is Carpe Diem. Now who
knows what that means?
Meeks: Carpe Diem. That's "seize the day".
Keating: Very good, Mr.-
Meeks: Meeks.
Keating: Meeks. Another unusual name. Seize the day. Gather
ye rosebuds while ye may. Why does the writer use these lines?
Charlie: Because he's in a hurry.
Keating: No, ding!
Keating: Thank you for playing anyway. Because we are food
for worms, lads. Because, believe
it or not, each and every one of us in this room
is one day going to stop breathing, turn cold, and die.
Keating: Now I would like you to step forward over here and
peruse some of the faces from the past. You've walked past them
many times. I don't think you've really looked at them. They're
not that different from you, are they? Same haircuts, full of
hormones, just like you. Invincible, just like you feel.
The world is their oyster.
They believe they're destined for great things, just like many
of you. Their eyes are full of hope, just like you. Did they
wait until it was too late to make from their lives even one
iota of what they
were capable? Because you see, gentlemen, these boys are now
fertilizing daffodils. But if you listen real close, you can
hear them whisper their legacy to you. Go on, lean in. Carpe.
Hear it? Carpe. Carpe. Carpe Diem. Seize the day boys, make your
lives extraordinary. |
| Answers
1.
dispel
( to remove fears, doubts and false ideas,
usually by proving them wrong or unnecessary )
2.
fester
( If an argument or bad feeling festers,
it continues so that feelings of hate or dissatisfaction increase )
3.
peruse
( to read through something )
4.
The world is their oyster
( Everything is going their way )
5.
iota
( one extremely small amount ) |
