The Methods Of Authoritarian Parenting Style In The Film Dead Poets Society
Dead Poets Society is a 1989 film, directed by Peter Weir, which won an Academy Award. It says the tales of John Keating (Robin Williams), who was an English teacher at a prestigious 1950s all-boys Preparatory School, Welton Academy. Mr. Keating tried using unorthodox learning methods for his students, helping them overcome their reluctance to make changes to their individual lives and stimulates their poetry and literature interests.
The perspective of the movie is primarily viewed through the eyes of Todd Anderson (Ethan Hawke), and his roommate Neil Perry (Robert Sean Leonard). Todd is a new student going to Welton Academy for his senior year, and his brother was a valedictorian at the elite school, as a result of this, he was pressured into doing well at school by a majority of the professors and the Headmaster, saying that he has big shoes to fill. It also does not help that Todd is astoundingly timid and cautious about every word that he speaks because he was frightened that what he might say would be insignificant and meaningless. Todd’s roommate, Neil Perry was an enthusiastic and ambitious student, unlike Todd. Unfortunately for Neil, he has an astoundingly strict and autocratic father. Mr. Perry was highly controlling of Neil and dictated everything his son did such as making him going to summer school for Chemistry, forcing him to go to medical school, and even canceling some of Neil’s extra-curricular activities that Neil signed up for to ensure that he is fully focused on his academic endeavors.
The new English teacher John Keating, who is an alumnus at Welton Academy, used a multitude of unconventional teaching methods that completely defies the traditional standard that Welton Academy upheld for generations. An example of this can be seen when Keating instructed his students to rip a chapter in the students’ poetry textbook, which talked about a scientific and mathematical theory that aims to determine the quality of poetry. John Keating’s classes were what the students look forward to the most every day because most classes used dull teaching methods along with assigning the students excessive amounts of homework. Mr. Keating said to his students that life is short and that they should “seize the day” to make their lives worth it and leave a legacy of “carpe diem.” Keating later revealed that he was a member of the disbanded Dead Poets Society, which inspired the boys to restart the club. They would sneak out of their accommodation a few times a week to go into the woods to read their poems or any other famous poetry pieces. Keating’s tales of the Dead Poets Society influenced the boys to develop and pursue their own goals.
For Neil, it was his newfound love for acting; he even lied to his father so that he could be in the play. When his father found out, he forced Neil out of Welton’s Academy and transferred him to a military school to prepare for Harvard. Neil, having no voice in the family and not getting support from his mother, was extremely tormented, and he commited suicide. Later on, the school blamed Mr. Keating because of his unorthodox teaching, resulting in Keating losing his position as a teacher. When Mr. Keating went to collect his belongings in the classroom where the boys were studying, Todd mustered the courage to stand on the table and expressed his gratitude. Other boys did the same thing, much to the disapproval of the Headmaster, who was a substitute. The painfully shy and introverted Todd was able to break out of his shell with his newfound confidence and salute his teacher for the final time to convey his thanks for changing his life.
Neil’s life showed me that the Authoritarian Parenting style that Mr. Perry demonstrated in the movie is the least suitable to raise a child. What is the Authoritarian Parenting style? Authoritarian Parenting style, one of the four parenting styles (the others being Authoritative, Permissive, and Neglectful), identified by psychologist Diana Baumrind in the 1960s, is characterized by having “high demands, but low responsiveness.” High demands signifies that the parents will attempt to exert high levels of control over their child’s upbringing. Low responsiveness refers to the fact that parents care little about the emotional and developmental needs of the kid. Parents will usually set a very high standard for their child and expect them to meet that standard. Authoritarian parents tend to micromanage their children and establish stringent rules, and they demand their children to follow with blind obedience and will use reasons such as “because I said so” to make their children oblige. We can observe this in the film where Mr. Perry expected Neil to never dispute him in public after he said that he wanted to remain in extra-curricular activity. A notable trait of an authoritarian parent is that they only allow one-way communication. They do not include their child’s opinion in decision making, even if the matter is of personal value to the child. A prime example of this is Mr. Perry forcing Neil to quit acting and not allowing him fight for his passion.
Even though I said Authoritarian parenting style is the least effective style, there are many benefits that this style brings about. Children who were brought up in an authoritarian environment tend to obey all rules. They will blindly follow through with whatever that they have been asked to do. It will benefit the children in the long run because as they become adults, they will become adapted to a professional working environment where strict rules have to be obeyed. Authoritarian parents set small clear objectives so that their children can follow through to achieve an overall bigger goal. As a consequence, children will know what to do in each step towards the final goal, and this will help reduce any potential mistakes. Authoritarian parenting can help children become more goal-oriented and will often lead to them becoming successful business owners. Ultimately, I think that the benefits of Authoritarian Parent does not outweigh the cost. I do not think that kids should sacrifice communication skills just to learn how to obey rules
Many researches have also indicated that Authoritarian Parenting style is the least effective style. A child’s outcome associated with this style has shown to be more insecure, to have lower self-esteem, and even to perform worse academically. Despite multiple studies, why are there so many parents who still adopt this style? Why do parents still think Authoritarian is the best approach to raise their kids? It cannot be because our parents do not love us; one of the reasons why this is evident could be that parents think discipline is the best value and that by exerting their will onto their child, they will develop a sense of self-control. They do not trust their children because they think their child will stray off the right path. As a result, parents force their will onto their children; they think this will lead to improved behavior from their children. Another reason why parents may be that they were raised this way by their parents and that it has proved well for them in the old days, therefore, they assume that this will work on their children. However, this is not the case as every child is different from one another, and the style that worked on them does not mean it will work on their children.
Growing up with strict “Tiger Parent,” I relate to Neil a lot. Just like him, I was forced by my parents to do many things that I dreaded, such as going to night school and was pressured into doing well academically, even if I have to sacrifice my health. My parents even to the extreme of stopping me from playing sports in order to focus on my school work because they saw that my academic performance slightly dropped during the semester. At home, my parents micromanaged my brothers and me through imposed outlandishly strict rules on and us a lot. Just like Neil, I was constantly reminded by my parents that they never had the opportunities I have and that I must follow the direction that was set out for me to make them proud. While I was never suicidal, I have gotten depressed at times. I thought that they did not love me and were forcing me to follow their orders just so that it would look good for the family. However, this was just their version of love. They believed that by getting me on a successful path and not letting me stray off that path by any means is the most important goal as parents. They only want the best for me and are happy with the fact that I would hate them for dictating my life, as long as I grew up to be successful.
Children are complicated, beautiful beings. They require heavy emotional care from their parents in order to develop their personality and identity, but the use of Authoritarian Parenting will not allow them to do that. This parenting style makes children unable to communicate freely because they grew up only dependant on their parents judgement and order. One alternative to this type of parenting is Authoritative Parenting. This is a high demand and high responsiveness and has been proven to carry the most benefits out of all four styles. Parents who adapt to a more authoritative sets high standards for their children, as well as care for their emotional needs, which will aid them in developing social skills that the Authoritarian approach is unable to achieve. Even Though Authoritarian can be extreme, many households still utilize this style to raise their children, and they will need to change to an Authoritative Parenting style so that their children will become more social and have higher self-esteem.
