Great Leaders In Walt Whitman's O Captain, My Captain

Throughout history, there have been great leaders who guide and influence others. Not all leaders are necessarily respectable, but they all have one thing in common: they inspire. People look up to leaders for guidance- whether that’s political, social, or personal. In the poem, “O Captain, My Captain” by Walt Whitman, his inspiration is Abraham Lincoln. Leaders like Abraham Lincoln influenced and inspired Americans at a time of need. He united the country, but although he was a great leader, he also paid for it with his life; Going against conformity often leads to a downfall in some way. In Dead Poets Society, there is also evidence of leadership, leading to downfall, through Mr. Keating as he teaches his Wilton students about carpe diem

Keating and Walt Whitman’s use of Abraham Lincoln, show society how to be independent and to go against conformity. Mr. Keating teaches his students about conformity when he does an educational exercise in the courtyard; His reasoning for leading the boys in a walking exercise is to show how “everyone started off with their own stride, their own pace” (DPS). Mr. Keating wants his students to have their own stride, not to have an army- like composition where everybody is in sync to the same rhythm. People go about their lives at different paces than others, and Mr. Keating teaches his students that it is okay to be different from society- to be a non- conformist. He influences them to be more independent, and to have a say in life. He says to them, “you must trust that your beliefs are unique, your own, even though others may think them odd or unpopular…” (DPS). The students are inspired by his lesson to the point where they visibly change throughout the film into different people. Neil realized his father would never let him act, and decided to kill himself. This action may not have happened if Mr. Keating wasn’t at Wilton. The school board blamed Mr. Keating, and let him go- even though the students knew it was not his fault and did not want him to leave. When he left, he realized the impact he made when the students stood on top of their desks and called him “O Captain, My Captain.” In Walt Whitman’s poem, he also touches on the fact that Abraham Lincoln’s leadership was going against conformity. Lincoln wanted the country to be united again, not separated into the north and the south. Lincoln had to go against many political figures that disagreed with him in order to establish his independence, and to create a unified country; He had to walk at his own pace in order to achieve his goals. In the poem, Walt Whitman writes, “The ship is anchor’d safe and sound, its voyage closed and done,” (19). Whitman is commenting on how Lincoln is safe