Complex Human Experience in Rosemary Dobson's Poems and Peter Weir’s Film Dead Poets Society
‘One life behind and one before and I that stood between denied’
In cock crow, the persona yearns for independence, but her domestic duty restricts her, reflecting the complex impact of collective experiences on individual human experiences. Hi and welcome to Our Experiences, your late-night sleep deprived dose of textual analysis. Tonight, we’ll be discussing the ambivalence of our sense of duty to others in Cock crow and the complexities of relationships in the conversation, both of which are poems by Rosemary Dobson, in comparison to Peter Weir’s film Dead Poets Society to explore the ways shared experiences impact individuals and how complexities of the human experience are represented.
Dobson represents the conflict between domestic duty and personal pursuits in “Cock crow”. The persona’s desire to escape her domestic duties is expressed in “Wanting to be myself, alone,” where the use of “wanting” emphasises her yearning. This is reinforced by the use of first person which suggests her independence, and by the caesuras around “alone”, highlighting her isolation. However, the persona’s hesitance to pursue her desire is metaphorically represented by “between the lit house and the town” in which the “lit house” is the secure domestic world and the “town” is the unknown, external world. The biblical allusion, “Thrice for me I heard the cock crow” refers to Peter betraying Jesus thrice and compares the persona to Peter, which emphasises her guilt and heightens her indecisiveness. However, her inability to leave her domestic role is implied in the hyperbole ‘love that grows about the bone”, portraying her biological love as an inherent, inseparable emotion.
Similarly, in Dead Poets Society, the tension between the traditional values of the school and the passions of the students is explored. In this scene, the upbeat music in the background and Neil’s bright facial expressions portray his love for acting, and his loud, enthusiastic delivery, restlessness along with the dynamic camera movements convey his excitement. However, when he is confronted by the demands of his father who belittles his dreams, his struggle is portrayed through his painful facial expressions and submissive remarks.
Unlike “Cock Crow”, this experience is not represented as isolating, but we are shown how relationships support an individual’s conflict. Neil approaches Mr Keating for help, where the warm ambience of the room along with Mr Keating’s soft voice and uplifting words contrasts with his father’s hostility and harsh voice. However, Neil is sadly unable to tolerate the dilemma and commits suicide, which highlights the fatal impact of societal restrictions on the individual.
In “The Conversation”, Dobson explores the changing influence relationships have due to age. A unique connection is established between the persona and the old man as they communicate through gestures such as “He punched into his cap”. This action is translated into the dialogue, “This is a morning!” which displays their mutual understanding as a result of their intimate bond. The stability of their relationship displayed in “That over the hills lay China and both of us should go”. The notion of “overcoming hills” signifies overcoming difficult challenges, and China had mysterious and exotic connotations in the 1950s Australian context, so the persona’s confidence to face challenges and the unknown together indicates their secure and trustworthy bond. However, the events are revealed to be from “Years and years ago” and “talk as only children and fools may try”, displaying the persona’s changed perception due to the loss of childhood innocence. This is reinforced by the oxymoron “Excellent old madman” as the persona is aware of his wisdom but also sees him through society’s eyes. Therefore, the persona’s reflection on the relationship allows them to see their change in values.
Likewise, shared experiences between Mr Keating and the students in the Dead Poets Society creates a sense of security for the students, but it can enrich their understanding and change their perspectives, which can have positive and negative consequences. Mr Keating values individualism and motivates his students with the motto ‘Carpe diem’ which means seize the day, or to live life to the fullest. At first the students are shocked by his unorthodox and dynamic teaching methods in contrast with the traditional and dull lessons of other teachers, but they later fully embrace his invidualistic values. This is depicted the final scene where the students stand on their desks in opposition to Mr Keating’s departure. Standing on the desk to look at things differently is a concept Mr Keating taught them, which highlights his impact on the students. Mr Keating has had the largest impact on Todd, who was shy and unable to speak up in the beginning, but has become more expressive by the end, as he took the initiative of standing on his desk. However, his ideologies are taken in the wrong way by Charlie who gets himself expelled. Thus, the inconsistent impact of relationships is explored in the film.
Dobson and Weir’s representations of complex human experiences allows us to connect with the collective experienced that are explored and invites us to look at human experiences differently.
